Roach-like robot could one day be used to find quake survivors


The latest creation from University of California at Berkeley's robotics researchers draws its inspiration from that seemingly indestructible insect: the cockroach.
Known as DASH Plus Wings, it scampers along at 1.3 meters per second and climbs 17-degree inclines. (DASH stands for Dynamic Autonomous Sprawled Hexapod.) The researchers hope that some day, with further development, the robots used in large numbers could aid in search efforts for survivors of disasters such as earthquakes.
SmartPlanet's Sumi Das gets a close look at the mini machine, which has also shed some light on the evolution of flight in animals.