Forget robots, new 'Morphobot' developed by Caltech, flies, drives, walks and rolls

Caltech has developed the M4, short for Multi-Modal Mobility Morphobot, that can drive, walk, and fly.

Meet the new Morphobot - M4. (Caltech)

The day of the robot is over? Well, meet the M4! It is the artificial assistant you have always craved for, but no one could ever build. The California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has developed a new RC car-sized Morphobot that can transform its structure to walk, drive, and fly. This morphobot is called M4 ( Multi-Modal Mobility Morphobot). it is built with the latest electronics, motors, and a small computer that help it decide which shape to turn into.

Over the years we have seen the robotics industry evolve from the basic to what is now virtually achieving miracles. With the advance of technology and artificial intelligence helping it along the way, robotics has stepped up its game to bring high-tech robots that are like humans and M4 is a great example of this.

According to Nature's report, the team who designed M4 installed huge wheels that swing and resemble the design of a drone that can take a flight in seconds. In addition, it can climb steep hills using its rotors as a source of power. The robot also stands with the help its two gigantic wheels and can walk if it wants to.

According to The Verge, the M4 is designed by Mory Gharib, a professor of aeronautics and bioinspired engineering at Caltech, in partnership with Alireza Ramezani, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at Northeastern University.

The M4 can shift into eight different positions and can make its own decision with the help of artificial intelligence. It judges the environment and shifts its form accordingly. It had the ability to take injured people to hospitals or explore other planets and distant worlds.

Not just motion transformation and inbuilt AI, it has a Jetson Nano CPU, a small computer with a robotics focus from Nvidia. And the design is inspired by illustrations of meerkats and walruses.

"Our aim was to push the boundaries of robot locomotion by designing a system that showcases extraordinary mobility capabilities with a wide range of distinct locomotion modes.," Nature quoted Ramezani as saying.

Caltech says, that the real-life game-changer was AI as it gave the most effective combination of motions to maneuver.