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DASH

Details

DASH is a little insect-inspired robot designed for search-and-rescue and remote sensing applications. It can run, climb over obstacles, and survive falls from any height (just don't step on it).

Creator
University of California at Berkeley
Country
United States 🇺🇸
Year
2009
Type
Research
Creator
University of California at Berkeley
Country
United States 🇺🇸
Year
2009
Type
Research

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Did You Know?

DASH stands for "Dynamic Autonomous Sprawled Hexapod."
A newer version of DASH is equipped with a set of wings to help it run faster.
With its pliable design and rotary leg motion, DASH can climb over obstacles that are taller than it is.

Specs

FEATURES
Lightweight, inexpensive, and robust design. Capable of running at speeds of 1.5 m/s, or 15 times its own body length per second.
HEIGHT
5 cm | 2 in
LENGTH
10 cm | 3.9 in
WIDTH
10 cm | 3.9 in
WEIGHT
0.016 kg | 0.035 lb
SPEED
5.4 km/h | 3.4 mph

SENSORS
Three-axis accelerometer, three-axis gyroscope. Cellphone camera optional.
ACTUATORS
One brushed DC motor (for moving the legs) and one shape-memory-alloy servomotor (for turning).
POWER
3.7-V 50-mAh lithium-polymer battery, 30 minutes to several hours of operation, depending on use.
COMPUTING
40 MHz microcontroller
SOFTWARE
Custom firmware
DEGREES OF FREEDOM (DOF)
2
MATERIALS
Paper composite body with polymer flexure joints.
COST
$100 (approximate cost of parts)
STATUS
Inactive
WEBSITE
http://robotics.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ronf/Biomimetics.html

History

Created by Paul Birkmeyer and Professor Ronald Fearing at the Biomimetic Millisystems Lab at UC Berkeley, DASH is extremely lightweight and uses a single DC motor to power the legs and a small servomotor to slightly deform the robot's body, making it turn left or right. DASH went through several dozen revisions prior to the published version. This was possible due to the inexpensive materials used and the rapid prototyping manufacturing processes used to make DASH. DASH has since been succeeded by CLASH, a small hexapod that leverages the lessons of DASH to create climbing robotic platform.