This Robotic Tongue Can Snatch Things Quickly

If you’ve ever played with a tape measure before when you were a kid, then you know how fascinating it is to watch the metal ruler go back quickly in its default place. But it’s not just kids who find this mechanism fascinating; scientists do, too. In fact, they were so fascinated and inspired by this that they created this chameleon-like robot that can snatch objects quickly from a distance.

Snatcher, as the robot’s called, wasn’t just inspired by tape measures. If you look closely the tongue part that shoots out and retracts is the metal ruler salvaged from an actual tape measure because of its ability to neatly roll up very quickly. The rest of the robo-chameleon weighs in at less than 120 grams and features a custom wind-up spring-powered mechanism with a special clutch that can quickly alternate between powering a gear that extends the long metal tongue and a gear that retracts it.

The results are analogous to how a chameleon’s tongue works, although Mother Nature’s approach is more refined and far more accurate than this prototype.

These scientists state believe that this device could be useful for people who have physical disabilities. It still has lots of room for improvement, however.

The simple hook on the end of the tongue the prototype uses isn’t necessarily ideal for this purpose as objects can be easily dropped. But the researchers are looking into upgrading it with a gripper that would securely close once making contact with a target, maintaining its grasp until fully retracted.

What are your thoughts about this one?

(Image Credit: IEEE Spectrum/ Gizmodo)