Flying fish could be used in hazardous areas

Researchers who built it hope in the future it will be able to go where birds, planes and human beings can't.

London: This generation's human race is trying to cling on to the robotic solutions to get through dangerous or inhospitable environments.

Inspired by the flying fish theory scientists are creating a small robot which will eventually be able to operate on land and water.

Researchers who built it hope in the future it will be able to go where birds, planes and human beings can't.

Although, the robot is powered by a chemical reaction from a fuel which is the size of a grain of rice and can travel 26 metres through the air after take-off.

However, the fish robot is one of the prototypes that are being built at the Aerial Robotics Laboratory at Imperial College London.

Researcher Raphael Zufferey said, "So this robot operates on a very simple principle of flying into the water and at this point it passively moves to an angle where it fills up with water, at this point of time we turn on our peristaltic micropump which drops a droplet of water onto the calcium carbide CAC tube which immediately reacts with the water. That generates acetylene gas which is accumulated in the top half of the chamber blocked by the water at the bottom. This acetylene gas travels up the pipes and is fed into the combustion chamber in the air region, where it mixes with the air."

Meanwhile, the scientists are still working on some major obstacles which might prove to be a hindrance in its successful flight.

In terms of fuel, it requires 0.2 grams of calcium carbide powder in a combustion chamber and a small pump inside it will draw in water from the robot's environment.

Being a robot it has to be light weighted and the ignition needs to be safe and secure if has to stay intact in the water.

The team of scientists had tested the robot in a lab, in a lake and a wave tank.

The main aim of the robot is to collect water or similar samples in hazardous situations. Scientists are targetting the oil platforms which has risers which tends to corrode, they're difficult to inspect because of the waves around them.

It'll allow the researchers to have a proper survey of the flooded areas. And also collect information about the areas which are in the highest danger.

The robot is a long way from being deployed, it has not yet been designed to carry a camera, sensors or samples.

The Imperial team is now working with the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) to build new vehicles using advanced materials before beginning new field trials.