DBIO Short Course: Physics Meets Robotics: Hands-On Locomotion Robophysics

Robots are moving from the factory floor and into our lives (autonomous cars, homecare assistants, search and rescue devices, pets). However, despite the fascinating questions such future “living systems” pose for scientists, the study of such systems has been dominated by engineers and computer scientists. We propose that interaction of researchers studying dynamical systems, soft materials, and living systems can help discover principles which will allow physical robotic devices to interact with the real world in qualitatively different ways than they do now. This short course is designed to actively engage physicists in the challenges of robotics. Short course participants will design and construct small robots, studying how they can self-propel in different environments, and comparing the experiments to a geometric theory of self-propulsion. The short course will take place over a full day and enrollment will be limited to 30 participants; breakfast and snacks/coffee will be provided.