The Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), located in Genoa, has developed a robot dog called VERO that is dedicated to solving one of the most serious pollution problems: cigarette butts in the streets. Designed in Claudio Semini’s laboratory, this robot dog is equipped with vacuum cleaners in its paws that allow it to efficiently collect cigarette waste, the second most common type of waste on our planet.
Annually, of the six trillion cigarettes consumedapproximately four billion end up on the ground, releasing more than 700 toxic chemicals that damage both ecosystems and urban aesthetics. While the ideal solution would be to change human behavior to prevent this pollution, VERO offers a technological alternative to address this environmental problem directly.
How does this robot dog pick up trash?
VERO, which stands for Vacuum Equipped Robot, is designed on the basis of an AlienGo model from Unitree. AlienGo model from Unitree model with a commercial vacuum fitted to its rear. The design includes hoses that extend to each leg and terminate in a 3D printed nozzle designed to optimize suction without restricting the robot’s mobility. This unique configuration allows VERO to identify and pick up objects from the floor autonomously.
VERO sucks in cigarette butts while on the move. Source: Dynamic Legged Systems lab.
VERO solves the problem of cigarette butts
The robot can operate autonomouslyonce it is assigned a specific area to clean. It develops a route plan to ensure complete coverage of the area and uses cameras along with neural networks to detect cigarette butts. Tests have shown that VERO can pick up to 90% of cigarette butts in a variety of environments, highlighting its efficiency, even if it is not particularly fast.
What sets VERO apart is its ability to use its legs to both move and perform specific tasks, a first in quadruped robotics. The researchers suggest that this technology could be expanded to include other functions such as spraying in agriculture, infrastructure inspection infrastructure inspection or even the placement of elements in constructionsThe researchers anticipate that each leg could be adapted to perform different tasks with simple software adjustments.
Details about the development of VERO were published in the Journal of field robotics.
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Source: newsbytesapp
Photo: Dynamic Legged Systems lab
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