UNIVERSITY OF HERTFORDSHIRE COMPUTER SCIENCE RESEARCH COLLOQUIUM presents "Invertebrate Robots: The Next Generation" Prof. Ian Walker (Clemson University, USA) 11 February 2014 (**Tuesday**) 10 am -11 am Hatfield, College Lane Campus Seminar Room B200 Everyone is Welcome to Attend Refreshments will be available Abstract: Traditional robots are built from rigid components, with local movement possible at only a small fraction of the structure (joints between links). While this approach is ideal for high precision industrial automation, current and future applications for robots require greater structural adaptability, and a softer environmental interface. This talk will review the state of the art in the emerging area of soft and "invertebrate" robots. In particular, recent efforts in the development of biologically inspired manipulators will be presented and discussed. The state of the art in the design and development continuous backbone "continuum" robots will be reviewed. Instances where insight from invertebrate structures in biology and their behaviors have influenced that of their robot counterparts will be emphasized. Current and potential future novel applications for the technology will be covered. --------------------------------------------------- Hertfordshire Computer Science Research Colloquium http://cs-colloq.stca.herts.ac.uk