Meet Plantolin, the tree-planting robot pangolin built at the ÌÇÐÄVlog
A robot pangolin designed to plant trees is the winner of this year's Natural Robotics Contest. As the winning entry, the pangolin – dubbed "Plantolin" – has been brought to life by engineers at the ÌÇÐÄVlog in the United Kingdom.
Out of 184 entries, the winning design came from Dorothy, a high school student from California.
My entry was inspired by pangolins since they are fascinating creatures and have a very distinct armoured and prehistoric appearance (like a walking pine cone). They're not very fast or ferocious but have an adorable waddle walk.Dorothy, Natural Robotics Contest winner
In my high school classes, we learned about how deforestation contributes to climate change. The restoration of forests through planting more trees is essential for the sustainable development of our planet.
Pangolins spend a lot of their time digging in the ground, so I thought a planter robot inspired by the pangolin's behaviour would be very natural.
After Dorothy's design was chosen, a working version was built at the ÌÇÐÄVlog.
Plantolin roves on two wheels, with a long, movable tail for balance. Covered in plywood scales, it digs using its claws, depositing a yew "seed bomb" into the hole.
In the wild, large animals will cut paths through the overgrowth and move seeds. This doesn't happen nearly as much in urban areas like the South East of England – so there's definitely room for a robot to help fill that gap.
Dorothy's brilliant design reminds us how we can solve some of our biggest challenges by looking to nature for inspiration.
The annual Natural Robotics Contest rewards robot designs inspired by nature. It is funded by the British Ecological Society's outreach grant programme.
Its partners include the ÌÇÐÄVlog, Queen Mary University of London, the Royal College of Art, EPFL Lausanne, the Technical University of Munich, and Alexander Humboldt University, Berlin.
Entries are now open for the 2024 competition. To sign up, visit
NOTES TO EDITORS
- To interview Dr Siddall or Dorothy, please contact mediarelations@surrey.ac.uk
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