CLAYTRONICS

Technical Seminar
By
Shreyas B
(4KM09ME050)
CLAYTRONICS

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
CLAYTRONICS PROJECT

HARDWARE
SOFTWARE

CAPABILITIES
APPLICATIONS
ENVISIONING THE FUTURE

CLAYTRONICS

INTRODUCTION

CATOMS.
SIMILAR TO A NANO-MACHINE.
PROGRAMMABLE MATTER.
LOCAL COMPUTATION.
ACTUATION.
STORAGE.
ENERGY.
SENSING & COMMUNICATION.

CLAYTRONICS

FUTURE CATOMS

CLAYTRONICS PROJECT

SETH GOLDSTIEN , an Associate

Professor in the computer science
department at Carnegie Mellon University.
TODD MOWRY , Director of Intel Research
, Pittsburgh.

CLAYTRONICS

CLAYTRONICS

Continued.....

The Project Is Being Funded By

Intel.
Carnegie Mellon University.
The National Science foundation.
The Defense Advanced Research

Foundation Research Agency(DARPA).

This Technology Combines NanoMachine And Large-Scale Computing.

Turning Test.

Continued.....

The Project Combines Two Principle Paths

To Create This Technology.
Engineering Design And Testing Of Modular

Robotic Catom Prototype.

Creation Of Programming Languages And
Software Algorithms.

Claytronics Technology Seeks Pioneering

Advances On The Scale Of The Extremely Small.
The Scale Of The Extremely Numerous.

CLAYTRONICS

Continued..

Three Goals To Create The Tiniest Modular Robot As

Micro-Electrical-Mechanical System.
To Conceive The Linguistic Framework For
Software Programming.
Design Program Algorithm.

NANO MATERIALS
CLAYTRONICS

HARDWARE
At Current Claytronics Hardware
Operates From Macro-Scale Devices.
Such Devices Are Designed To Test
Concept For Sub-Millimeter Scale
Modules.

Electrostatics Latches.
Cubes.
Planner Catoms.

CLAYTRONICS

MILLIMETER SCALE
CATOMS

Electrostatically Actuated And SelfContained.

CYLINDERICAL CATOM
CLAYTRONICS

ELECTROSTATIC LATCHES
A Parallel Plate Capacitor Is Constructed From Flexible
Electrodes Of Aluminum Foil And Dielectric Film To
Create Adhesion Force From Electrostatic Pressure.
A Latch Forms When The Faces Of Two Adjacent
Modules Come Together And create An Electrostatic Field
Between The Flexible Electrodes
Not Only Provide Adhesion And Structural Ability But Also
Provide Transmission Of Power And Communication.

ELECTROSTATIC
LATCHES
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Continued..

Construction:

Star Shaped Face Supports A Passive Self

Alignment Of The Link 45-Degree Blade Angle At
The Top Of Each Comb On The Face.
Disengagement With A 5-Degree Release Angle
Along The Vertical Lines Of The Face.
Employing Capacitive Coupling ,The Latch
Adheres With A Force Of 0.6 N/cm2.
Currently E.L. Is Of 28cm Size On A Side.

ELECTROSTATIC
LATCHES
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CUBES
It Provides A Base Of
Automation For
Electrostatic Latches.
Its Geometry Enables
Reliable Coupling Of
Modules

CUBES
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Continued..

Lattice-Style Modular
robot: 22 cubic cm Cube.
22cm When Fully
Contracted & 44cm When
Fully Expanded.
Many Cubes Form A
Matrix.
Linear Motion Of The
Cubes Helps In Exploiting
Lateral Flexibility.
Forming Shapes Within
The Matrix.
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PLANAR CATOMS
Test Bed For The
Architecture Of
Micro-ElectroMechanical System.
45 Times Larger In
Diameter Than
Millimeter Scale
Catom.

PLANAR CATOM

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Continued.

Planar Catoms With Infrared

communication board..IrDA

Planar Catoms With

LEDs..V6

Top View Of Two Magnet

Rings Of Planar
Catoms..V7

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Continued..

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SOFTWARE
Distributed Computing In Claytronics.
An Internet In A Box.
For The Nodes ,Its All About Cooperation.

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Distributed Computing In
Claytronics

Meld
Program Is Written In Assembly-Centric

Viewpoint.
A Program Is Then Distributed Into Individual
Program That Make Up The Assembly.
Program Written Are Concise.

LPD[Locally Distributed Predicates]

LPD Employs Distributed Pattern Matching.
Programmer Address A Larger Set Of

Variables With Boolean Logic.

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Matrix Of 20000
Catoms
Each

Catoms
Forms A Individual
Computing Node.
The Matrix
Compares With The
World Wide
Reservoir Of
Computing
Resources Via
INTERNET.

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An Internet In A Box
Catoms Are Not Connected Using
Wires.
Translating Data For Computers
Matrix Is A Highly Organized ,Single
Purpose ,Densely Concentrated And
Physically Dynamic Network Of Unwired
Nodes That Creates A Connection By
Rotating Contacts With The Neighbours.

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CAPABILITIES
Computation.
Motion.
Power.
Communication.
Creation Of Replica.

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APPLICATION
Medicine.
Disaster Relief.
Entertainment.
3D Physical Modeling.

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ENVISIONING THE
FUTURE
Five Years Here On, The DPR
Researchers Expect That Cotoms Will
Take The Shape Of Sphere.
The Size Is Also Assumed To Decrease
Tremendously.
The Technology Should Be Available At
As Cheap As Possible.

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REFERENCES

Aksak,B.,Cassell,A.,Li,J.,Meyyappan,M.,&Callen,
P.(2007) Friction Of Partially Embedded Vertically
Aligned Carbon Nanotubes Inside Elastomers.
PROGRAMMABLE MATTER by Seth Copen
Goldstein and Todd C. Mowry in INVISIBLE
COMPUTING magazine.
SHAPING THE FUTURE by Tom Geller in
COMMUNICATION ACM magazine.
Kirby,B.,Goldstien,S.C.,Mowry,T.,Aksak,B.,&Hob
urg,J.(2005).Catoms: Moving Robots without
Moving Parts.AAAI(Robot Exibution).1730-1731.
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