· Web viewJai Dev Sharma, my father Sh. Joginder Raj Sharma and my mother Smt. Suman Sharma for their help and motivation. RAJAT SHARMA 1. Introduction We still tell our children

MODEL INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

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Department of Electronics and Communication

SEMINAR REPORT

On

CLAYTRONICS

Submitted by:- Submitted to:-

Rajat Sharma Taru Mahajan

318/08 Lecturer, E.C.E. Dept.

7th sem., E.C.E. ‘B1’

CLAYTRONICS

PREFACE

This Seminar report deals with the different aspects in the development of new

technology called Claytronics. Claytronics are basically programmable matter which can

combine to form an amazing assortment of physical objects, reassembling into something

entirely different as needed.

This Seminar report provides the basic knowledge necessary to understand the

basic concept involved in the fields of claytronics. This seminar report covers a total of 5

chapters. Chapter 1 deals with the basic introductory concept of Claytronics. Chapter 2

gives detailed information about the Claytronics project undergoing at Carnegie Mellon

University. This section gives description about the hardware and software involved in

claytronics. Then, the capabilities of catoms/claytronics is described in Chapter 3.The

application part is discussed in Chapter 4.In the last, a brief conclusion and future aspects

is discussed in Chapter 5.

The plan of this seminar report is to present the detailed information in simple

language. This seminar report is suitable for the self-study by engineers and scientists

who need to acquire the basic knowledge of Claytronics.

RAJAT SHARMA

1 RAJAT SHARMA,ECE-B1,318/08

CLAYTRONICS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

In the preparation of this seminar report, I am grateful to the Principal and H.O.D.

of E.C.E. Dept. of MIET, and specially to Lect. Taru Mahajan, E.C.E. Dept., who have

left no stone unturned for the successful completion of my seminar.

I have received help and encouragement for which I am deeply grateful to my

friends- Shwetanshu Gupta, Vivek Singh, Rajat Basotra, Sahil Dogra, Rahul Lakhanpuria,

Rameshwar Sharma, Varinder Singh, Sourab Sharma and Ankush Sharma. I am fortunate

to have received help from several senior students of the MIET college.

My special dept. of gratitude to my grandfather Sh. Jai Dev Sharma, my father Sh.

Joginder Raj Sharma and my mother Smt. Suman Sharma for their help and motivation.

RAJAT SHARMA


CLAYTRONICS

1. Introduction

We still tell our children “you can be anything when you grow up.” It’s time to

start telling them “you’re going to be able to make anything…right now.” How can a

material be intelligent by being made up of particle-sized machines? The idea is simple:

make basic computers housed in tiny spheres that can connect to each other and rearrange

themselves. Each particle, called a Claytronics atom or Catom, is less than a millimeter in

diameter. With billions you could make almost any object you wanted.

Catoms, or Claytronics Atoms, are also referred to as 'programmable matter'.

Catoms are described as being similar in nature to a nanomachine, but with greater power

and complexity. While microscopic individually, they bond and work together on a larger

scale. Catoms can change their density, energy levels, state of being, and other

characteristics using thought alone.

It will take billions of micron-scale ‘claytronic atoms’ or ‘catoms’ to create

computer generated artifacts as if they were the real thing, such as a self-assembling

synthetic doctor coming to your house via Internet — and controlled by the real one

living miles away. Or you can imagine several colleagues from around the world

appearing magically in your local meeting room.

Imagine for example an LCD screen that once used turns into shows that one door

on itself permanently. It’s strange, it remind a little of the principle of the film

“Transformers”… Technically, catoms built by Intel are still far from having the proper

scale, they are the size of a pack of cigarettes, approximately. However, Intel introduced a

prototype chip with hemispheres, a fundamental characteristic to achieve the

miniaturization of so-called catoms.

These are basically miniature pieces of matter so intricate that they can shape-shift

into actual shapes of whatever you desire based on a quick, programmable system. Yes,

that means you could potentially take that cell phone you have and program it to shape-

shift into something smaller or larger based on your needs.

Sounds eerie that you can shape any piece of technology into any size or oblong

shape you want, doesn't it? According to Intel, they're already working on the basics of

the system, even though it's with larger objects and not the microscopic catoms that'll


CLAYTRONICS

come later and be able to shape-shift any particular piece of technology we can imagine.

That's right, the hype from the technology itself might get some developers at Intel so

excited, it probably makes them give the illusion that catoms are right on the horizon.

If you've read the more esoteric nanotechnology treatises, you're undoubtedly

familiar with the concept of "programmable matter" -- micro- or nano-scale devices

which can combine to form an amazing assortment of physical objects, reassembling into

something entirely different as needed. This vision of nanotechnology is light years away

from today's world of carbon nanotubes or even the practical-but-amazing world of

nanofactories. It shouldn't surprise you, however, to note that despite its fantastical

elements serious research is already underway heading down the path to programmable

matter called "CLAYTRONICS" at Carnegie-Mellon University, and "DYNAMIC

PHYSICAL RENDERING" at Intel (which is supporting the CMU work), the synthetic

reality project has already made some tentative advances, and the researchers are

confident of eventual success. Just how long "eventual" may be is subject to debate.

According to the Claytronics project's Seth Goldstein and Todd Mowry,

programmable matter is:

[An ensemble of material that contains sufficient

local computation

actuation

storage

energy

sensing & communication

which can be programmed to form interesting dynamic shapes and configurations.]ref. 2

CLAYTRONICS is their way of bringing this concept into reality.

The claytronic cellphone in your pocket could morph into whatever tool you need.

Videoconferencing would gain a physical dimension, with all the participants appearing

in claytronic form, and surgeons could even work on claytronic enlargements of internal

organs to perform robotic tele-surgery with extreme precision.


CLAYTRONICS

2. CLAYTRONICS/DPR PROJECT

The DPR project was begun at

Carnegie Mellon University,

spearheaded by Seth Goldstein, an

Associate Professor in the Computer

Science Department. The project is the

brainchild of Goldstein and Todd

Mowry, Director of Intel Research

Pittsburgh, who first discussed the idea

at a conference in 2002. Mowry wanted

to improve on two-dimensional

videoconferencing, and Goldstein was

interested in nanotechnology. They

decided to merge their interests. They determined that, by taking advantage of advances

in nanoscale assembly, they might create human replicas from ensembles of tiny

computing devices that could sense, move, and change colour and shape, enabling more

realistic videoconferencing. The same meeting environment, with people and objects,

could appear at each location, in real form or as replicas. A movement or interaction at

any location would be reproduced at all of them. Every meeting could be face-to-face.

What began as a novel idea has evolved into an ambitious collaboration involving

almost 30 researchers. Jason Campbell, a senior researcher at Intel Research Pittsburgh, is

the Principal Investigator for the DPR project. Goldstein is leading the project for

Carnegie Mellon, and Mowry provides additional leadership. The project is being funded

by Intel, Carnegie Mellon University, the National Science Foundation, and the Defence

Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

[Creation of claytronics technology is the bold objective of collaborative research

between Carnegie Mellon and Intel, which combines nano-robotics and large-scale

computing to create synthetic reality, a revolutionary, 3-dimensional display of

information. The vision behind this research is to provide users with tangible forms of

electronic information that express the appearance and actions of original sources.]ref. 1


Fig. 1-Future Catoms

CLAYTRONICS

The objects created from programmable matter will be scalable to life size or

larger. They will be likewise reducible in scale. Such objects will be capable of

continuous, 3-D motion. Representations in programmable matter will offer to the end-

user an experience that is indistinguishable from reality. Claytronic representations will

seem so real that users will experience the impression that they are dealing with the

original object.

Claytronic emulation of the function, behaviour and appearance of individuals,

organisms and objects will fully mimic reality - and fulfil a well-known criterion for

artificial intelligence formulated by the visionary mathematician and computer science

pioneer Alan Turing.

[In 1950, in a ground-breaking article, Turing asked "Can Machines Think?" and

offered a criterion to "refute anyone who doubts that a computer can really think." His

proposal was that "if an observer cannot distinguish the responses of a programmed

machine from those of a human being, the machine is said to have passed the Turing

Test."]ref. 3

Although the Turing Test remains a robust source of discussion among those who

devote their lives to artificial intelligence, philosophy and cognitive science, claytronics

conceives of a technology that will surpass the Turing Test for the appearance of thought

in the behaviours of a machine.

The Carnegie Mellon Intel Claytronics Research Project combines two principal

paths to create technology that will represent information in dynamic, life-like 3-D form--

♦ Engineering design and testing of modular robotic catom prototypes that will be

suitable for manufacturing in mass quantities

♦ Creation of programming languages and software algorithms to control

ensembles of millions of catoms

[The Carnegie Mellon-Intel Claytronics Research Project addresses many unique

and challenging aspects of micro-robotics engineering and distributed network

computing. It approaches these challenges with a focus fixed upon the design of the

simplest feasible systems consistent with the overall goal of the reliable and robust


CLAYTRONICS

performance of claytronic ensembles. This approach seeks to enable claytronics

technology to develop in concert with minimization of manufacturing costs and

fabrication complexity.]ref. 1

Reaching across the present frontier for computing and micro-electro-mechanical

systems, creators of claytronics technology seek pioneering advances on two distinctive

scales of building engineered systems -

♦ The scale of the extremely small, which will be embedded in the physical

hardware of the sub-millimetre catom, the primary building block of claytronic

ensembles, and

♦ The scale of the extremely numerous, which will be embodied in the millions of

catoms that populate a claytronic ensemble.

To integrate these two scales into an engineered claytronic ensemble, the Carnegie

Mellon-Intel Claytronics Research Project employs the design principle of the Ensemble

Axiom. This principle of ensemble design at extreme scale pushes research toward three

goals:

♦ To create the tiniest modular robots as micro-electro-mechanical systems.

♦ To conceive the linguistic framework for software programming that can

translate commands efficiently in densely packed networks of distributed computing, and


Fig. 2- Nano Materials

CLAYTRONICS

♦ Design program algorithms that guide the actuation of modular robots in the

construction of three-dimensional objects

[As one example of its application, the ensemble axiom inspires the engineering

of "motion without moving parts," an application of ensemble design in planar catoms,

modular robots that use electromagnetic energy to self-actuate in a mode of cooperative

motion. The ensemble principle or axiom also guides the design of software. In many

robotic systems, algorithms of motion draw upon high-dimensional search or gradient-

based methods of motion analysis to anticipate a module's many conceivable moves and

formulate case-by-case responses. Applied to a million catoms in a claytronic ensemble,

that process of control would require an impossibly large consumption of computing

resources. Programming languages for claytronics focus on simpler instructions that

allow each node to analyse and respond to its immediate state without relying on

omniscient top-down controls.]ref. 5

2.1 HARDWARE:

At the current stage of design, claytronics hardware operates from macroscale

designs with devices that are much larger than the tiny modular robots that set the goals

of this engineering research. Such devices are designed to test concepts for sub-

millimetre scale modules and to elucidate crucial effects of the physical and electrical

forces that affect nanoscale robots.

> Electrostatic latches model a new system of binding and releasing the connection

between modular robots, a connection that creates motion and transfers power and data

while employing a small factor of a powerful force.


Fig. 3- 2D Catoms

CLAYTRONICS

> Cubes employ electrostatic latches to demonstrate the functionality of a device that

could be used in a system of lattice-style self-assembly at both the macro and nano-scale.

> Planar catoms test the concept of motion without moving parts and the design of force

effectors that create cooperative motion within ensembles of modular robots.

> Giant Helium Catoms provide a larger-than-life, lighter-than-air platform to explore

the relation of forces when electrostatics has a greater effect than gravity on a robotic

device, an effect simulated with a modular robot designed for self-construction of macro-

scale structures.

Each section devoted to an individual hardware project provides an overview of

the basic functionality of the device and its relationship to the study of claytronics. As

these creative systems have evolved in the Carnegie Mellon-Intel Claytronics Hardware

Lab, they have prepared the path for development of a millimeter scale module that will

represent the creation of a self-actuating catom - a device that can compute, move, and

communicate - at the nano-scale.

2.1.1 Millimetre Scale Catoms -

Realizing high-resolution applications that Claytronics offers requires catoms that

are in the order of millimetres. In this work, we propose millimetre-scale catoms that are

electrostatically actuated and self-contained. As a simplified approach we are trying to

build cylindrical catoms instead of spheres.

9 RAJAT SHARMA,ECE-B1,318/08Fig. 4- Cylindrical Catom

CLAYTRONICS

[The millimetre scale catom consists of a tube and a High voltage CMOS die

attached inside the tube. The tubes are fabricated as double-layer planar structures in 2D

using standard photolithography. The difference in thermal stress created in the layers

during the fabrication processes causes the 2D structures to bend into 3D tubes upon

release from the substrate. The tubes have electrodes for power transfer and actuation on

the perimeter.

The high voltage CMOS die is fabricated separately and is manually wire bonded

to the tube before release. The chip includes an AC-DC converter, a storage capacitor, a

simple logic unit, and output buffers.

The catom moves on a power grid (the stator) that contains rails which carry high

voltage AC signals. Through capacitive coupling, an AC signal is generated on the

coupling electrodes of the tube, which is then converted to DC power by the chip. The

powered chip then generates voltage on the actuation electrodes sequentially, creating

electric fields that push the tube forward.] ref. 1

2.1.2 Electrostatic Latches

A simple and robust inter-module latch is possibly the most important component

of a modular robotic system. The electrostatic latch in Fig. 6 was developed as part of the

Carnegie Mellon-Intel Claytronics Research Project. It incorporates many innovative

features into a simple, robust device for attaching adjacent modules to each other in a

lattice-style robotic system. These features include a parallel plate capacitor constructed

from flexible electrodes of aluminium foil and dielectric film to create an adhesion force


Fig. 5-Rails on Power Grid

CLAYTRONICS

from electrostatic pressure. Its physical alignment of electrodes also enables the latch to

engage a mechanical shear

force that strengthens its

holding force.

The electrodes that form the latch fit into "genderless" faces constructed as star-

shaped plastic frames carried by each module. In the design of the circuits, each

electrode functions as one-half of a complete capacitor. A latch forms when the faces of

two adjacent modules come together and create an electrostatic field between the flexible

electrodes.

Each star-shaped face supports passive self-alignment of the link with a 45-degree

blade angle at the top of each comb on the face. The design also supports easy

disengagement with a five-degree release angle along the vertical lines of the faces.

The parallel alignment of the electrodes in forming the complete capacitor plate

introduces a shear force - or friction - that strengthens the binding of the latch. Once

formed, the latch requires almost zero static power to maintain its holding force.

Additionally, the presence of multiple circuits among the electrodes provides the latch

with simultaneous capacity also to exchange power and communicate data between

modules. These features make the device suitable for lattice-style robots in both

nanotechnology (micro-scale) and macro-scale applications.

In its electrical design, the electrostatic latch uses the closely spaced plates of a

parallel capacitor, which generate an electrostatic force to attract each other when the

capacitor is charged. After the latch closes, residual charge maintains the latch

indefinitely. A thin dielectric film on each conductive plate provides insulation.


Fig. 6- Electrostatic Latches

CLAYTRONICS

Employing capacitive coupling, the latch adheres with a force of 0.6 N/cm2 while

requiring almost zero static power to maintain the force after the latch forms. A specific

degree of flexibility in the electrodes maximizes the mutual coupling of electrodes.

Electrodes that are too rigid or too flexible do not provide an adequate level of latch

performance.

Moreover, the electrodes create multiple circuits, which allow transmission of

power and data for communication between modules. This design serves several

functions within the robotic module and enables a level of efficiency that reduces

requirements for total weight, volume and complexity. This design feature thus yields

simpler paths to performance and scaling goals in robotic modules.

The factor that enables electrostatic adhesion to be effective at the macro-scale is an

interface for the electric field that also creates a shear force from mechanical friction. A

combination of electrostatic and shear forces results from the alignment. Currently, the

electrostatic latch is being tested on a modular Cube that is 28 cm on a side.

2.1.3 Cubes

A lattice-style modular robot, the 22-cubic-centimeter Cube, which has been

developed in the Carnegie Mellon-Intel Claytronics Research Program, provides a base of

actuation for the electrostatic latch that has also been engineered as part of this program.

The Cube shown in Fig.7 also models the primary building block in a hypothetical system

for robotic self-assembly that could be used for modular construction and employ Cubes

that are larger or smaller in scale than the pictured device.

The design of a cube, which resembles a box with starbursts flowering from six

sides, emphasizes several performance criteria: accurate and fast engagement, facile

release and firm, strong adhesion while Cube latches clasps one module to another. Its

geometry enables reliable coupling of modules, a strong binding electrostatic force and

close spacing of modules within an ensemble to

create structural stability.


CLAYTRONICS

Designed to project angular motion from

the faces of its box-like shape, the Cube extends

and contracts six electrostatic latching devices

on stem assemblies. By this mechanism, the

latches of a Cube integrate with latches on

adjacent Cubes for construction of larger shapes.

With extension and retraction of stem-drive arms that carry the latches, the

module achieves motion, exchanges power and communicates with other Cubes in a

matrix that contains many of these devices. Combining these forces of motion,

attachment and data coupling, Cubes demonstrate a potential to create intricate forms

from meta-modules or ensembles that consist of much greater numbers of Cubes;

numbers determined by the scale of Cubes employed in an ensemble of self-construction.

[To create motion for a Cube in a matrix of many cubes, a direct-current motor

inside the Cube's central frame actuates expansion and contraction of electrostatic latches

fixed to the ends of independent worm-drive assemblies. Housed in individual tubes, the

assemblies provide arms to support the motion of latches from six sides of the central

frame. Linear motion enables the Cube to exploit considerable lateral flexibility for

forming shapes within a matrix. The Cube measures 22 cm between faces when fully

contracted and 44 cm when fully expanded.]ref. 7

The worm-drive assembly extends the face of one cube to create contact with the

face of an adjacent cube. The electrodes on each face create one-half of a capacitor.

When the two "genderless," star-shaped faces of adjacent Cubes integrate their combs,

they complete a capacitor and form an electrostatic couple from the contact of electrodes,

which binds the faces as a completed latch.

The capacitive couple, which forms the electrostatic latch, provides within an

ensemble of Cubes not only adhesion and structural stability but also the transmission of

power and communication. In a meta-module of many cubes, power would move in

discrete packets rather than as a continuous current, in a mode similar to data moving

through a network in discrete packets of bytes that reassemble into larger packages of

information at the point of delivery. This packet delivery of energy would enable the


Fig 7- CUBES

CLAYTRONICS

meta-module or ensemble to move power from cubes that have a surplus to others that

require more of it.

This micro-electro-mechanical device thus presents a model for a type of robotic

self-assembly of complex structures at both macro and micro scales.

2.1.4 Planar Catoms

The self-actuating, cylinder-shaped planar catom tests concepts of motion,

power distribution, data transfer and communication that will be eventually incorporated

into ensembles of nano-scale robots. It provides a

test bed for the architecture of micro-electro-

mechanical systems for self-actuation in modular

robotic devices. Employing magnetic force to

generate motion, its operations as a research

instrument build a bridge to a scale of engineering

that will make it possible to manufacture self-

actuating nano-system devices.

The planar catom is approximately 45

times larger in diameter than the millimetre scale

catom for which its work is a bigger-than-life

prototype. It operates on a two-dimensional plane

in small groups of two to seven modules in order to allow researchers to understand how

micro-electro-mechanical devices can move and communicate at a scale that humans

cannot yet readily perceive -- or imagine. It forms a bridge into this realm across the

evolving design of a sophisticated electro-magnetic system whose features have followed

a path of trail and error as the CMU-Intel Claytronics Research Team has tested the

concept of a robot that moves without moving parts.

[In its brief history of demonstrating motion without moving parts, the planar

catom has evolved through eight versions. It began life as a concept vehicle engineered


Fig. 8- Planar Catoms

CLAYTRONICS

with catalog-sourced hardware. It has become a custom-designed electronic and

magnetic system that carries a complete control package aboard its module.

Weighing 100 grams, Planar Catom V8, shown in the picture here, presents for

view its stack of control and magnet-sensor rings. Its solid state electronic controls ride at

the top of the stack. An individual control ring is dedicated to each of the two rings of

magnet sensors, which ride at the base of the module. Two thin threaded rods extend like

lateral girders from top to bottom through the outside edge to brace the rings. A central

connector stack carries circuits between control and magnet rings, enabling easier

handling and maintenance of components while also providing internal alignment and

stability along the cylinder's axis.]ref. 12

At the base of the planar catom, the two heavier electro-magnet rings, which

comprise the motor for the device, also add stability. To create motion, the magnet rings

exchange the attraction and repulsion of electromagnetic force with magnet rings on

adjacent catoms. From this conversion of electrical to kinetic energy, the module

achieves a turning motion to model the spherical rotation of millimeter-scale catoms.

In Fig. 9, two magnet rings from Planar Catom V7 display the arrangement of

their 12 magnets around individual driver boards and the coil design for horseshoe

magnets introduced with Version 6 and then upgraded in versions 7 and 8.

The magnets are arranged in the containment ring as the straightedge faces of a

12-sided polygon seated in the acrylic plate that holds them in place. The horseshoe

magnets feature 39AWG magnet wire wrapped around AISI 1010 steel cores,

components selected to balance machinable metal and flux-saturation density.


Fig 9- Top View of 2 Magnet rings of Planar Catom

CLAYTRONICS

Replacing barrel-shaped, round-face magnets in Planar Catom Versions 1-5, the

horseshoe magnet was adopted to boost magnet strength and create a wider footprint. It

also represents an evolution of the use of flat-surface magnets, which were introduced in

Planar Catom Version 5. Flat surfaces prove to be more efficient for contact than round-

face magnets.

Economy in the design of the controls

also makes more room for the rest of the

robust package of electronics that operate the

module. Fig. 10 displays a planar catom

controller ring with light emitting diodes

(LEDs) arranged around its perimeter. This

board directs the two magnet driver boards

embedded in the magnet rings, as shown in

the image above.

The custom design of the electronics

achieves a very high level of capacity to guide

the module's performance. Built with the smallest components commercially available,

each controller board contains 5 layers of embedded microcircuits on 45 mm diameter

acrylic boards. At this density of circuit design, each of the two controller rings provides

approximately 40 times the embedded instrumentation of a standard robotics controller

package in 2/5th the space. The resulting capacity of its boards enables the module to

carry on board all devices needed to manage its firmware, drivers and 24 magnets.

A more typical robotics servo controller would carry a microprocessor, motors,

servos and other devices on one side of a 50 mm x 75 mm board embedded with two

layers of microcircuits. While building planar catoms to investigate a customized

actuation system that creates motion without moving parts, the design team also achieved

the complementary objective of constructing a

robust, self-contained modular robot.

Another component of this robust electronic

system is shown in Fig.11 of a Planar Catom

Infrared Communication Board. On this device, the


Fig. 10-Planar Catom with LEDs

Fig. 11-Planar Catom Infrared Communication Board

CLAYTRONICS

Infrared Data (IrDA) transmitters and receivers are separately multiplexed to transmit and

receive signals on separate channels, allowing fast, simultaneous transmission on all

channels. These global communication features anticipate the necessity of debugging and

reprogramming large ensembles of catoms.

The engineering goal for these components is a system that supports cooperative

behaviour among nanoscale robotic modules. This concept of machine behaviour is one

in which the primary devices direct their own motion toward a common goal by

employing functionality that focuses every element of design on the requirements of the

ensemble rather than on those of the individual robot. The engineering design thus

adheres to the ensemble axiom by incorporating in these devices only those functions that

advance the functionality of the ensemble.

2.1.5 Giant Helium Catoms

A Giant Helium Catom (GHC) measures eight cubic meters when its light Mylar

skin fills with helium to acquire a lifting force of approximately 5.6 kilograms. This lift

is necessary to elevate a frame of carbon fibre rods and plastic joints, which contains the

balloon and carries electronic sensors and a communication package to actuate the

catom's motion and engage it with other GHCs. The roughly square balloon is

constructed with edge dimensions of approximately 1.9 meters from 4 meter x 1 meter

sheets of Mylar. Each balloon uses four sheets of this

material.

The Giant Helium Catom provides researchers a

macroscale instrument to investigate physical forces that

affect microscale devices. The GHC was designed to

approximate the relationship between a near-zero-mass

(or weightless) particle and the force of electro-magnetic

fields spread across the surface of such particles. Such

studies are needed to understand the influence of surface tensions on the engineering of

interfaces for nanoscale devices.

In addition to its role as a test-bed for nanoscale surface tensions, the great helium

catom also offers a prototype design for a low-mass system of robotic self-assembly that


Fig. 12- Giant Helium Catom

CLAYTRONICS

can be used at life-scale in solar system travel. Because of its very low mass, it was

conceived also as a macroscale construction system for delivery by space craft. Such a

system would deploy dwellings and workstations on the Moon and the planet Mars in

advance of astronauts who would occupy the pre-constructed stations for long-term

exploration and interplanetary travel.

On each face, the GHC cube carries a novel electrostatic latching system that

enables the device to move across the faces of other catoms and to communicate with

them. The design for this latch system centres on a thin aluminium foil flap across each of

the 12 edges of the Mylar cube. This is essentially a square that crosses each of the

catom's edges on a diagonal in order to create two triangular flaps lying at a right angle to

each other against the two adjacent surfaces of the catom. With this arrangement, each

surface of the catom has four triangular flaps with peaks pointed toward the centre of the

face.

Among the six faces, the triangular

flaps provide each catom with the means to

form an electrostatic latch with another cube

from 24 positions - providing the cubes with a

capacity to move at right angles in any

direction. In addition to motion, the latches

also equip the GHC with the means to

communicate across the ensemble of catoms.

In Fig. 13, one Giant Helium Catom pivots

across the surface of another, revealing the

positions and attachments of triangular

electrostatic flaps.

Two electrodes on each flap create the electrostatic forces that enable latches to

form a capacitive couple between flaps on adjacent GHCs. A dielectric material (Mylar)

isolates the pair of electrodes (and electrical charges from them) on each flap to prevent

their direct electrical contact. This design enables voltage differences applied to the

electrodes to accumulate charges, create electrostatic force on the flap and align with

electrodes that carry an opposing charge on the flap of an adjacent GHC.


Fig. 13-Communication b/w two GHC

CLAYTRONICS

Each flap moves independently with the assistance of a spring-loaded

mechanism and a composite shape-memory alloy (SMA). GHCs deliver power to each

other using capacitive coupling with alternating current (AC). The AC power generated

at the neighbouring catom is rectified and regulated, and the resulting DC power is used

for processing and other electronics on the module. A high-voltage generator creates the

electrostatic force to activate the latches.

Although the project planned to construct six giant helium catoms to simulate an

ensemble, in its 3-month duration, this experiment tested this interface on two catoms.

Experience with this design provided the Carnegie Mellon-Intel Claytronics Research

Project with substantial experience in the design characteristics of micro-electro-

mechanical latches.

2.2 SOFTWARE

2.2.1 Distributed Computing in Claytronics

In a domain of research defined by many of the greatest challenges facing computer

scientists and roboticists today, perhaps none is greater than the creation of algorithms

and programming language to organize the actions of millions of sub-millimetre scale

catoms in a claytronics ensemble.

As a consequence, the research scientists and engineers of the Carnegie Mellon-

Intel Claytronics Research Program have formulated a very broad-based and in-depth

research program to develop a complete structure of software resources for the creation

and operation of the densely distributed network of robotic nodes in a claytronic matrix.

A notable characteristic of a claytronic matrix is its

huge concentration of computational power within a

small space. For example, an ensemble of catoms with

a physical volume of one cubic meter could contain 1

billion catoms. Computing in parallel, these tiny robots

would provide unprecedented computing capacity

within a space not much larger than a standard packing

19 RAJAT SHARMA,ECE-B1,318/08Fig. 14-Matrix of 20,000 catoms

CLAYTRONICS

container. This arrangement of computing capacity

creates a challenging new programming environment

for authors of software.

A representation of a matrix of approximately 20,000 catoms can be seen in the

fig. 14 shown. Because of its vast number of individual computing nodes, the matrix

invites comparison with the worldwide reservoir of computing resources connected

through the Internet, a medium that not only distributes data around the globe but also

enables nodes on the network to share work from remote locations. The physical

concentration of millions of computing nodes in the small space of a claytronic ensemble

thus suggests for it the metaphor of an Internet that sits on a desk.

2.2.2 An Internet in a Box

Comparison with the Internet, however, does not represent much of the novel

complexity of a claytronic ensemble. For example, a matrix of catoms will not have

wires and unique addresses -- which in cyberspace provide fixed paths on which data

travels between computers. Without wires to tether them, the atomized nodes of a

claytronic matrix will operate in a state of constant flux. The consequences of computing

in a network without wires and addresses for individual nodes are significant and largely

unfamiliar to the current operations of network technology.

Languages to program a matrix require a more abbreviated syntax and style of

command than the lengthy instructions that widely used network languages such as C++

and Java employ when translating data for computers linked to the Internet. Such widely

used programming languages work in a network environment where paths between

computing nodes can be clearly flagged for the transmission of instructions while the

computers remain under the control of individual operators and function with a high

degree of independence behind their links to the network.

In contrast to that tightly linked programming environment of multi-functional

machines, where C++, Java and similar languages evolved, a claytronic matrix presents a

software developer with a highly organized, single-purpose, densely concentrated and

physically dynamic network of unwired nodes that create connections by rotating contacts

with the closest neighbours. The architecture of this programming realm requires not


Fig. 16- Different Claytronic matrix

CLAYTRONICS

only instructions that move packets of data through unstable channels. Matrix software

must also actuate the constant change in the physical locations of the anonymous nodes

while they are transferring the data through the network.

2.2.3 For the Nodes, It’s All about Cooperation

In this environment, the

processes of each individual catom

must be entirely dedicated to the

operational goal of the matrix –

which is the formation of dynamic,

3-dimensional shapes. Yet, given

the vast number of nodes, the

matrix cannot dedicate its global

resources to the micro-management

of each catom. Thus, every catom

must achieve a state of self-

actuation in cooperation with its

immediate neighbours, and that modality of local cooperation must radiate through the

matrix.

Software language for the matrix must convey concise statements of high-level

commands in order to be universally distributed. For this purpose, it must possess an

economy of syntax that is uncommon among software languages. In place of detailed

commands for individual nodes, it must state the conditions toward which the nodes will

direct their motion in local groups. In this way, catoms will organize collective actions

that gravitate toward the higher-level goals of the ensemble.

2.2.4 A Seamless Ensemble of Form and Functionality

By providing a design to focus constructive rearrangements of individual nodes,

software for the matrix will motivate local cooperation among groups of catoms. This

protocol reflects a seamless union between form and functionality in the actuation of

catoms. It also underscores the opportunity for high levels of creativity in the design of


Fig. 15- Different Claytronic matrix

CLAYTRONICS

software for the matrix environment, which manipulates the physical architecture of this

robotic medium while directing information through it.

In a hexagonal stacking arrangement, for example, rows of catoms in one layer

rest within the slight concavities of catom layers above and below them. That placement

gives each catom direct communication with as many as 12 other catoms. Such dynamic

groupings provide the stage upon which to program catom motion within local areas of

the matrix. Such collective actuation will transform the claytronic matrix into the realistic

representations of original objects.

2.2.5 The Research Program

In the Carnegie Mellon-Intel Claytronics Software Lab, researchers address several areas

of software development, which are described in this section.

a) Programming Languages

Researchers in the Claytronics project have also

created Meld and LDP. These new languages for

declarative programming provide compact linguistic

structures for cooperative management of the motion of

millions of modules in a matrix. Fig. 16 shows a

simulation of Meld in which modules in the matrix have

been instructed with a very few lines of highly

condensed code to swarm toward a target.

Meld is a programming language designed for

robustly programming massive ensembles. Meld was

designed to give the programmer an ensemble-centric viewpoint, where they write a

program for an ensemble rather than the modules that make it up. A program is then

compiled into individual programs for the nodes that make up the ensemble. In this way

the programmer need not worry about the details of programming a distributed system

and can focus on the logic of their program. Because Meld is a declarative programming

language (specifically, a logic programming language), the programs written in Meld are

concise. Both the localization algorithm and the metamodule planning algorithms are

implemented in Meld in only a few pages of code.22 RAJAT SHARMA,ECE-B1,318/08

Fig. 16- Simulation of Meld

CLAYTRONICS

While Meld approaches the management of the matrix from the perspective of

logic programming, LDP employs distributive pattern matching. As a further

development of program languages for the matrix, LDP, which stands for Locally

Distributed Predicates, provides a means of matching distributed patterns. This tool

enables the programmer to address a larger set of variables with Boolean logic that

matches paired conditions and enables the program to search for larger patterns of activity

and behaviour among groups of modules in the matrix.

b) Integrated Debugging

In directing the work of the thousands to millions of individual computing devices

in an ensemble, claytronics research also anticipates the inevitability of performance

errors and system dysfunctions. Such an intense computational environment requires a

comparably dynamic and self-directed process for identifying and debugging errors in the

execution of programs. One result is a program known as Distributed Watch Point.

c) Shape Sculpting

The team's extensive work on catom motion, collective actuation and hierarchical

motion planning addresses the need for algorithms that convert groups of catoms into

primary structures for building dynamic, 3-dimensional representations. Such structures

work in a way that can be compared to the muscles, bones and tissues of organic systems.

In claytronics, this special class of algorithms will enable the matrix to work with

templates suitable to the representations it renders. In this aspect of claytronics

development, researchers develop algorithms that will give structural strength and fluid

movement to dynamic forms.

d) Localization

The team’s software researchers are also creating

algorithms that enable catoms to localize their positions

among thousands to millions of other catoms in an

ensemble. This relational knowledge of individual

catoms to the whole matrix is fundamental to the

organization and management of catom groups and the formation of cohesive and fluid


Fig. 17- Simulated Elephant

CLAYTRONICS

shapes throughout the matrix. A pictorial context for examining the dynamics of

localization is represented by the snapshot of the elephant simulated in the Fig-18.

In order to determine their locations, the modules need to rely on noisy

observations of their immediate neighbours. These observations are obtained from

sensors on-board the modules, such as short-range IR sensors. Unlike many other

systems, a modular robot may not have access to long distance measurements, such as

wireless radio or GPS. Furthermore, the robot's modules will often form irregular, non-

lattice structures. Therefore, the robot needs to employ sophisticated probabilistic

techniques to estimate the location of each its module from noisy data.

The contribution of this research is an algorithm that lets the modules estimate

their locations in a fully distributed manner. The algorithm has a number of attractive

properties: It can handle errors that arise from uncertain observations. As we scale the

ensemble to increasingly finer resolutions, the accuracy of the localization remains

roughly constant. Furthermore, the algorithm is sufficiently simple that it permits a

distributed implementation. Therefore, the locations are estimated directly by the modules

themselves, without relying on an external, centralized processing unit.

e) Dynamic Simulation

As a first step in developing software to

program a claytronic ensemble, the team created

DPR-Simulator, a tool that permits researchers to

model, test and visualize the behaviour of catoms.

The simulator creates a world in which catoms take

on the characteristics that researchers wish to

observe.

DPRSim operates as a Linux-based system

on desktop computers. It is available as open source

software. DPRSim has become the primary tool of the Carnegie Mellon-Intel Claytronics

Research Project for observing real-time performance when designing, testing and

debugging modular robots in claytronic ensembles.


Fig. 18- Snapshot in DPRSim

CLAYTRONICS

The simulated world of DPRSim manifests characteristics that are crucial to

understanding the real-time performance of claytronic ensembles. Most important, the

activities of catoms in the simulator are governed by laws of the physical universe. Thus

simulated catoms reflect the natural effects of gravity, electrical and magnetic forces and

other phenomena that will determine the behaviour of these devices in reality. DPRSim

also provides a visual display that allows researchers to observe the behaviour of groups

of catoms. In this context, DPRSim allows researchers to model conditions under which

they wish to test actions of catoms. Fig. 18 presents snapshot from simulations of

programs generated through DPRSim.

3 Capabilities of Catoms

While catoms will be simple in design, each will have four capabilities:

Computation: Researchers believe that catoms could take advantage of existing

microprocessor technology. Given that some modern microprocessor cores are now

under a square millimetre, they believe that a reasonable amount of computational

capacity should fit on the several square millimetres of surface area potentially

available in a 2mm-diameter catom.

Motion: Although they will move, catoms will have no moving parts. This will

enable them to form connections much more rapidly than traditional microrobots, and

it will make them easier to manufacture in high volume. Catoms will bind to one

another and move via electromagnetic or electrostatic forces, depending on the catom

size.

Imagine a catom that is close to spherical in shape, and whose perimeter is

covered by small electromagnets. A catom will move itself around by energizing a

particular magnet and cooperating with a neighbouring catom to do the same,

drawing the pair together. If both catoms are free, they will spin equally about their

axes, but if one catom is held rigid by links to its neighbours, the other will swing

around the first, rolling across the fixed catom's surface and into a new position.

Electrostatic actuation will be required once catom sizes shrink to less than a

millimetre or two. The process will be essentially the same, but rather than


CLAYTRONICS

electromagnets, the perimeter of the catom will be covered with conductive plates.

By selectively applying electric charges to the plates, each catom will be able to

move relative to its neighbours.

Power: Catoms must be able to draw power without having to rely on a bulky battery

or a wired connection. Under a novel resistor-network design the researchers have

developed, only a few catoms must be connected in order for the entire ensemble to

draw power. When connected catoms are energized, this triggers active routing

algorithms which distribute power throughout the ensemble.

Communications: Communications is perhaps the biggest challenge that researchers

face in designing catoms. An ensemble could contain millions or billions of catoms,

and because of the way in which they pack, there could be as many as six axes of

interconnection.

Another unique feature of catom networks is that catoms are homogeneous.

Thus, unlike cell phones or other communications devices, the identity of an

individual catom is sometimes (but not always) unimportant. An application is more

likely to care about routing a message to the catoms comprising a specific physical

part of an ensemble (for instance, the catoms comprising a "hand") rather than

sending the same message to specific catoms based on their serial numbers.

Furthermore, catoms may be in motion periodically, as the shape of the ensemble

changes.

Creating the replica: [Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University also are

exploring 3D image capture, in the Virtualized Reality project. They have developed

technology that points a set of cameras at an event and enables the viewer to virtually

fly around and watch the event from a variety of positions. The DPR researchers


Fig. 19- Replica formation

CLAYTRONICS

believe a similar approach could be used to capture 3D scenes for use in creating

physical, moving 3D replicas.]ref. 4

At a high level, there are two steps :

Capturing a moving, three-dimensional image and

Rendering it as a physical object.

Replicas will be created from Catoms. Catoms can be framed into different

shapes, and it can change color, through light-emitting diodes on its surface. Embedded

photo cells will enable it to sense light, so that a human replica can "see." Catoms might

even simulate the texture of the person or object being replicated. A replica will have

computing capabilities, but these will be accessed through touch, voice, or another natural

interface rather than a keyboard or mouse. Catoms will be as close to spherical as possible

to support multiple packing densities.

4 Application of Claytronics/DPR

The potential applications of dynamic physical rendering are limited only by the

imagination. Following are a few of the possibilities:

Medicine: A replica of your physician could appear in your living room and

perform an exam. The virtual doctor would precisely mimic the shape, appearance

and movements of your "real" doctor, who is performing the actual work from a

remote office.

Disaster relief: Human replicas could serve as stand-ins for medical personnel,

firefighters, or disaster relief workers. Objects made of programmable matter

could be used to perform hazardous work and could morph into different shapes to

serve multiple purposes. A fire hose could become a shovel, a ladder could be

transformed into a stretcher.

Entertainment: A football game, ice skating competition or other sporting event

could be replicated in miniature on your coffee table. A movie could be recreated


CLAYTRONICS

in your living room, and you could insert yourself into the role of one of the

actors.

3D physical modeling: [Physical replicas could replace 3D computer models,

which can only be viewed in two dimensions and must be accessed through a

keyboard and mouse. Using claytronics, you could reshape or resize a model car

or home with your hands, as if you were working with modeling clay. As you

manipulated the model directly, aided by embedded software that's similar to the

drawing tools found in office software programs, the appropriate computations

would be carried out automatically. You would not have to work at a computer at

all; you would simply work with the model. Using claytronics, multiple people at

different locations could work on the same model. As a person at one location

manipulated the model, it would be modified at every location.]ref. 10

5 Envisioning the Future

Backed by the microchip manufacturer Intel, first generation catoms, measuring

4.4 centimetres in diameter and 3.6 centimetres in height have already been created. The

goal is to eventually produce catoms that are one or two millimetres in diameter-small

enough to produce

convincing replicas. It's not

just a problem of building

tiny robots, but figuring out

how to power them, to get


Fig. 20- A 3D model of Car formed by Catoms

Fig. 21- First Generation Catoms

CLAYTRONICS

them to stick together and to coordinate and control millions or billions of them. These

catoms, which are ringed by several electromagnets, are able to move around each other

to form a variety of shapes containing rudimentary processors and drawing electricity

from a board that they rest upon. So far only four catoms have been operated together.

The plan though is to have thousands of them moving around each other to form whatever

shape is desired and to change colour, also as required.

[Five years from now, the DPR researchers expect to have working ensembles of

catoms that are close to spherical in shape. These catoms still will be large enough that no

one will confuse a replica with the real thing (for that, catoms will probably have to

shrink to less than a millimetre in diameter). But the catoms will be sufficiently robust

that researchers can experiment with a variety of shapes, test hypotheses about ensemble

behaviour, and begin to envision where the technology might lead within a decade or

two.]ref. 12

While the potential applications of dynamic physical rendering are exciting, the

work being done at Intel Research Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University has broader

implications. At its core, the research involves learning to design, power, program and

control a densely packed set of microprocessors. These are similar to the key challenges

facing the computer industry today. As a result, the DPR research is likely to produce

new insights and technologies that could influence the future of computing and

communications.

If, in 1960, someone had suggested that one day you could buy a million

transistors for a penny, the prediction would have seemed outlandish. But today Intel sells

transistors for less than a micro cent, thanks to the continuing technology advances

predicted by Moore's Law. It's not unreasonable to predict that one day far in the future; it

may be possible to buy a million catoms for a penny.

But dynamic physical rendering could become viable long before Moore's Law

drives down the cost of a catom to a micro cent. Even if catoms could be produced for a

dollar each, some visualization applications might be economically viable. Certain other

applications, such as programmable antennas, could be attractive even if a catom sold for

tens or hundreds of dollars.


CLAYTRONICS

Whatever the cost, building catoms that are one millimetre in diameter-small

enough to create convincing replicas-will be a difficult engineering challenge. But given

current industry knowledge and the state of the art of silicon technology, it is not outside

the realm of possibility. The challenge lies less in developing new technology than in

bringing together a number of research areas in which the industry has made tremendous

technical progress in the last decade.


CLAYTRONICS

REFERENCES

1. www.cs.cmu.edu(Carnegie Mellon University official website)

2. ‘PROGRAMMABLE MATTER’ by Seth Copen Goldstein and Todd C. Mowry

in ‘INVISIBLE COMPUTING’ magazine.

3. ‘SHAPING THE FUTURE’ by Tom Geller in ‘COMMUNICATION ACM’

magazine.

4. www.intel.com

5. www.en.wikipedia.org

6. www.howstuffworks.com

7. www.motortrends.com

8. www.worldchanging.com

9. www.post-gazette.com

10. www.bnet.com

11. www.digitaldaily.allthingsd.com

12. www.singularityhub.com

13. www.future.wikia.com

14. www.asia.cnet.com

15. www.hackingtheuniverse.com

16. www.techpin.com


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· Web viewJai Dev Sharma, my father Sh. Joginder Raj Sharma and my mother Smt. Suman Sharma for their help and motivation. RAJAT SHARMA 1. Introduction We still tell our children