Disney Research (Photo : Twitter)
Disney Research has joined forces with the Swiss Institute ETH Zurich to develop a hybrid helicopter-car robot that can travel over various types of ground surfaces and even climb up walls. The VertiGo robot is a lightweight carbon-fiber machine made of 3D-printed parts, four wheels, and two propellers.
The robot's propellers sit on top of the chassis, and can be redirected to focus thrust in several directions and combinations, according to NBC News. For example, pointing the propellers backwards allows the vehicle to move forward.
Robots that climb up walls usually use a type of adhesion tech to cling to a surface like a lizard. However, such technology works better on smooth surfaces than bumpy ones, according to Discovery.
When VertiGo gets to a wall, the propellers point upwards, pressing the mini bot against the surface. It allows the machine to climb over obstacles and escape danger.
Disney's Paul Beardsley shared with IEEE Spectrum that such tech would be practical for entertainment effects. However, he could not provide any details about the company's specific plans for the hybrid robot.
Disney Research is a network of research labs that supports The Walt Disney Company. Its objective is to create scientific and technological innovations in order to boost the company's general media and entertainment goals.
Michael Bischoff at ETH Zurich collaborated with Beardsley to develop VertiGo. ETH Zurich is a university in Zürich, Switzerland that is often ranked among the world's top universities, while in the past over 20 Nobel Prizes have been awarded to pupils or professors of the institute, including Albert Einstein.
Here's a first-look at VertiGo:
