Evolutionary Robotics is a method for automatically generating artificial brains and morphologies of autonomous robots. This approach is useful both for investigating the design space of robotic applications and for testing scientific hypotheses of biological mechanisms and processes. In this chapter we provide an overview of methods and results of Evolutionary Robotics with robots of different shapes, dimensions, and operation features. We consider both simulated and physical robots with special consideration to the transfer between the two worlds.
A swarm-bot of eight robots displaying coordinated motion
Author Stefano Nolfi, Gianluca Baldassarre, Vito Trianni, Francesco Mondada, Marco Dorigo
Video ID : 115
Each robot is provided with an independent neural controller which determines the desired speed of the two wheels on the basis of the traction force caused by the movements of the other robots. The evolved robots are able to display coordinated-motion capability, independent from the way in which they are assembled, as well as to coordinate in carrying heavy objects.