The first robot that utilizes food as an energy source has been invented

A good robot leaves an empty plate
The question is how to educate him not to eat humans

"Haaretz" service

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An American robot, known as Chiu Chiu, has been announced as the first robot that utilizes food as its energy source, the British magazine "New Scientist" reported yesterday.

Chiu Chiu's inventor, Stuart Wilkinson, from the University of South Florida in Tampa, said that the robot feeds itself from sugar cubes because they are almost completely broken down in its "stomach" by bacteria, and do not produce waste. But the ideal food for a robot would be meat. He also said that in the future the robots will feed themselves.

A colony of coli bacteria has been enslaved in the "robot's stomach", and it works to extract energy from the sugar. The process of breaking down the sugar molecules into water and carbon dioxide produces electrons that charge the battery. Only when the battery is fully charged, the robot can generate enough power to move forward on its 12 wheels.

Wilkinson admitted that the idea of ​​generating electricity from food is not new, but he said he is the first to create a cell small enough to inject into a robot. More sophisticated robots will be able to feed themselves in the future. Wilkinson added that it may not be wise to encourage robots to eat. "Otherwise, they will find out that there are a lot of humans walking around in all directions, and will try to eat them."
Chiu Chiu is a slow robot after all. It consists of three carriages, each one meter long. Wilkinson said that he should be fed like a baby, since "he has no arms or legs," the New Scientist reported.

© Published in "Haaretz" on 07/20/2000

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