Iron Man-like mini robot 'iCub' developed by engineers in Italy for rescue operations

The Iron Man might soon be available for rescue as engineers from the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT) in Italy’s Genoa have developed a robot of similar capabilities. Named iCub, the robot stands just 3.4 feet tall but is fully capable of rescue operations from places where humans and drones can not reach. Since Iron Man is the closest reference to this robot, needless to say, it can fly using propulsion rockets fitted in its limbs. Each year, an estimated 90,000 humans are killed in 300 natural disasters and nearly 160 million get affected by the same, as per the institute. 

A robot with multiple skills

The robot, as mentioned above, stands no taller than 3.4 feet, similar to a child but can exhibit multiple skills. The robot has been designed to crawl on all four limbs, walk and sit and also possesses special manipulation skills such as handling heavy objects. The IIT engineers who believe there should be a higher usage of robotics in rescue operations said as per Daily Mail," Unfortunately, robotics is still lagging behind to offer affordable solutions in these disaster scenarios". The robot iCub which has been under development for 15 years is one of the few inventions suitable for the job. 

"It is one of the few platforms in the world with a sensitive full-body skin to deal with safe physical interaction with the environment", IIT says on its website. In a video simulation, the engineers showed how the robot can be controlled remotely to carry out complicated and out-of-reach operations. "The developed simulator integrates sound simulation, which originates from the real experiments performed for jet identification and control purposes", iCub's developers explained as per Daily Mail's report. Besides, the robot also runs on algorithms that monitor flight information and ensure its vertical take-off and landing and orientation control.