A team of researchers from Switzerland, Portugal, and Belgium are working on a swarm of robots that each can control itself. Rather than having the individual robots respond to a computer that oversees all, each of these robots have their own CPUs, sensors, wheels and tracks, WiFi, camera, range sensor, identification beacon, and other components. The robots operate independently, but then operate as single units once connected to work toward the same thing. This means there is no need for an overarching intelligence that monitors and directs the robots, and all the infrastructure that implies. It simplifies the logic necessary to accomplish tasks, and it makes replacing parts simpler. Scaling the robots from a formation of five or six to hundreds is easier than in the other architecture. Finally, adding functions like lifting or pushing is as easy as adding a lifter or pusher unit.
