Robots filmed for the BBC a new series about animals

To be able to remove wild animals in their natural habitat without disturbing or embarrassing them, they usually use video cameras that are placed in the habitats of the characters in the program or the film. But in the company John Downer Productions, which made a new series for the BBC and PBS, decided to reach a new level. Instead of cameras for shooting, robots were used that look like animals, which are told in the series.

Production of robots for the series Spy in the Wild was taken up by specialists from the Polytechnic University of Louisiana from the Department of Robotics. In the video published below, the developers talk about the purpose of the new TV show and the creation of two robotic reptiles - a crocodile and a lizard, in the eyes of which two cameras were mounted.

To achieve greater similarity, the appearance of artificial animals was recreated very carefully. Mobility and flexibility of the mechanical skeleton provide hinges and miniature electric drives, and robot bodies are made of waterproof material. Now, electronic amphibians can smoothly and very realistically move, spying on their "relatives" of flesh and blood, without causing any suspicion. These machines are controlled remotely from a distance of up to 500 meters.

The first episode of the series is dedicated to the Langur monkeys. The monkey robot successfully followed the life of other monkeys with the help of a camera mounted in the eye. The robot was only busy watching, so it raised suspicions in one of the primates - he came up, began to hamper the suspicious langur, and then threw the robot off the branch. Seeing that the fallen monkey does not move, others sat around the robot and began to mourn the deceased.

The creators of the series are sure that such an approach will help them to learn more about the life of animals, so they have already prepared for shooting many different robotic animals. The Spy in the Wild show began on January 27, 2017.

The article is based on materials https://hi-news.ru/eto-interesno/roboty-snyali-dlya-bbc-novyj-serial-o-zhivotnyx.html.