Bionic penguins
New Scientist is reporting that German engineering firm, Festo, has unveiled a flock of bionic penguins at the Hanover Messe Trade Exhibition. Designed around a system of flexible glass fibre rods, which allow them to twist their heads like real penguins, and equipped with sonar and a limited form of autonomy, they can swim as gracefully as their biological counterparts. And there’s even a helium-filled flying version which “swims” through the air.
Go on – tell me the sight of bionic penguins coursing through the water doesn’t make you grin like an idiot as well.
Break text
Break text
2 Comments
Post a comment
city of tongues 
The Air Penguin? The freaking BRANDED AIR PENGUIN?!!
I’m gonna assume this is real for now… in which case that voiceover is the scariest thing I have heard in a long time “self-regulating bio-mechatronic systems… free will to explore this space.”
Do bionic penguins dream of electronic fish?
I wondered whether it was a hoax as well, but it was in New Scientist, the company have a website, the video looks too expensive to be fake (unless it’s some weird viral marketing thing for a movie) and they’ve got a track record making things like bionic jellyfish, so I think it’s on the level.