catoms and claytonics: an approach to smart world

8/20/2019 CATOMS AND CLAYTONICS: AN APPROACH TO SMART WORLD

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International Journal of Scientific Research Engineering & Technology (IJSRET)Volume 2 Issue 11 pp 724-727 February 2014 www.ijsret.org ISSN 2278 – 0882

IJSRET @ 2014

CATOMS AND CLAYTONICS: AN APPROACH

TO SMART WORLD

Jatin Chhabra

Student (B.Tech) Department of Computer Science and EngineeringDronacharya College of Engineering, Gurgaon-123506, India

Ravi Ahuja

Student (B.Tech 4th

sem) Department of Electronics and Computers EngineeringDronacharya College of Engineering, Gurgaon-123506, India

Aman Jain

Student (B.Tech 4th

sem) Department of Electronics and Computers EngineeringDronacharya College of Engineering, Gurgaon-123506, India

ABSTRACTThis paper reviews the worldwide increasing technology

of Claytronics which have overcome nanotechnology in

some fields. This technology produces very small nano

scale computers known as Catoms or Claytronics atoms.

In the current edition these catoms perform the basic

function such as color changing and performing

calculations using high power LEDs and LCD displays.

In the future edition, researchers are planning to

implement the technology of catoms to programmable

matter i.e. replicas of the surrounding matter in which

the basic building block that are catoms are programmed

in such a way that they can change their shape and size

according to the requirements. In order to achieve this

kind of complexity we have to discover some new type

of programming languages and not depend on the basic

ones i.e. C++ and Java, therefore the researchers at the

CMU developed two types of languages known as Meld

and Locally Distributed Predicates (LDP).

Keywords: programmable matter, catoms, claytronics,

LDP, Meld, nanotechnology.

1. INTRODUCTIONTill now almost all of us are familiar with the smart

phones. The phrase “smart” can be assigned to anyelectronic gadget if it can perform many functions at any

time and all these functions can be applied in a single,compact and easy to use device. Smart phone is a single

device that can act as a way of communication, a way

locator, a gaming parlor or even a music system. The

concept of being smart is now taken to a bigger level

which is now-a-days known as Smart Homes. The basic

or the smallest unit of a smart home is known as Catom(or Claytronics atom). The electronics which deals with

the manufacturing and application of the catoms is

known as Claytronics. By the use of Claytronics the

matter or the so called programmable matter can be

mould into any shape and size according to our

requirements. The properties of this kind of electronic

gadgets will match the properties of clay therefore the

name is given as “Claytronics”.

2. CATOMSDeveloped and named by Carnegie Mellon University

US by the two great minds of research Seth Goldstein

and Todd Mowry in June 2002, catoms is known to be

one of the best innovations in the history of electronics

and computers.

According to researchers at CMU “Programmable

matter” is described as:

“ An ensemble of material that contains sufficient loca

computation, actuation, storage, energy, sensing and

communication which can be programmed to form

interesting dynamic shapes and configurations.”[2]

In other words programmable matter is defined to be the

collection of those devices that can interact with other

through computers, sensors and communication so that

they can be transformed into different shapes and sizeThe technology that is used to design the programmable

matter from this tiny ‘catoms’ is known as“Claytronics”.




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In the preliminary designs, each catoms is a self

contained unit that comprises of:

• A CPU.

• An energy store such as onboard battery.

•

A network device.• A video output device such as LCD or LED.

• Sensors like pressure sensors and photo sensors.

• A means of locomotion

• A mechanism for adhering to other catoms.

Figure 1: The side and top views of a partially assembled

Planar prototype Catom.

3. IMPLEMENTATION OF CATOMS:

3.1 BLINKY BLOCKSThe most realistic and practical application of Catoms

that have been developed today is the blinky blocks.

Though it is the most basic design in the field of

claytronics, it will surely lead the way towards the dream

future of the shape and size changing programmablematter.

A Blinky Blocks system is a modular distributed

execution environment composed of centimeter-size

blocks that are attached to each other using magnets.

Each block, roughly a 40mm cube, has sufficientprocessing, communication (serial link with up to 6

neighbors), and storage capabilities to implement a wide

variety of distributed tasks. Every block contains

powerful LEDs and various sensors like photo sensor or

pressure sensor. Color change is the basic operation itperforms along with several other capabilities such as

capturing and playing sounds and detecting impulses

such as shaking and tapping.

One of the prototypes of these blinky blocks could be as

follows:

There are four blocks connected magnetically each

having four LEDs and an infrared light sensor that can

sense the frequency of the incoming light. There is amicrocontroller which controls the working and the

function of these four blocks. Suppose there is a specific

pattern in which the LEDs are working say red, green

yellow and blue which is being programmed. There is a

switch on the first block which can alter the color of the

LED of the first block, such that if we switch the color

of the first block from red to yellow, the programmed

pattern allow the rest of the blocks to change color i.e

yellow, blue, red, green. The pressure sensor allows the

block to change colors by just tapping it.

4. NANOMETER SCALE CATOMSIn our basic design each catom is few millimeter in size

however to achieve the final destination of the replica

of human and real time object, the catoms need to be of

nanometer scale range or less like the atoms in the

surrounding matter. However manufacturing nanoscale

catoms is not an easy job to do, it needs immense as wel

as highly favorable conditions to handle these types of

tiny particles.

4.1 Manufacturing of the nanoscale catomsThese catoms consist of a tube that is fabricated as a

double layer planar structure in 2D using standard

techniques of photolithography and a high voltage self

contained CMOS device that is fabricated separately andthen manually wired bonded to the tube.

Figure 2: Motion generation in nanoscale catoms.

This CMOS device includes an AC-DC converter, a

storage capacitor, a simple logic unit, and output buffers

The catom moves on a power grid (the stator) tha

contains rails which carry high voltage AC signalsThrough capacitive coupling, an AC signal is generated

on the coupling electrodes of the tube, which is then

converted to DC power by the CMOS chip. The powered

chip then generates voltage on the actuation electrodes




IJSRET @ 2014

sequentially, creating electric fields that push the tube

forward.

The difference in thermal stress created in the layers

during the fabrication processes causes the 2D structures

to bend into 3D tubes upon release from the substrate.The tubes have electrodes for power transfer and

actuation on the perimeter. [2]

5. TOWARDS THE FUTURE: SHAPE

CHANGING CATOMS

In the distant future, researchers tend to extend thetechnology of catoms to a higher level from color

changing to modifying its shape and size. This could be

done by the theory of crystal structure according towhich matter have definite shape and strength according

to their hybridization and inter atomic force between

their corresponding atoms.

Similarly in the case of catoms when the crystal of

catom is distorted or when corner most catom of a

particular replica experience some physical change then

atomic spacing between the corner-most catom and its

surrounding varies accordingly. This tends to the change

in atomic spacing of all the catoms in the programmable

matter. This movement of catoms along with the other is

done by electromagnetic force of attraction betweenthese catoms which is achieved by a series of ring

shaped electromagnets along the perimeter of the

cylindrical catoms.

It depends on two factors:

1. If the physical change on the corner catoms is unable

to affect the atomic spacing/ inter atomic force of the

surrounding catoms then your replica regain its

shape.

2. If the physical force on the corner most catom

exceed its threshold value then the surrounding

catoms rearrange themselves in accordance with

inter atomic spacing/ force and thus the shape of the

programmable matter changes.

Figure 3: Shape changing phenomenon of Catoms

6. SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS:Languages to program a matrix require a more

abbreviated syntax and style of command than normal

programming languages such as C++ and Java. Hence a

new type of programming language is to be used for

such complex tasks. The Carnegie Mellon-Intel

Claytronics Research Project has created two new

programming languages: Meld and Locally Distributed

Predicates (LDP).

Meld is a declarative language, a logic programming

language originally designed for programming overlay

networks. By using logic programming, the code for an

ensemble of robots can be written from a global

perspective, enabling the programmer to concentrate on

the overall performance of the claytronics matrix ratherthan writing individual instructions for every one of the

thousands to millions of catoms in the ensemble.

LDP (Locally Distributed Predicates) is a reactive

programming language. It has been used to trigge

debugging in the earlier research. With the addition oflanguage that enables the programmer to build

operations in the development of the shape of the matrix

it can be used to analyze the distributed local

conditions. It can operate on fixed-size, connected

groups of modules providing various functions of stateconfiguration.

7. APPLICATIONSThe concept of catoms and claytronics has just come

into existence. However if we see the future aspect of the

programmable matter, we can see a world which can be

mould into any shape according to our requirements:




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1. Dynamic Physical Rendering: When you use a

replica of a particular thing, after you finished of its

purpose you can transform into any other thing. In

this way, human life could become much easier with

a single thing that can perform the functions of manymore.

2. Medicine: A replica of your physician could appear

in your living room and perform an exam. The

virtual doctor would precisely mimic the shape,

appearance and movements of your “real” doctor,who is performing the actual work from a remote

office.

3. Disaster relief: Human replicas could serve as stand-

ins for medical personnel, firefighters, or disaster

relief workers. Objects made of programmable

matter could be used to perform hazardous work and

could morph into different shapes to serve multiple

purposes.

4. 3D Modeling: Using claytronics, you could reshape

or resize a model car or home with your hands. As

you manipulated the model directly, aided by

embedded software that’s similar to the drawingtools found in office software programs, the

appropriate computations would be carried out

automatically.

This process consists of three steps:

1. Capture 3D object

2. Encode 3D model

3. Transmit data

8. CONCLUSION:The technology around us is advancing very rapidly with

passing of time. From where we start we don’t evenknow how to manufacture things that we are using today

so easily to the time when we are able to make things

that can change or reconstruct themselves. This is just

the start to the distant future which our today’s science isdreaming of. On this way, the computers and electronics

technology will be of great use. Ever imagine a world

that is connected to each other on every corner or

connected to us. We would be able to communicate with

our house, our office and everything that we can think

of. This technology was initiated with the revolution ofnanotechnology, which may be overcome with the

technology in the distant future. Forget about Nanotech

think Claytronics.

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Communications of the ACM, 43(4):74 – 82, May 2000.

[2] Claytronics project website

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/claytronics/.

[3] M. Fromherz, et al. Distributed adaptive constrained

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catoms and claytonics: an approach to smart world

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