With the rapidly advancing pace of robotics and the decent number of fishbots we’ve seen over the years, it was only a matter of time before real fish melded with real machine. The Fish on Wheels project is essentially a fish-bowl go-kart that uses motion-tracking software to drive the Fish on Wheels whatever direction it happens to swim.
A goldfish is a good candidate to test the mechanics of how the system works but could you imagine this system being applied to fish with half a brain? A large pet cichlid like a managuense, an oscar, or even a grouper could soon learn how the machine works and quickly make use of it to follow its owner around the house.
And don’t even get us started on enabling the Fish on Wheels for octopus, Ceph on Wheels. You wouldn’t even need a motion tracking camera for Ceph on Wheels, just put a coupe levers or a bonafide steering wheel in there and the octopod will soon enough figure it out. Of course, this proof of concept is just a hobby project for now but we can imagine a future where this type of technology is refined for commercial use at which point your favorite fish and roomba will have a lot in common. Supa cool! [Engadget via The Verge]
