Meet Popcorn-Driven Robotic Actuators

WHY?

Popcorn is probably the most loved snack food in the world, but what if it could be much more than a snack? Researchers at Cornell think they’ve found a way to use the “pop” from popcorn for robotics! Steven Ceron found that the mechanical energy stored within a popcorn kernel is enough to power basic robotic movements. In his paper for the IEEE convention, Ceron describes a popcorn powered “grabber” that was able to pick up apples and weights! Take that potato chips!