Swarm robotics -- from local rules to global behaviors | Magnus Egerstedt | TEDxEmory

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences.
How should large-scale robotic teams be designed so that they can solve complex tasks that the robots cannot solve by themselves? By drawing inspiration from natural systems, such as swarming insects or flocking birds, simple robot-to-robot rules are found that make the robots move together in useful and interesting ways.
Magnus Egerstedt is the Schlumberger Professor and Associate Chair of Research in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he works on robotics in general, and swarm robotics in particular. Before coming to Georgia Tech, he was a postdoctoral scholar at Harvard University and a graduate student at the Royal Institute of Technology, in his native hometown of Stockholm, Sweden. He is the director of the Georgia Robotics and Intelligent Systems Laboratory (GRITS Lab), a Fellow of the IEEE, and a recipient of the ECE/GT Outstanding Junior Faculty Member Award, the HKN Outstanding Teacher Award, the Alum of the Year Award from the Royal Institute of Technology, and the U.S. National Science Foundation CAREER Award.
About TEDx, x = independently organized event In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)