HOW CAN a trundling robot armed with a battery charger help to fight bioterrorism? Simple. It will wheel about keeping networks of anthrax sensors fully charged, and ready to raise the alarm should they catch a whiff of the deadly organism.
In the wake of last year’s anthrax attacks, companies are keen to develop cheap wireless sensor networks that can monitor air in postal sorting offices and government buildings for signs of biowarfare agents. But there is a stumbling block: how do you keep the battery-operated sensors fully powered and calibrated without having to hire armies of technicians?
Enter the…
