Neuromorphic and Brain-Based Robots

Providing an introduction to recent advances in neuromorphic and brain-based robotics, this book explores how robots can be used to better understand the brain. It considers their use in studying how the nervous system gives rise to complex behavior and how this knowledge could be used to develop intelligent robots.

Neuromorphic and brain-based robotics have enormous potential for furthering our understanding of the brain. By embodying models of the brain on robotic platforms, researchers can investigate the roots of biological intelligence and work towards the development of truly intelligent machines. This book provides a broad introduction to this groundbreaking area for researchers from a wide range of fields, from engineering to neuroscience. Case studies explore how robots are being used in current research, including a whisker system that allows a robot to sense its environment and neurally inspired navigation systems that show impressive mapping results. Looking to the future, several chapters consider the development of cognitive, or even conscious robots that display the adaptability and intelligence of biological organisms. Finally, the ethical implications of intelligent robots are explored, from morality and Asimov''s three laws to the question of whether robots have rights.