Not actually crazy. But certainly innovative and ambitious. NASA scientists Vytas Sunspiral and Adrian Agogino are working on a revolutionary model for future planetary rovers. The invention is named the Super Ball Bot. It basically consists of a shell covered with beads all over and held in shape by a web of interconnected rods and elastic cords. This weird looking conglomerate actually has some interesting properties. The developers call this the tensegrity system. The principle on which the Robot is based is that objects can be held together through balancing forces of tension rather than in a rigid structure. (more…)