Science: Robotic greenhouse for Mars among Electrolux Design Lab 2009 finalists

Electrolux, a global leader in home and professional appliances, has selected eight finalists to compete for first place in its Electrolux Design Lab 2009 finals, a global competition to be decided in London on September 24, 2009.

In honor of its 90th anniversary, Electrolux invited undergraduate and graduate industrial design students to send in their home appliance ideas for the next 90 years. The goal was “to create thoughtfully-designed products that will shape how people prepare and store food, wash clothes and do dishes over the next nine decades.” Over 900 entries were submitted from students in more 50 countries, including Le Petit Prince, by Martin Miklica, Brno University of Technology, Czech Republic:

"Le Petit Prince is a robotic greenhouse designed to facilitate the future exploration and population of Mars. Le Petit Prince takes care of a plant it carries inside its glass case, which is mounted on top of its four-legged pod. In search of nutrients to care for the plant, the robot is programmed to intuitively learn the optimal method for this process. It also reports its movements and progress to its fellow greenhouse robots via wireless communication so that they can learn from each other."

Check out the short video for Miklica’s Le Petit Prince on YouTube.