One task of importance is to be able to be able to locate the source of some chemical, biological, or other toxic leak. We are using our novel algorithms for plume source tracing, in conjunction with our work on distributed robotics, to supply the necessary technology to Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute for tasks of this nature. The video on the left shows a chemical density map of a volatile organic compound being released from an emitter, driven by air currents. The video on the right shows how seven autonomous robots cooperate to find the source of a toxic emission.
