Autonomous semiaquatic robots inspired by hippopotamus buoyancy and navigation. Inspecting flooded infrastructure where humans can't go.
A city emergency manager watches on a tablet as HippoScope glides through 8 feet of muddy floodwater, surfaces near a compromised bridge pillar, and its periscope camera pops up to reveal a 4-inch crack that would have caused collapse within 48 hours — all while first responders stay safely on dry land.