Japanese bridge inspection robot has magnetic wheels, shuffles up walls

Most wall-climbing robots rely on advanced forms of suction to keep them adhered to a flat surface, but Japan's latest wall crawler employs a different method: magnets. Hailing from the Osaka City University Graduate School of Engineering, BIREM (which stands for Bridge Inspection Robot Equipping Magnets) is designed to -- as the name suggests -- inspect bridges. Riding four spoked wheels adorned with eight magnets a piece, it can creep across metal girders at a rate of 7.8 inches per second.

via Tech News Headlines - Yahoo News http://www.engadget.com/2013/12/21/BIREM-robot-has-magnetic-wheels?ncid=txtlnkusaolp00000589