It jumps. It rolls. It could be coming soon to a planet near you.

Designed by biomimetics researcher Rhodri Armour at the University of Bath, the Jollbot is a spherical cage that can roll in any direction.

If it can't go around an obstacle, it goes over. To jump, the cage compresses and springs open — a mechanism inspired by the joints of a grasshopper's legs.

Between rolling and jumping, Armour hopes the two-pound Jollbot will be able to handle rough terrain on other planets.

"We've made a robot that jumps in a similar way to the grasshopper, but uses electrical motors to slowly store the energy needed to leap in its springy skeleton," he said in a press release. "Future prototypes could include a stretchy skin covered in solar cells on the outside of the robot, so it could power itself, and robotic control sensors to enable it to sense its environment.

Another notable animal-inspired robot: the Roboswift, developed by Dutch aerospace students at the Delft University of Technology and Wagenhingen University.

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