# Self-Made Modular (DD-061)

> Self-reconfigurable modular robots are machines built from many units that can rearrange how they connect, to change shape for new tasks or to repair themselves. The idea of applying a common connector to a whole robot dates to Toshio Fukuda's CEBOT in the late 1980s. About 30 systems had been built by the time of the Wikipedia survey, but demonstrations have topped out around 50 units, and the promised robustness and low cost haven't been shown. The footage isn't one of those systems. It shows GITAI's Lunar Rover and three Inchworm robots with grapple ends building a 5-meter communications tower in a desert simulating the Moon. GITAI and KDDI announced the demo in December 2023 and March 2024. The robots then attached an antenna, connected power and took the tower apart again.

- Department: Tech (also Space)
- First published: 2025-07-09
- Last updated: 2025-07-09
- Permalink: https://detailenjoyer.com/case/self-made-modular/
- Author: Marcus Easterling (DetailEnjoyer), The Detail Department

## On the timeline

- **1980s**: Toshio Fukuda's CEBOT (cellular robot) applies one connector to a whole robot, in the late 1980s
- **1990s**: Mark Yim, Gregory Chirikjian and Satoshi Murata build chain and lattice modular robots, in the early 1990s
- **December 2023**: GITAI and KDDI announce robots attaching an antenna to a 5-meter test tower
- **March 2024**: GITAI announces robots building and taking apart the tower

Full timeline: https://detailenjoyer.com/timeline/?case=self-made-modular

## Quick facts

- **DD-061-F01**: Self-reconfigurable modular robots trace back to Toshio Fukuda's CEBOT ('cellular robot') in the late 1980s. _(Write-up · Exhibit B (Origins))_
- **DD-061-F02**: GITAI's Inchworm robots and Lunar Rover built and then took apart a 5-meter tower in a desert simulating the Moon. _(Write-up · Exhibit E (What the footage shows))_

## Write-up

Robots that build with modules. Inchworm robots stacking a 5-meter tower in a desert standing in for the Moon.

1. **What they are**: Self-reconfigurable modular robots can change their own shape by rearranging how their modules connect, to adapt to new tasks or recover from damage. Modules can carry electronics, sensors, processors and power supplies.
2. **Origins**: Applying a common connection mechanism to a whole robot began with Toshio Fukuda's CEBOT (cellular robot) in the late 1980s. In the early 1990s Mark Yim, Gregory Chirikjian and Satoshi Murata built chain and lattice systems.
3. **Still mostly prototypes**: Only systems of up to about 50 units have been demonstrated. Lab prototypes have been fragile and expensive, and the promised robustness and low cost haven't been shown.
4. **Self-assembly vs. reconfiguration**: Self-assembling systems are built from modules but can't actively control their final shape, so formally they're a different family from self-reconfigurable robots.
5. **What the footage shows**: The clips show GITAI's Lunar Rover and three Inchworm robots, with grapple end-effectors on both ends of their arms. In a desert simulating the lunar surface, they built a 5-meter communications tower, attached an antenna, connected power, and then took the tower apart.
6. **Lunar construction**: Space is a leading proposed use. A 2026 paper shows dual robot arms autonomously assembling modular solar panels for a future lunar base.

## Related case files

- [WHRGs 2026 (DD-023)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/whrg-2026/): More robots: 2,056 of them competing at the World Humanoid Robot Games.
- [Solar Sailing (DD-039)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/solar-sailing/): More technology built to work in space.
- [BioInspired Robots (DD-082)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/bioinspired-robots/): I linked more robots
- [NVIDIA's Blue (DD-614)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/nvidias-blue/): Another robotics case
- [Murmuration (DD-653)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/murmuration/): Another system where simple local rules make a group move as one
- [Ant Rafting (DD-662)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/ant-rafting/): Robots that self-assemble like ants do
- [RoboWeaving (DD-716)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/roboweaving/): Another robot-building case
- [RoboClassical (DD-722)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/roboclassical/): Another robot-built case
- [Volar eVTOL (DD-734)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/volar-evtol/): Another future-tech case

## Reel vs. record

- **Footage correction**: the clips show GITAI's Inchworm robots and Lunar Rover building a 5-meter lunar communications tower in a desert test, not a swarm of self-assembling solar modules. [GITAI; KDDI]
- **Note**: Correction on 'each module harvests energy from sunlight': that isn't a defining or typical feature. Modules may carry power supplies or share power through their connectors, and GITAI doesn't describe its robots as solar-powered. [Wikipedia; GITAI]
- **Nuance**: 'self-assembling' and 'self-reconfiguring' differ. Self-assembling systems can't actively control their final shape, while self-reconfigurable robots rearrange their own connections. [Wikipedia]
- **Missing context**: the field is still largely at the prototype stage. Demonstrations top out around 50 units, and robustness and low cost haven't been shown. [Wikipedia]
- **Context**: the idea dates to CEBOT in the late 1980s. Space construction is a leading proposed use, as in GITAI's lunar tower demo and a 2026 study of robot arms assembling modular solar panels. [Wikipedia; GITAI; arXiv 2026]

## Video: Self-Made Modular: Robots That Build With Modules

- Duration: 29.2 s · Published: 2025-07-09
- File: https://detailenjoyer.com/assets/videos/DL4aRtmsnBu.mp4

### Transcript

DID YOU KNOW? Self-assembling solar-powered modular robots are advanced robotic systems composed of multiple identical or complementary units called modules, that can autonomously connect, disconnect, and rearrange themselves to adapt to tasks or environments. Each module harvests energy from sunlight, allowing for untethered, long duration operation in remote or extraterrestrial settings. These robots use algorithms for decentralized coordination, shape morphing and dynamic reconfiguration, enabling them to form different structures or tools. NOW YOU KNOW!

## Questions & answers

**Q: What can a self-reconfigurable modular robot do?**  
A: It changes shape to adapt to new tasks or recover from damage. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit A (What they are) · Self-reconfiguring modular robot (Wikipedia))_

**Q: What was CEBOT?**  
A: Toshio Fukuda introduced it in the late 1980s. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit B (Origins) · Self-reconfiguring modular robot (Wikipedia))_

**Q: About how many units has the largest demonstration reached?**  
A: That number stagnated for nearly a decade. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit C (Still mostly prototypes) · Self-reconfiguring modular robot (Wikipedia))_

**Q: Which company's robots appear in the footage?**  
A: They were Inchworm robots and a Lunar Rover. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit E (What the footage shows) · GITAI successfully demonstrates robotics construction capabilities for lunar communications towers (GITAI, March 5, 2024); GITAI and KDDI demonstrate robotic construction for lunar communications towers (KDDI Newsroom, Dec. 7, 2023))_

**Q: How tall was the tower they built?**  
A: The test was in a desert simulating the Moon. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit E (What the footage shows) · GITAI successfully demonstrates robotics construction capabilities for lunar communications towers (GITAI, March 5, 2024); GITAI and KDDI demonstrate robotic construction for lunar communications towers (KDDI Newsroom, Dec. 7, 2023))_

## Sources

- [GITAI successfully demonstrates robotics construction capabilities for lunar communications towers (GITAI, March 5, 2024)](https://gitai.tech/2024/03/05/gitai-successfully-demonstrates-robotics-construction-capabilities-for-lunar-communications-towers/)
- [GITAI and KDDI demonstrate robotic construction for lunar communications towers (KDDI Newsroom, Dec. 7, 2023)](https://newsroom.kddi.com/english/news/detail/kddi_pr-1152.html)
- [Self-reconfiguring modular robot (Wikipedia)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-reconfiguring_modular_robot)
- [Assembling solar panels by dual robot arms towards full autonomous lunar base construction (arXiv:2601.05491, 2026)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.05491)

## Cite this case file

Easterling, Marcus. "Self-Made Modular." The Detail Department (DetailEnjoyer), case file DD-061, last updated Jul 9, 2025. https://detailenjoyer.com/case/self-made-modular/