What's with the Logo?

When you think about traction, you think about a means of getting somewhere without spinning out. We're talking big knobby tires for offroading, or good snow tires for driving up for a day on the slopes.

In business, having traction means getting results for your efforts, value for your money.

So when it came to finding the perfect image for ultimate traction, what came to mind? Well, in recent years there have been a number of studies on that very subject, and a couple of research teams have successfully built mechanical robots that have such good traction that they can pretty much climb anything! And it's all based on the super-grippy foot of the humble gecko.

Hence the gecko's foot in our logo. Read on to find more about this amazing little creature and its hidden talents.

Seta-what?

It turns out that gecko feet are pretty unique in the natural world. Instead of having plain old scales or fingerprints, they have thousands of tiny hair-like flaps arranged in ridges. These flaps are called "setae," and they are the key to the gecko's grip.

Science Daily recently wrote about some of the work being done at Stanford University to build a gecko robot that can climb vertically right up a glass window. The key to this robot's adhesion lies in synthesizing the little hairs on a gecko's foot, and using a special motion to attach and detach the feet from the surface — you guessed it — just like the little lizards do.

Like most technical problems that we face here at Traction Systems every day, the solution is not immediately obvious. A gecko just runs up a wall, right? So do ants, spiders and rock climbers (albeit a little more slowly). No big deal! It's not until you look into the details of it that you discover the differences. A gecko's foot adheres using a force that normally only applies to microscopic or molecular interactions, a force called the Van der Waals force. One little seta alone does not provide much adhesion, but with thousands and millions of setae on each foot, geckos have no trouble hanging from just a single toe. But you don't see how they do it until you dig a bit deeper into the technicalities.

The Traction Systems Edge

Our edge comes in looking at the details and leveraging technology that is felt but not seen. You don't want to know how to climb the wall, you just want to do it. You want to get from point A to point B, and you want a team of technologists to have your back and help you do it in a way that makes your life better and positively impacts the bottom line.

For your viewing pleasure...

Check out this video to find more about gecko adhesive science.