They are clearly getting much better at doing this. Now we must decide just what can be done with this platform. It clearly provides creditable rough surface mobility.
Now we have to design it to handle rider packs that can supply practical usefulness. I am sure that the military will have ample suggestions there, even if it is as a suicide bomber. However drone weapon systems also work here.
Commercial use is a little less easy simply because we engineer roughness out of our environment.
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Boston Dynamics introduces smaller, more kickable robot
http://www.gizmag.com/boston-dynamics-spot/36005/
In 2005, Boston Dynamics unveiled its robot "mule," Big Dog.
Now it has a smaller, nimbler littermate called Spot that can take a
good kick. Weighing in at 160 lb (72.5 kg), the electrically-powered,
hydraulically-actuated, four-legged robot made its debut in a YouTube
video released by the company on Tuesday.
Boston Dynamics isn't releasing many details about Spot beyond saying
that it's designed for indoor and outdoor operation; preferring to let
the video speak for itself. However, the footage does provide a few
clues.
For one thing, Spot is the smallest of Boston Dynamics' quadruped robots (outside of the lab-bound LittleDog)
and shows the cleanest engineering. It's nimbler than Big Dog, though
the two may be related, and the electrical/hydraulic system, which may
be derived from the company's Atlas humanoid robot, is much quieter than the internal combustion engines used by the larger robots.
Another improvement is the configuration of the legs. Where Big Dog
and its derivatives use a forward-angled leg design, Spot's is angled
backwards like the legs of a goat, and it hops about like one. The
efficacy of this arrangement is shown in the video, which shows Spot,
standing about a meter high, navigating the narrow corridors of the
Boston Dynamics offices… and receiving a swift kick by one of the office
workers along the way. The company's robots are well known for keeping
their balance, but Spot holds its feet with only a quick, remarkably
lifelike stagger.
The video indicates that it uses some sort of scanning LIDAR for
navigating. It also shows Spot negotiating a rough hill, climbing a
flight of stairs, running with a man, moving in tandem with another
Spot, and walking alongside the company's biggest robot, the LS3.
The latter raises the question of what Spot is for. Previous Boston
Dynamics quadrupeds were developed as part of a contract to create
robotic pack mules to assist soldiers with their gear in rough country.
That makes sense for a machine the size of a mechanical bullock, but a
robotic goat is another matter. Perhaps it's designed as a robot scout
or an autonomous guard dog. Or maybe the company is expanding into the
mechanical pet market. We'll have to wait until Boston Dynamics tells us
a bit more.
The video showing Spot in action is below.
Source: Boston Dynamics
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