Quadruped CHEETAH Robot To Outrun Any Human 177
cylonlover writes "Robots are faster than humans at a lot of things, but up until now running hasn't been one of them. That is set to change with robotics company Boston Dynamics recently awarded a contract by DARPA to design and build a quadraped CHEETAH robot that is faster than any human. The contract also includes the creation of an agile, bipedal humanoid robot. It's hard to say which one might ultimately be creepier."
Re:moving that fast, missing one element (Score:5, Informative)
Hi, roboticist here. Let me just say 'citation needed' to pretty much everything the parent said. I'm not quite sure what a "sense of instability and correction mechanisms" is, but I'm guessing they mean "sensors and control systems", but I'm pretty sure dynamic stability, traction, motion sensing and control have little to do with conformal surface coverings. Yes, skin has important traction characteristics, and flesh has inherent compliance that is important in gait cycles, but skin has nothing to do with dynamic stability.
Further more, it is fallacious to say that researchers aren't developing skin. That's simply false - there are many benefits to synthetic skin to be derived from users of prosthetic appliances, both in contact mechanics and sensing. There have been some very novel products in that area... they just don't happen to apply to dynamic control of legged robots.
Given the parent's mention of Big Dog and the weight of mechanical structures, I'd like to point out that part of the work for cheetah includes exploring composite structures for legged robots that will decrease total weight and rotational inertia of the limbs - directly related to the maximum speed at which a legged robot can move. Cf. the sexy MIT cheetah pic here [mit.edu]. Note the call-outs citing sensors, balance mechanisms, traction control, actuators and distinct lack of skin.