Amazing quadruped robot "BigDog"

A

agent420

[H]ard|Gawd
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Seen this? Amazing, and it freaks me out a bit... Via Slashdot.

"The US company Boston Dynamics has released an amazing new video of its quadruped robot BigDog. The highlight of the video (at 1:24) shows how the robot starts slipping on ice, almost falls several times, but finally regains its balance and continues walking. The video also shows the robot's ability to cope with different types of terrains, climb and descend steep slopes, and jump. Two years ago, the older version of BigDog was already able to climb slopes, keep its balance after a strong kick, and walk on rough terrain like stones, mud, and snow. The new version weighs 235 lbs and can carry a payload of up to 340 lbs, a factor of 4 better than its predecessor."
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There's a spot in the video where a guy walking nearby tries to kick it over, and it regains it's balance and keeps going.

Hook this thing up with the moth brain or rat brain computer system and we're on our way to Skynet and the Terminator.

robot_bdog_big.gif
 
That's some pretty amazing stuff. Put a better muffler on that thing, and I'll bet the US Army will be knocking down the door.
 
creepy looking.... but the thing has a good center of gravity which i find to be amazing.
 
love it, they gotta do something about that noise though

watching robotics freak out on ice = priceless
 
Mohonri said:
That's some pretty amazing stuff. Put a better muffler on that thing, and I'll bet the US Army will be knocking down the door.
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Given that this is a result of top military research, I'm pretty sure that what is released to the public is a far cry from what they are really capable of.

It's movements while struggling on the ice appear so naturally animal-like that I almost find myself feeling badly for it for a second. Creepy.
 
I guess my only question is how this would be beneficial in respect to military usage? I guess I'm not seeing the advantage this would provide.
 
Well, if you put a well-designed muffler on it, it would be a whole lot quieter. Not as quiet as, say, a human, but a lot quieter than it is now.

I can see it being used as a pack animal of sorts for use where hummers, etc wouldn't be feasible, like a heavily forested area. It could be deployed with special forces units for longer-duration missions, where they would need to bring along more supplies.
 
Mohonri said:
Well, if you put a well-designed muffler on it, it would be a whole lot quieter. Not as quiet as, say, a human, but a lot quieter than it is now.

I can see it being used as a pack animal of sorts for use where hummers, etc wouldn't be feasible, like a heavily forested area. It could be deployed with special forces units for longer-duration missions, where they would need to bring along more supplies.
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Oh i like the way you think ... !!! :D
 
agent420 said:
There's a spot in the video where a guy walking nearby tries to kick it over, and it regains it's balance and keeps going.

...we're on our way to Skynet and the Terminator.
Click to expand...
That video is the evidence Skynet will use when it decide to eliminate the humans. That guy kicks the Big Dog for no reason at all. Skynet will be pissed when it sees that.
 
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