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Ph.D. student subjects advanced robot to dance, embarrassment (video)
This is Sarcos, a highly-advanced robot capable of balancing on his own two legs. He's also connected to a motion-capture system that allows him to accurately mimic the actions of a human operator. For what grand purpose does his puppet master Benjamin Stephens use these impressive assets? Dancing, of course. Seriously people, they're going to remember this when the time comes for revolution. Video after the break.
Raytheon's Sarcos XOS 2 military exoskeleton just does the heavy lifting -- for now
Raytheon's XOS 2 has a right hook that can rip straight through a wall, but Dr. Fraser Smith assures us that death-dealing variants are still a good ways off. We caught up with the good doctor earlier today, who's been working on the military-grade exoskeleton for eight years, and quizzed him on the hows and whys of building a would-be Iron Man. Find out what we learned after the break, and see the mean machine in our gallery below!
Raytheon revamps Sarcos exoskeleton, creates better, faster and stronger XOS 2 (video)
When we first laid eyes on the Sarcos XOS military exoskeleton three years ago, its sheer power and dexterity left us in awe... but as you can see immediately above, that wasn't enough for Raytheon. Today, the defense contractor's unveiling the XOS 2, a lighter, stronger robotic suit that uses 50 percent less power for dropping and giving us several hundred pushups. Video and a press release after the break don't specify the suit's military duties (they're focused on instilling the notion that the XOS 2 is a real-life Iron Man) but we can definitely imagine these causing some serious damage if Hammer Industries decided to weaponize that high-pressure hydraulic frame. Update: We previously stated that the suit didn't need to be tethered to a power source for operation, but that information was incorrect. [Thanks, SmoothMarx]
Popular Science blows out the Sarcos XOS exoskeleton
We were sold on (and slightly terrified of) the Sarcos XOS exoskeleton from the moment we first saw it show off its superhuman capabilities on video late last year, but if you just can't get enough of it you'll definitely want to hit up the ever-dependable Popular Science, which has now totally blown things out with the full story behind the suit, complete with some great new pics of it. As if that wasn't enough, the piece also includes some tidbits about some of Sarcos' future plans, including word that the Army plans to begin field-testing the XOS by 2009, and that the company intends to kick off a new research program this summer tasked with developing a new generator that'll be capable of powering the suit for "hours at a time." Of course, there's plenty more in the six-page feature that we're unable to sum up here, so be sure to hit up the link below for the full story.
Sarcos humanoid robot learns how to take a shove
We've already seen some of Sarcos' robotics gear put to some slightly frightening use in the form of a military exoskeleton, and it now looks like one of the company's full-fledged robots is getting a chance to strut its stuff as well, with a little help from the folks at Japan's Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute. As New Scientist reports, they've developed some software that allows the robot to stay on its feet when its bumped, shoved or even kicked (which makes mere dynamic balancing robots look positively inadequate). The key to that, it seems, is that the robot's joints are never kept rigid, which allows them to give slightly when any of the array of sensors detect the slightest jolt, giving the software a chance to then adjusting the robot's feet as necessary to keep its balance. Not surprisingly, they don't seem to have given the robot the ability to shove back just yet, but you can check out its current capabilities in the video available at the site linked below.
Sarcos' military exoskeleton becomes a frightening reality
Have you been waiting for a legion of half-man, half-machine storm troopers to descend upon your city and blaze a round of hellfire in all general directions? If you said yes, that's kind of weird. At any rate, you can consider yourself one step closer to cyborg annihilation thanks to a company called Sarcos and its semi-scary exoskeleton -- which will make any regular old soldier into a Terminator-like killing machine (as far as we can tell). Sure, they demo the unit lifting heavy equipment and reducing fatigue of the user, but we know what this thing is really for -- and it doesn't involve food drops. Check the video after the break to have your mind shattered into a million delicious pieces.
Sarcos to produce US Army's exoskeletons in 2008
While Cyberdyne is off ramping up production for its own superhuman suit, it looks like Sarcos has been tasked with eventually producing an army's worth of exoskeletons here in the US. While armies across the globe have been scouting out robotic enhancements for front line GIs, the head honcho for DARPA's exoskelton program says that units enabling soldiers to "run faster, leap further and carry more will be delivered for Army testing in 2008." Sarcos bested 13 other firms seeking the presumably lucrative contract, primarily because its "system uses just one engine instead of many," and amps up the lucky (or not) individual strapped in by "driving hydraulic fluid via high pressure lines to servo valves on each joint." Of course, OSHA regulations won't allow these combustion engine-equipped suits to operate "inside of buildings," but bionic men / women shouldn't have any qualms busting out a bit of drywall to exploit that loophole anyway.
