runbot
Latest
Record-setting RunBot gains climbing ability
Having already bested other bots in feats of robot athletics, the speedy RunBot has now apparently decided to take its game to another level, with it recently seen showing off some of tis newly-developed climbing abilities. While it's apparently not quite ready to joining its rock-climbing counterparts on their next expedition, the RunBot can now automatically adjust its gait to different terrain, giving it the ability to walk uphill or downhill (albeit after enduring a few falls to get its bearings). No word on what it'll attempt next, though its options would still seem to be somewhat limited, what with it not having an upper body and all.[Photo courtesy of Popular Mechanics]
The RunBot out runs MIT's "Spring Flamingo," can you?
Sure, RunBot might not be a true runner yet, since it still keeps one foot on the ground at all times. Also, it's only fastest for its height, managing a swift 3.5 leg-lengths per second, besting the MIT's four times taller Spring Flamingo, which runs at comparably sluggish 1.4 leg-lengths per second. All that being said, RunBot currently holds the world record for fastest bot on two legs. The RunBot's German and Scottish creators attribute its speed to the fairly simple design, which only senses when a leg is on the ground and when a leg swings forward. RunBot merely experiments with whichever leg motions keep it upright and keep it going fastest, and the bot can accelerate up to three times its original speed with its "learnings." So far the RunBot can only walk in circles, since it's attached to a boom in the center of a room, but the developers say they're at work on a freestanding version, which shouldn't be too tough because the boom has little influence on the RunBot's walking. Be sure to check the read link for video of the bot in all of its herky-jerky glory.
