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  • This ostrich robot doesn't need to think to run

    by 
    Mat Smith
    Mat Smith
    05.03.2017

    This tiny ostrich bot, unlike rival robots, doesn't use computers and sensors to balance. It manages to keep running (at up to 10 mph) thanks to dynamic stability inherent in its design. Jerry Pratt, the senior research scientist at IHMC who leads the team developing the Planar Elliptical Runner (PER) told Technology Review that lessons learned from designing it could be applied to more practical running robots "to make them more efficient and natural looking. Running will be eventually useful for any application that you want to do quickly and where wheels can't work well."