The developers have demonstrated the capabilities of the robot Minitaur on the roads
In the published video Minitaur climbs up a grassy slope with a 32-degree slope, jumps with all four legs simultaneously at the 25-cm plate and moves along the large rocks.
The company Ghost Robotics demonstrated on rough terrain capabilities of a four-legged robot Minitaur direct drive legs. Video posted on YouTube.
The design of the legs the two-legged and four-legged robots usually use multiple joints and in various spring-loaded or elastic elements. This approach allows to absorb shock loads on the entire structure during movement.
Engineers from the Robotics Ghost refused elastic elements and suggested to dampen shock loads due to the motor feet.
Feet are directly connected to the motors with feedback, making Minitaur recognize different surface features and adapts them gait. In addition, the direct drive of the legs allows the robot to make fast and complex movements — for example, to open the door handle or to crawl through the mesh-netting.
In the published video Minitaur climbs up a grassy slope with a 32-degree slope, jumps with all four legs simultaneously at the 25-cm plate and moves along the large rocks. The robot then demonstrates the bounce 55-inch obstacle, and after landing, gets to his feet.
In addition, the video shows the overcoming of the border, “squat” for passage under obstacles, walk on ice and snow, and a short run on two legs.
Interestingly, at the end of the video shows the larger quadruped. The second robot, according to the design is an enlarged version of the Minitaur, but its characteristics are not reported.
Ghost Robotics introduced the commercial version of the Minitaur in 2016. The robot weighs six kilograms, can carry cargo weighing up to three pounds, jumping to a height of 48 inches and can reach speeds of two meters per second. Charge the onboard battery lasts for 20 minutes. After the start of series production, the developers plan to sell the device for about $ 1,500.
Their robots also known company Boston Dynamics, owned by Google. Four-legged robot Spot was tested by the military in 2015, and a year later the company introduced its modified version SpotMini with manipulator, reminiscent of the neck. Also Boston Dynamics recently unveiled a robot on wheels Handle, which is able to perform complex dynamic movements — for example, to move down the stairs.
Nikolai Vorontsov