Boston Dynamic's Big Dog Gets An Arm For A Head

 Robotics  

As if they weren't busy enough creating the humanoid robots being used in DARPA's Grand Robotics Challenge, the team at Boston Dynamics has also been adding features to the 'Big Dog' robot.  Big Dog now sports a powerful arm where a head might be and can use it to lift and even throw heavy loads.

Robot makers Boston Dynamics have just released video of their BigDog robot handling heavy objects with a robotic arm attached where a head might potentially go. Maybe it is time to rename this model the 'elephant'?

The goal of the project is to develop techniques for using the strength of the legs and torso to help power motions of the arm. This sort of dynamic approach is routinely used by human athletes and is now improving the performance of robots.

In the video above, Big Dog tosses cinder blocks with ease with the new appendage.

Boston Dynamics is also hard at work preparing humanoid robots based on their Petman model for the DARPA Grand Robotics Challenge this year.  The robot is expected to have two arms, two legs, a torso and a head, and will be physically capable of performing all of the tasks required for the disaster response scenarios scheduled in the Challenge. They also are recent world record holders for the fastest legged 'Cheetah' robot.

SOURCE  Boston Dynamics YouTube Channel

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