ATLAS Doesn't Walk Too Softly, But He Carries A Big Stick (well Truss Actually)

 Robotics  

ATLAS, the humanoid robot built for the DARPA Robotics Challenge is cutting the cord.  In new demo videos, the robot is seen walking unattached and carrying heavy loads across a warehouse floor.

Since the initial stages of the DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC), the Boston Dynamics-built ATLAS robot has been progressing well as the various teams continue to develop it. Where we used to see ATLAS secured to gantries and cranes to save it from unwanted falls, the humanoid robot is now roaming unteatherd (apart from hydraulic and power lines).

The demo above, which was presented at the International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) in Hong Kong, shows ATLAS dragging a huge piece of metal around an open space. The project is part of DRC work and was produced by Scott Kuindersma, Frank Permenter, and Russ Tedrake.

The video is significant as it shows that ATLAS can now walk while off-balance. This means the robot could carry various objects. It is beginning to look like a humanoid robot that can do actual work.

In a second video (below), a stereo depth fusion visualization of what ATLAS "sees" is shown.

Related articles Dennis Hong On Robot Evolution and The DARPA Robotics Challenge  Robot Revolution - Will Machines Surpass Humans?  Meet DARPA's ATLAS Humanoid Robot

This video demonstrates the simultaneous location and mapping (SLAM) systems used by the robot. The use of stereo depth fusion using Kintinuous (originally used to build large maps with Kinect data) to a quality which matches LIDAR data. The heightmap shown was used to place the required footsteps a priori while stationary. It also demonstrates the state estimation is provided by a highly tuned estimator developed by MIT. In this case it is running open loop (and not using any laser info). In open loop mode it drifts about 4cm in this total walking motion.




SOURCE  IEEE Spectrum

By 33rd Square

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