More Old Robot Vids
Writing by Evan Ackerman on Thursday, 11 of March , 2010 at 3:31 am
So, as you may or may not know or care, I also write posts for OhGizmo.com. Obviously, BotJunkie is way more awesome, but sometimes I just have to suck it up and write about consumer electronics and gadgets and stuff. It’s one of those days, since the Game Developer’s Conference is going on here in San Francisco. If you’re interested in Sony’s new PlayStation Move motion controller or a music game that uses a real playable guitar instead of a plastic thing with buttons, please feel free to swing by over there. Meantime, enjoy a couple more vids from Cybernetic Zoo and I’ll be back here with our usual robotyness in a day or two.
Odex-1. The creepy music is not helping.
This is the Adaptive Suspension Vehicle, a product of Ohio State University and DARPA in 1984. It weighs 2600 kg, has 1.4m ground clearance, and can cross a 1.8m ditch. When you turn it off, it lies down on its belly, which for some reason I find to be incredibly cute.
[ Cybernetic Zoo ]
On a side note, just another shout-out to commenter Cynox. All these awesome retro robot posts were derived from his Pop Sci tip. If you find something cool, let me know… We’ve got an occasionally flaky contact form, or feel free to email me directly: e v a n @ b o t j u n k i e . c o m , without all the spaces of course.
Comments (6)
Category: General
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Comment by Joe Dunfee
Made Thursday, 11 of March , 2010 at 9:04 am
The Odex is definitely a robot that deserves to be re-done by a robot manufacturer as a kit for hobbyists. Though, perhaps in a smaller form factor, like 1 or 2 feet high. It has that “Robby the Robot” category of coolness plus the fact that it was a real robot.
Anyone know where the Odex resides now?
Comment by XV-745
Made Thursday, 11 of March , 2010 at 9:20 am
So we’ve been had functional walking robots for decades now… I know we have Boston Dynamic’s Big Dog, but as far as I know that’s still in development. Are there ANY walking robots currently being mass-produced and used in the military or industry right now?
Comment by baker
Made Thursday, 11 of March , 2010 at 9:53 am
@Joe Dunfee
The original Odex prototype was put on display in the Smithsonian, but Odetics took orders for them from the Navy, Dept. of Ag, NASA, and others, so there might actually be a few lying around in somebody’s basement somewhere. I’d sure love to get my hands on one.
Comment by seabird
Made Thursday, 11 of March , 2010 at 1:38 pm
omg okay that odex vid seriously was wigging me out, I think I’m going to have nightmares. The fact that it walks like a spider mixed with horrible ominous 70s sci fi music ala logun’s run is enough to put me over the edge :O
I like the second one though! It’s so… Star Wars!
Comment by Joey1058
Made Monday, 15 of March , 2010 at 1:23 am
The technology is still quite real and has filtered down to industrial applications. Here is a video of a Timberjack walker. I’ve seen one of these in person. Unfortunately it was sitting quietly, with the video running on a monitor next to it. Just an awesome piece of machinery!
Comment by MDude
Made Wednesday, 24 of March , 2010 at 7:03 pm
Odex 1 has been one of my favorite robots since I first read short article about it. Not only can it adapt it’s shape to move around stuff, it can carry over twice it’s own weight! :) I’d very much like a smaller-scale robot with a design like this as a hobbyist kit.
