The last few vids we’ve posted on Boston Dynamics’ BigDog haven’t shown much in the way of new capabilities, although DARPA has asked for some upgrades. Back in May (I think, although the video wasn’t posted until now), Marc Raibert, founder of Boston Dynamics, gave a talk at Stanford on the current progress and future plans for BigDog. It’s an over an hour long, but (as you might expect) the juicy bits come in towards the end regarding the future plans. If you don’t have an hour or so, I’d recommend starting in at about the 46:50 mark, where you get to see some video of a quieter BigDog with an electric motor, among other things. If you don’t have time for even that, here’s a summary of what I thought were the most interesting bits:

-Marc Raibert says he’s inspired by mountain goats, which is pretty daunting when you’re designing a quadrupedal robot.

-Robots vs. mules: mules are better, except: they can only carry about a third of their body weight, they don’t take direction well, and they’re not easy to warehouse.

-That video of BigDog slipping on ice and recovering? It wasn’t programmed specifically to deal with slippery surfaces, and they didn’t even know it was icy out, they were just shooting some other test video and it happened to cross a patch of ice, recovering using its standard dynamic balance programming.

-BigDog is able to run (actually run, including a stride phase without any ground contact) at a little bit over 6 mph, although they’re still working on its balance while running.

-Boston Dynamics has two working BigDogs, both of which you can see in action at 30:40 (this is new video). Raibert wants to get 7 or 8 of them together to go dog sledding (!).

-BigDog can’t yet get up on its own, but they’re working on it… The next generation will have the hip (or shoulder) joints positioned outside of the body and higher up, with an increased range of motion that will allow the robot to get its legs under its body, which the current generation can’t do.

-Kinematically, the orientation of BigDog’s legs (knee front or knee back) just doesn’t matter. They’re able to take the legs off and swap them around.

-The noise BigDog makes is “much worse” in person. The videos “don’t do it justice.”

-Electric motor BigDog still sounds like bees (although they’ll be able to mute it completely), only runs for 10 minutes, and is slightly underpowered… They’re contemplating a “hybrid” version, where you can switch to silent operation for 10 minutes and then back to gas.

-BigDog can follow people autonomously using a scanning LIDAR system, engineers say it’s “really scary to have the robot following you going down hills” (ha!).

-There’s no redundancy in the walking system, “BigDog goes down when you shoot off a leg.”

-The biggest challenge so far has been making the system able to run in the heat (due to the engine).

There’s also a little bit of an update on PETMAN; unfortunately, the outtakes weren’t approved for webcast (neither, for that matter, were the BigDog outtakes. FROWNY FACE.). But you do get to see a CAD rendering of PETMAN:

Marc says PETMAN freaks him out a little bit because of the whole Uncanny Valley thing, but he’s trying to be mindful of that while designing PETMAN.

At the end, Marc Raibert even gives a shout-out to that brilliant BigDog parody video… He says that his new metric is how many views his BigDog YouTube videos (and their parodies) receive.

[ Boston Dynamics BigDog ]
[ Stanford @ YouTube ]

Boston Dynamics has posted some updated videos of BigDog and PETMAN. As far as I can tell, there isn’t much new going on… BigDog still carries a bunch of stuff, climbs up muddy hills, doesn’t fall down on ice, looks like two guys running around under a tarp, and sounds like a swarm of killer bees. The one new sequence that I noticed shows BigDog running (the definition of running being an airborne gait phase) at 5 mph. At the end of the video, when the hydraulics are run externally and the engine is off, BigDog sounds a lot more reasonable. Unfortunately, it’s hard to beat the power density and instant rechargeability of petroleum-based fuels, so we might be stuck with the bees for a while longer.

PETMAN is moving a bit more briskly as well, reaching a walking speed of 4.4 mph. Although it’s dynamically balancing itself, it still looks to me like it’s perpetually on the verge of falling over, but I guess arguably that’s what dynamic balancing is all about. Remember that eventually Petman is supposed to be able to crawl, sweat, and do ‘calisthenics’ to test protective clothing. And when I say eventually, I mean by 2011, but that seems a little bit optimistic at this point. Artificial fingers crossed!

[ Boston Dynamics ]

We first got wind of this back in October, but now it’s official, with a picture… DARPA’s LS3 (Legged Squad Support System) program has just awarded Boston Dynamics $32 million over 30 months to design and build a prototype for a new, larger walking quadruped platform that will probably not be called HugeDog. Here’s what DARPA specifies in the contract:

The program goal is to develop a walking quadruped platform that will augment squads by carrying traditional and new equipment autonomously. These platforms will be capable of managing complex terrain where tactical vehicles are not able to go, lightening the load of Marines and Soldiers and increasing their combat capability. LS3 will carry 400 pounds or more of payload, and provide 24 hours of self-sustained capability over as much as 20 miles of maneuver. LS3 will weigh no more than 1,250 pounds (including its base weight, fuel and payload of 400 pounds).

Key LS3 program themes are:

-Quadruped platform development: design of a deployable walking platform with sufficient payload capacity, range, endurance, and low noise signature for dismounted squad support, while keeping weight and volume scaled to the squad level.

-Walking control: develop control techniques that allow walking, trotting, and running/ bounding and capabilities to jump obstacles, cross ditches, recover from disturbances, and other discrete mobility features.

-User Interface (to include perception technologies): the ability for the vehicle to perceive and traverse its immediate terrain environment autonomously with simple methods of Marine/Soldier control.

The key differences from the existing hardware are increased range (20 miles from 12), increased payload (400 pounds from 340), and the ability to jump and trot. Oh, and the “low noise signature,” which I guess means that DARPA wants it sounding like something besides a giant swarm of bees. Or one giant bee. If everything stays on schedule, we should be seeing some awesome and hilarious videos sometime around 2012.

[ LS3 (PDF) ] VIA [ IEEE ]

The video that includes Boston Dynamics’ BigDog getting kicked and slipping on ice is nothing new, and it’s still one of the best robot videos I’ve ever seen. The vid above includes that stuff, but also some footage that I don’t think we’ve seen before of BigDog descending slopes and getting its foot caught in a concrete block. It’s all very impressive, but even more importantly, it’s damn funny stuff.

[ BigDog ]

Why the heck am I suck here in California when there are robots frolicking on a fabulous beach in Thailand?

I need a vacation.

And a big quadruped robot.

[ Boston Dynamics ]

OMG It’s an autonomous military robot with a deadly weapon attached! PANIC!!!

Or, just find yourself a red cape, and you’ll be fine.

[ Boston Dynamics ]

Boston Dynamics’ quadrupedal BigDog robot set a new legged autonomous distance record last year by traveling 12.8 miles without any human intervention. Following a series of GPS waypoints, BigDog walked a 2.5 miles per hour, autonomously avoiding obstacles and dealing with varied terrain until its fuel ran out.

This is pretty impressive, but not good enough for DARPA, who wants a legged robot with a range of 20 miles and a 400 pound payload for its new Legged Squad Support System program. Based on the progression of the BigDog system, though, I have no doubt that this will be achievable in the near future.

Just for fun, here’s a new (but unrelated) video featuring BigDog:

[ Boston Dynamics ]

I’m sure most of you remember BigDog, Boston Dynamics’ pack-hauling robotic quadruped with the ability to walk around on ice while looking really, really funny. If not, allow me to refresh your memory with one of the most entertaining robotics videos I’ve ever seen:

DARPA, impressed with the BigDog prototype, has ordered up a new robot that I’m just going to go ahead and call BiggerDog. While BigDog can carry about 340 pounds for 13 miles, BiggerDog is going to have to carry upwards of 400 pounds for 20 miles over any and all terrain. It’s also going to have to sprint at 10 mph, carry enough fuel to last all day, operate in freezing cold and blistering heat, and be able to handle puddles and swamps and torrential downpours. And it’s going to have to get a heck of a lot quieter.

And, there’s more. DARPA also wants BiggerDog to be able to autonomously follow either GPS waypoints or a human, and respond to voice and gesture control. This all sounds pretty demanding, but the hardest part (getting a robot to walk on four legs over uneven terrain while carrying stuff) has been done already. Also, my guess is that DARPA wouldn’t ask for all of these specifics unless they were well within the realm of possibility. I can’t wait to see the result, especially if there are some icy surfaces and a few hefty kicks involved.

[ Boston Dynamics ] VIA [ Danger Room ]

Boston Dynamics has quite a reputation for innovative of methods bot locomotion (like RHex), but some of their most popular (best funded?) projects are of the four legged sort. We introduced you to LittleDog here on BotJunkie last September, and loyal readers might even remember his brother, BigDog, from when we covered him on OhGizmo two years ago. BigDog has come a long way since his first few tentative steps… The DARPA funded, gear-hauling quadruped is now able to carry a staggering 340 pounds over terrain that would challenge a human carrying nothing. And he survives being kicked in the ribs with way more grace than I do. Check it out:

[ BigDog ] VIA [ Automaton ]