Robots Take To the Stairs
Singularity Hub writes "Robots can climb stairs, and they are doing it everywhere you look. 'No big deal' you say, but it really is a big deal. Five to ten years ago, almost nobody was doing it. Now grad students are doing it all by themselves for thesis projects. Check out our review of robots navigating stairs, which includes some awesome videos."
As seen on some slashdotter's sig:
"Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will of their master: a fell race..." -- J.R.R. Tolkien on Olog-hai
"A Rough Road Leads to the Stairs".
"Speaking the Truth in times of universal deceit is a revolutionary act." -- George Orwell
"Now grad students are doing it all by themselves for thesis projects."
As a grad student, I found the wording of the summary amusing. I can confirm that yes, we can climb stairs if need be. The elevators in my CS building go out about once every two weeks for instance. (Wasn't that long ago that the motor in one of the shafts caught fire and shut down that shaft for over a week. During which the other shaft broke down too for a short time.)
Of course, the real advance will be when robots follow in our paths and learn to take the elevator when one is available.