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Virginia Tech's RoMeLa Answers DARPA Robotics Challenge With THOR
smackay writes "Virginia Tech's Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory is building a humanoid robot designed for dangerous rescue missions as part of the new DARPA Robotics Challenge. Lab founder/director Dennis Hong calls it the 'greatest challenge of my career.' The robot's name: THOR"
From the article: "The task is massive: The adult-sized robot must be designed to enter a vehicle, drive it, and then exit the vehicle, walk over rubble, clear objects blocking a door, open the door, and enter a building. The robot then must visually and audibly locate and shut off a leaking valve, connect a hose or connector, climb an industrial ladder and traverse an industrial walkway. The final and possibly most difficult task: Use a power tool and break through a concrete wall. All these tasks must be accomplished under a set time limit."
If one of these things get built, American jobs are at risk! Stop them now! ... sort of...
The Spoon
Updated 6/28/2011
Why not just use one of those self-driving cars?
Because this planet is still mainly inhabited by humans, not robots ;-)
Does the door have be closable after it has been "opened"? If not, that concrete-wall-breaking tool could come in handy.
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
Even a 'simple' telepresence robot with the dexterity to operate a vehicle and perform various manual tasks would be incredibly useful in hazardous environments—including battlefields. I can see why DARPA doesn't mind it being human operated.
But I admit the remote control aspect causes it to lose a bit of the 'cool' factor; that's why I'm more intrigued by DARPA's other project, "Build a fully autonomous robot which can locate a single individual in the city of Los Angeles."
How can I believe you when you tell me what I don't want to hear?
Even a 'simple' telepresence robot with the dexterity to operate a vehicle and perform various manual tasks would be incredibly useful in hazardous environments - including battlefields. I can see why DARPA doesn't mind it being human operated.
It's not a teleoperator. DARPA will limit bandwidth and add delay to prevent direct teleoperation. Balance, slip control, locomotion, and fine manipulation have to be autonomous or it won't work. Human control will probably look like video games - click on where to go or what to work on, select verb from menu.
The 21st century will soon begin in earnest. All you young'uns would be well advised to review world history between about 1907 and 1946 or so. This kind of technology will make us all live in interesting times indeed.
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(adding padding to joke to bypass lameness filters. Meanwhile, frist pr0st trolls post merrily away.)
Kwisatz Haderach
Sell the spice to CHOAM
This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
You are sooooo busted Phineas!!!!
Yeah, and one of those self-climbing ladders?
It's supposed to be completely automatic, but actually you have to press this button.
And when your 50yr old reactor goes critical, you can't send in your bot because the valves don't meet the 2014 robo-sync design spec? Every situation I can think of that involves a robot helping out, involves shit not designed for the robot... Old reactors, asteroids, Mars... If we're going to design the thing the robots fixing for the robot, screw the robot, just design the valve with embedded Bluetooth or some shit and turn it off remotely.
"Use a power tool and break through a concrete wall. All these tasks must be accomplished under a set time limit."
Under a set time limit? Not even a real, human contractor can do the latter, it's impossible.