ANYmal: The Parkour Robot⁤ Pushing Boundaries

Parkour quadruped robots, inspired by the agility and versatility of dogs, have already demonstrated their capabilities in a variety of tasks, such as remotely monitoring sports stadiums, guiding blind persons, and inspecting potentially hazardous research areas. However, they have mostly fallen short of matching the fluid grace and athleticism of their canine ​inspirations. A new wall-scaling robot‌ is now pushing the boundaries of what these quadrupeds can do, adding a touch of⁣ flair to their capabilities.

Researchers from ETH Zurich are working to bridge the mobility gap between ​robots and animals ⁢with a highly-mobile robot that‍ can run, jump, and crawl through obstacle courses. The researchers‌ have published ⁤their findings in Science Robotics, detailing their‍ efforts to teach ANYmal, a 100-pound quadruped robot made by ANYbotics, to mimic human “freerunners” who engage in an underground sport known as “parkour.”

How did ANYmal learn parkour?

Parkour is a sport that involves getting ​from one point to another as quickly as possible, often involving swift crawling and leaping through obstacles along the way. It requires a combination of athleticism and rapid ‍decision-making. ANYmal ‍was up to the task, completing a⁣ basic parkour course at a speed ⁣of six feet‌ per second.

ANYmal uses onboard laser sensors to perceive its environment and create maps ‍for autonomous path planning and execution. It is propelled⁣ by four lightweight carbon legs and 12 identical motors. The researchers improved the robot’s movement ⁢using a neural network ‌composed of‍ three separate modules, each⁤ dedicated to locomotion, perception, and navigation.

The researchers developed the navigation element of ANYmal to understand the robot’s capabilities in walking, jumping, and crouching. With this understanding, ANYmal ⁣can automatically adjust its behavior depending on ‌the type of obstacles it encounters. The​ result is a robot that can ⁤quickly identify and react to a range of obstacles and traverse them.

Parkour inspiration could improve robots for search and rescue and space exploration

ANYmal’s new skills ‌are not just for ‍show. Researchers believe that similar improvements⁤ could be applied to⁢ search and rescue⁢ robots, enabling them to vault over obstacles or scurry into difficult-to-reach areas during missions. These advancements could also potentially aid space exploration robots in traversing the harsh, rocky surfaces⁢ of the‌ moon and‌ other planets. The added locomotion could also be useful for quadruped robots investigating hazardous areas of the Large Hadron⁤ Collider‌ in Geneva, Switzerland.

While these use cases are still largely hypothetical, ANYmal joins the ranks of Boston Dynamics’ Spot ⁢and Atlas robots, which are also capable of performing athletic feats once reserved for living beings.

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FAQs

• What is ANYmal? ANYmal is a 100-pound quadruped robot made by ANYbotics, capable of running, jumping, ​and crawling through obstacle courses.
• How does ANYmal navigate? ANYmal uses ⁢onboard laser sensors to perceive its environment and create maps for autonomous path planning and execution.
• What are the potential applications​ of ANYmal’s new skills? ANYmal’s new skills could be applied to search and‍ rescue robots, enabling them to vault over obstacles⁤ or scurry into difficult-to-reach areas during missions. They could also potentially aid space exploration robots in traversing harsh, rocky surfaces.