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Meet Spot, The Electric Quadrupedal, Er, Robot Dog
Spot is a chipper little refinement of Boston Dynamics larger robots, like their original BigDog, AlphaDog Proto and Cheetah robot.
(Spot the robotic dog)
It’s quadrupedal and electrically powered, unlike that super speedy WildCat robot with its internal combustion engine. Spot’s movements are hydraulically actuated for fine control on a variety of terrains. This robot weighs in at 160 lbs and is considerably more mobile than some of Boston Dynamic’s older models, as illustrated in the video.Spot can literally run circles around the clunkier LS3 robot seen near the end of the video, which is designed mainly for outdoor use and hauling gear — up to 400 pounds of it, actually. Spot seems to be intended mainly to show off how advanced Boston Dynamics’ walking and self-correction technology has become. It just coasts past people in an office and no one pays it any mind.
Science fiction fans have been lead down the road to robotic dog acceptance, by such fictional creations as K9 from Dr. Who and Muffit II from Battlestar Galactica.
Dr. Who's K-9
Muffet from Battlestar Galactica
Via ExtremeTech.
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I might also be thinking of K-9 from Doctor Who.
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