Posted on 02/28/2017 7:23:43 AM PST by RoosterRedux
Google-owned robotics firm and “nightmare” factory Boston Dynamics has released video of its latest creation: a two-wheeled, four-legged hybrid robot named Handle.
The robot can stand on four legs, like Boston Dynamics’ previous creations such as BigDog and Spot. But at the end of its back two legs are two stabilised wheels, which let it stand up vertically and roll around at speeds of up to nine miles per hour. Think “Terminator riding on a hoverboard” and you’ll have a pretty good idea of the impression Handle gives off.
Boston Dynamics says the reason for the hybrid design is the simplicity it affords: rather than needing the complex joints of the fully-quadrupedal bots, Handle’s wheels can speed it around with little difficulty, while its front legs can be used for balance and for carrying loads of up to 50kg.
“Handle uses many of the same dynamics, balance and mobile manipulation principles found in the quadruped and biped robots we build,” Boston Dynamics said, “but with only about 10 actuated joints, it is significantly less complex. Wheels are efficient on flat surfaces while legs can go almost anywhere: by combining wheels and legs, Handle can have the best of both worlds.” The video does not, however, show Handle walking rather that scooting around on its wheels.
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
W00t! Good catch!
Alert, I am.
Actually, I feel like a zombie today. I’m going to take Frank and Kathleen on a walk to look for animals. Maybe that will loosen up my hips and knees. Later we’re going on the tour of the Mint Hill Town Hall and Public Works, and then Frank and Kathleen will go play at a friend’s house while I go uptown to the Scout Store to get invitations for Tom’s Eagle ceremony and pick up Sally’s lifeguarding pay.
Tom is getting out of Scouts??? WHOA!!! Good job, Tom! Good job, Mom!
Bill the Nephew sent me five emails since yesterday. I can definitely tell he was a cop! Tenacious, he is, until he gets the answers he wants! *sheesh*
So I’m working on another packet for him, and with luck, it will shut him up for a week. Maybe. Maybe it will only bring more questions. :o|
Tom’s been out of Scouts (except as an employee) for almost 3 years. He will be 21 in October. It’s just taken this long to schedule the Eagle ceremony. I told him he’d end up like one of the those 84-year-old men who earned their Eagle award in 1941 and then didn’t have a ceremony because World War II started. “Cool!” he said, but by then, his dad and I would be dead.
There was a young man from another troop at the Town Council meeting last night, working on his “Citizenship in the Community” badge. He’s a high-school student taking classes at CP, was in Chemistry with Tom in the spring.
Ah. Well. Good for Tom! Too bad I’m not there. I like Eagle Ceremonies.
Look! A Fold mix! Squee!
So far, Saturday has gotten off to a good start. I filed the stack (5” high) of papers that had overwhelmed me yesterday, and I’m almost finished with the rest of the stuff. It’s been in a slight Limbo, with me being too confused to figure out where to put it, but this morning, I think I can do it and free up enough of the floor to vacuum it.
Yesterday, early, I mopped the kitchen floor and it was pretty bad. I used that “Awesome!” cleaner before I used the Wet-Jet and I was amazed at the amount of dirt I was able to mop up. I had mopped the hall and the bathroom last week, but still saw a dirt trail because the cleaner isn’t really a cleaner. It’s more of a sanitizer. So I sprayed Awesome! on it and the PRESTO! The floors are clean! YAY, me!
It will be nice to have the floor clean enough so I don’t feel like I’m in an obstacle course every time I want to get to the computer or go from it to another room. I have to do this while my mind is clear or it will be here for the next week. I don’t know how long this clarity will last; it may be gone by the time the sun comes up, or it may be with me through tomorrow.
The poster says the kitten is purebred.
Congratulations on your success already! I feel moderately well, as opposed to yesterday’s rather cruddy. It’s quite hot already. DP has gone to pick up a van-load of Boy Scouts from camp. He forgot to set his alarm (or did it wrong, and it will go off at 5:00 p.m.) but I always get up before 5:30. He was cranky, though.
I’ve fed the lizards, the cats, and the young children. Next I’m going to do my shoulder exercises. Later, I’ll take Frank and Kathleen with me to choir practice. (I could leave them with Inert, but the possible outcomes are dire.) There are usually some other children on Saturday mornings ... Ariselda’s daughter, Rafaela’s granddaughter. Frank and Kathleen have some things they got from the Mint Hill Town Engineer, so they’ll be occupied.
My mom says her cat has decided to roost behind her computer monitor. She’ll be playing solitaire and hear “Yayr!” and see an annoyed face peeking at her.
Folds are usually stockier, but who am I to quibble? ;o]
I had to go to Wally’s to get a new notebook for my website screen names, passwords and security questions, none of which I can remember. The book I’m using has a plastic cover (as does the new one) which has warped from heat and moisture, and I’ve crossed out so many things that I can’t find anything I want without going through it several times.
As I made the right turn into the “s” lane that goes to Walmart, I almost hit a shopping cart. It was by the bank, in the middle of the road, 1/4 mile from the entrance. And then I realized that there were shopping carts all over the place, kinda like a they were having a shopping cart orgy over the entire parking area — a couple of acres. Weird.
I am neutral on the question of the kitten's parentage. He does not have a heavy build, as you can see here, but he's not as lean and mean as Jake.
I don’t know about the shopping cart overnight rodeo, but I do know that when the night manager is off, the carts are all over the place.
(It pays to go in the wee small hours so one can become acquainted with the stalkers!)
I hope your day is going okay! The fourth load of the boys’ wash is in the washer. There’s about half a load left (towels). I got an email from Tom saying he’d be home “later than expected,” but since I don’t know when he expected to be home, it’s a mystery. Anyway, his brothers’ laundry should be done. Rough day for Sloshy, I’m afraid, but maybe tomorrow will be better. Drama Queen won’t be home from Jamaica until next Wednesday night.
While I was waiting for something interesting to happen anywhere I was ‘net surfing, a couple of things happened.
One of them was that one of my nieces on FB is going to give me some genealogical data from her family (which is not necessarily mine, but Bill the Nephew wants to know,) and the other is that one of my nieces in St George added my name to a FB site that has rentals in St George, from rooms in private homes to homes.
I’ll check it out better in the morning, and it will give me a better idea of what is available and what is affordable. What a deal!
LOL about Tom’s “later than expected!” That young man has quite the sense of humor!
It would be nice to have a toast to my niece (I’m sure she would help!) for being so kind, but I’ll just have to wait until I get there. Her mother is still ticked off at me for calling her a “selfish b****” three or four years ago. So I’m always surprised when one of the kids indicates they love their Auntie!
And I think I’m about ready for bed.
I managed to get a lot of filing done and will see if I can get some more done and get the file bins put away tomorrow. Then, there are other things to do. LOTS of other things!
It would be very good if I could toast to my move, including getting the filing done, but I suspect I’ll have to wait for payday. And FYI: I cancelled the room I had reserved for my class reunion. I can’t even think about driving to St George, much less to Payson, which is another three hour uphill, because I don’t think the BB SUV will make that climb without throwing oil all over the place. And I can’t let that happen. I will need it when I get to my new place.
And so, I’m off to bed.
Have a good night! :o])
Pat, James, and Vlad are whining about having to put their clean clothes away. Turkeys. I told them there won't be any supper until they have it all done.
Her mother is still ticked off at me for calling her a “selfish b****” three or four years ago.
Yeah, I can see that, even if it was true. When my great-aunt got married to a 90-year-old sheep farmer whose wife had just died, my grandmother said, "Frances, his wife isn't even cold yet!" Aunt Frances didn't talk to her for over a year, even though she lived just up the road.
Saw you mentioned Northern Frontier, as I scanned the comment feed.
Was on a work weekend there 40 years ago with other men from our church.
Glad to see it still exists. Beautiful place.
I could not believe how many stars there were in the night sky there, as I lived in an urban area at the time.
Yep, still there. It’s close to 4 hours drive from here, in the ‘real’ upstate NY. (I say that because down in the City they consider anything that is not the five boroughs, Long Island, or Westchester as upstate.. ;-) And yes once you get away from city light pollution the stars are - breathtaking.
A former youth pastor who I used to ride motorcycles with close to 3 decades ago while I was wearing a similar hat at another church is the Assistant Director there now.
Waiting to hear Grandson #4’s report.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.