Ranger navigated 108.5 times around the indoor track in Cornell's Barton Hall -- about 212 meters per lap, and made about 70,000 steps before it had a stop and recharge. The 14.3-mile record beats the former world record set by Boston Dynamics' BigDog, which had claimed the record at 12.8 miles. A group of engineering students, led by Andy Ruina, Cornell professor of theoretical and applied mechanics, announced the robotic record at the Dynamic Walking 2010 meeting on July 9, in Cambridge, Mass. Ruina leads the Biorobotics and Locomotion Laboratory at Cornell. The National Science Foundation funds this research. One goal for robotic research is to show off the machine's energy efficiency. Unlike other walking robots that use motors to control every movement, the Ranger appears more relaxed and in a way emulates human walking, using gravity and momentum to help swing its legs forward.
(Source: Cornell University/ Science Daily) |
