Handle is the new robot from Boston Dynamics, the American company that specializes in building robots. Through a video we can see the robot performing all kinds of movements that will surely surprise robotics enthusiasts.
For some time we have been following the work of Boston Dynamics, the American engineering and robotics company that specializes in building robots. Among its latest projects are SpotMini, a kind of fully electric robot dog and Atlas, the next generation of bipedal robots from DARPA. Earlier this month a recording was leaked during some conferences of Handle, the new robot from Boston Dynamics, but now the company is ready for the public to see its recent creation on its YouTube channel. Unlike its previous robots that ran, jumped or walked, this two-legged monstrosity moves on small wheels as you can see below.
Handle stands over two meters tall, can travel at about 15 km/h and can jump vertically over obstacles more than 1.20 meters high. Its jumps are terrifying, although it cannot be denied that they are also impressive. The robot can perform a wide range of movements such as acrobatic turns, going down stairs and moving across a snowy hill. The company says that Handle is designed to carry things, being able to lift heavy loads (from a seated position it lifts and transports 45 kg). The robot uses electric power to operate both electric and hydraulic actuators, and can travel up to 15 miles between charges and is apparently less complex than quadrupeds and bipeds.
Handle uses many of the same principles of dynamics, balance and mobile manipulation found in the quadruped and biped robots the company has been building. Wheels are efficient on flat surfaces while legs can go almost anywhere; in fact the robot can independently handle its two leg-wheels without losing balance. If we consider that Google bought Boston Dynamics, there is no doubt that Handle will attract some entrepreneurial artists.
Source: The Verge
