The future is electric for robotics company Boston Dynamics as they announce the ‘new era’ for their humanoid robot Atlas which is designed for real-world applications.
Atlas will become a fully electric robot, replacing the previous hydraulic version which went into retirement this week.
In a blog post released on the company’s website, the team says they’ll be “partnering with a small group of innovative customers, beginning with Hyundai, to test and iterate Atlas applications over the next few years.
“The electric version of Atlas will be stronger, with a broader range of motion than any of our previous generations.
“For example, our last generation hydraulic Atlas could already lift and maneuver a wide variety of heavy, irregular objects; we are continuing to build on those existing capabilities and are exploring several new gripper variations to meet a diverse set of expected manipulation needs in customer environments.”
The car manufacturer Hyundai has invested in Boston Dynamics and will serve as a testing group for new Atlas applications.
“Atlas may resemble a human form factor, but we are equipping the robot to move in the most efficient way possible to complete a task, rather than being constrained by a human range of motion,” says the robot developer.
“Atlas will move in ways that exceed human capabilities. Combining decades of practical experience with first principles thinking, we are confident in our ability to deliver a robot uniquely capable of tackling dull, dirty, and dangerous tasks in real applications.”
The company behind Atlas has successfully integrated robots into commercial settings with their Spot model which has been deployed into 1,500 different workspaces. Spot is an autonomous mobile robot that works alongside workforces.
What is Atlas by Boston Dynamics?
Atlas is a humanoid robot that has been designed and built by the American engineering and robotics design company Boston Dynamics.
The robot is short in stature, standing at 1.5 meters and weighing 89 kg. It’s described as having athletic intelligence which enables Atlas to adapt following connections between perception and control.
It can also use both hands and has a full range of motion, so dynamic manipulation has already been established. Atlas is equipped with depth sensors which helps to bolster real-time perception and generate point clouds of the environment.
Featured Image: Via Boston Dynamics
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