This video shows a demonstration of the “Cheetah” robot galloping at speeds of up to 18 miles per hour (mph), setting a new land speed record for legged robots. The previous record was 13.1 mph, set at MIT in 1989.
The robot’s movements are patterned after those of fast-running animals in nature. The robot increases its stride and running speed by flexing and un-flexing its back on each step, much as an actual cheetah does.
The current version of the Cheetah robot runs on a laboratory treadmill where it is powered by an off-board hydraulic pump, and uses a boom-like device to keep it running in the center of the treadmill. Testing of a free-running prototype is planned for later this year.
The robotic Cheetah was developed by the Massachusetts-based engineering company Boston Dynamics with funding from DARPA. The money came from DARPA’s Maximum Mobility and Manipulation programme, which specifically supports research that looks to make robots faster, cheaper and more effective.
While the DARPA M3 programme conducts basic research and is not focused on specific military missions, the technology it aims to develop could have a wide range of potential military applications.
[It appears to run backwards in this video which was shot from the left-hand side – Ed.]
Source: YouTube