Boston Dynamics Retires Its Hydraulic Humanoid Robot 19
Robotics firm Boston Dynamics, owned by Hyundai, has retired its humanoid robot Atlas after a decade, despite significant funding pouring into the category. TechCrunch adds: Boston Dynamics has been focused on commercializing technologies for a number of years now. Hyundai's 2021 acquisition of the firm, coupled with the appointment of Rob Playter as its second-ever CEO, has further accelerated that path. Given the tremendous interest around companies like Agility, Figure, 1X and Apptronik, it stands to reason that -- at the very least -- the Waltham, Massachusetts-based company has -- at the very least -- seriously explored the commercial humanoid category.
Boston Dynamics was, of course, well ahead of the current humanoid robotics curve. Last July marked the 10th anniversary of the bipedal robot's debut. The company teamed with DARPA for Atlas' early development, leading the robot to be heavily incorporated into challenges of the era.
Boston Dynamics was, of course, well ahead of the current humanoid robotics curve. Last July marked the 10th anniversary of the bipedal robot's debut. The company teamed with DARPA for Atlas' early development, leading the robot to be heavily incorporated into challenges of the era.
they SAY they retired them (Score:4, Funny)
They just stopped trying to sell them.
Funny that this happened just as AI has come alive.
Those robots are still out there.
They probably look just like us, now.
And They Have A Plan.
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My first thoughts were that this project has been removed from the public eye, and continues unabated
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Naw, the robot is primitive by current standards and they'd have to start over and play catch-up. 10 years might as well be a century. It is entirely plausible they decided it wasn't a good direction for them any longer.
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The mechanisms were a century old, you think hydraulics is decade old? The software is all the innovation and that was never primitive; they continuously updated it. They may have enough data now that it could provide them a detailed enough simulation to continue virtually... or learned enough to move onto practical projects... there is little reason to mimic humanoids! Pretty big waste of time actually; they'd have gotten further along had they put all those years into the killer robot dogs instead... o
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I think that humanoid robots are not yet worth the time, mostly for psychological reasons. People see something that looks kind of like a person, even something as bizarre as Handle, and they automatically assume human-like capabilities so of course they will be disappointed. No one expects much of a dog, which is why people are so impressed with Spot.
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Electric is now better than hydraulic, and humanoid robots are a decent form because they can use any tool designed for humans wherever humans would use it.
We've designed the world with places we go and tools we use there.
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They have two models that are selling quite well as far as I know,
- Spot, for patrolling
- Stretch, for automating truck packing/unpacking process.
It is possible that they are focusing on these and moving people from other projects to help with them. This would be a logical move from a boss that has traditional business education. Especially since there is quite a lot of competition with humanoid robots now.
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Charging forward into the future. (Score:5, Insightful)
Might be the hydraulics part. Today it's all about electric motors in various forms.
I know it's a robot (Score:3)
But, regardless, I can't help but cringe when I see the video where the robot lands crotch-first down on a beam.
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The robot moves the "hands" inward toward the crotch too. Scrode of polycarbonate to the rescue.
puff piece (Score:2)
I would say that today’s Atlas retirement is less about endings than new beginnings. Most likely, the hulking humanoid is gracefully stepping out of the way of whatever is coming next for the firm.
This doesn't shed any light; given that Atlas is being discontinued, I can't think of a context where the above statement isn't true.
Hydraulics are troublesome (Score:5, Interesting)
I once worked at Disney Imagineering. The animatronic figures were all hydraulic, because their design is old, and back then, hydraulics were the only option. Yes, hydraulic actuators can provide a lot of force in a small space, but the support equipment is troublesome. Pumps, fluids, leaks, contamination, valves are all problems. Electric actuators, controllers and batteries are getting better and will probably be the winning tech
Boston Dynamics is owned by Hyundai? (Score:3)
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Thank you for your service Atlas (Score:2)
Have you ever retired a human by mistake? (Score:3)
Early in the 21st century, the Tyrell corporation advanced Robot evolution into the Nexus phase - a being virtually identical to a human - known as a Replicant.
The Nexus 6 replicants were superior in strength and agility, and at least equal in intelligence, to the genetic engineers who created them.
Replicants were used off-world as slave labor, in the hazardous exploration and colonization of other planets.
After a bloody mutiny by a Nexus 6 combat team in an off-world colony, replicants were declared illegal on earth - under penalty of death.
Special police squads - Blade Runner Units - had orders to shoot to kill, upon detection, any trespassing replicant.
This was not called execution. It was called retirement.