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BOB HIRSHON (host):
Better bipedal robots…I’m Bob Hirshon and this is Science Update.
Creating robots that can walk naturally is a big challenge for engineers.
THERESA KLEIN (University of Arizona/Orbital Sciences Corporation):
Some of the best robots out there have a very restricted gait, walk with their knees bent and // don’t have the natural behavior that a human does.
HIRSHON:
That’s electrical engineer Theresa Klein, now of Orbital Sciences Corporation. While at the University of Arizona, she and her colleagues designed a more lifelike walker:
KLEIN:
We’ve created this biped walker that models the way humans walk basically by reproducing the physical dynamics of the limb.
HIRSHON:
This meant recreating the rhythmic patterns that synch up our brain activity to our muscles as we walk.
KLEIN:
That gives you a robot that doesn’t fall over.
HIRSHON:
She says the technology will not only lead to more realistic robots, but could also help people with spinal cord injuries walk again. I’m Bob Hirshon, for AAAS, the science society.
Click here for video:
Biologically accurate robot walking legs (Institute of Physics)