ANYmal quadrupedal robot learns parkour to better overcome obstacles
The four-legged robot ANYmal has learned some elements of parkour, which allows it to better overcome obstacles, reports Ars Technica.
This is a development that was once presented by researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zürich). Now the robot has acquired new skills – it has learned to maneuver and overcome obstacles.
Of course, ANYmal can’t compare to people who are engaged in professional parkour. But its new abilities are also impressive.
“Before the project started, several of my researcher colleagues thought that legged robots had already reached the limits of their development potential,” said one of the project’s authors. “But I had a different opinion. In fact, I was sure that a lot more could be done with the mechanics of legged robots.”
Among the tasks that ANYmal was able to perform was jumping from one box to the next at a distance of up to one meter. The robot can also descend from a one-meter box to reach a target on the ground, as well as climb up to it.
The team has also tested ANYmal’s walking ability, in which it successfully overcomes slopes and occasional small obstacles, etc. The robot still has limitations, but the developers say that it can evolve in scenarios where it needs to climb and jump over large obstacles, choosing a non-trivial path.
It is worth noting that ANYmal was developed in the hope of using the technology, in particular, for search and rescue at construction sites and in natural disaster areas.