Progression of robotic ability has developed from infantile to startling quietly in the background. DARPA’s Pet-Proto was probably slow dancing or playing soccer before it got arms and the ability to run. Pet-Proto runs up stairs, and uses it arms to stabilize itself on walls while jumping or maneuvering over and around obstacles like an ultimate ninja contestant. Even more impressively, Pet-Proto is capable of making autonomous decisions and will someday trek where it is not safe for humans.
DARPA’s creepy Proto-Pet project is just the beginning. On the 24th of October, the agency launched the DARPA Robotics Challenge. The goal of the competition is to pit roboticists from the US and the world against each other in order to develop hardware and software for bipedal robots that can handle typical human environments.
The 27-month competition will see many stages with the main three being a virtual simulation of each team’s software and two stages demonstrating hardware implementation of government-funded equipment (GFE) in late 2013. DARPA chose to use Gazebo 1.2.0 for simulation and has already released other info on the GFE being offered to all teams. Different competition tracks differentiate between teams developing hardware as well as software, only software or where they are receiving DARPA funding. Teams that are only developing software will contribute to Boston Dynamic’s Atlas humanoid robot. Teams from many universities across the world, international companies and even NASA are participating in what could be the most rigorous and demanding robotics competition yet and offers a grand prize of $2 million.
The first task the teams will have to accomplish is figuring out a way to make a humanoid robot open and climb into a car; a task trivial to humans but requiring immensely sophisticated robotics and software. Later, the robots will climb ladders, trek through rubbish, drive that car they worked so hard to get into and perform many other human tasks. The teams must also find ways to combine autonomy with reliable operational controls to deal with compromised wireless communications (IE: disasters and human interference).
Dr. Gill Pratt, DARPA program manager, said the main aim of the challenge is to use robotics to improve the resiliency of people everywhere when responding to any disaster while keeping humans out of harm’s way. This being said, hopefully DARPA will find it in their hearts not to use their findings to hurt anyone. More specific details are available on the DARPA robotics challenge 2012 website.
Cabe