But can it beat up bikers and steal their clothes?

correct

All he needs is a good soundtrack.

Meh just  a terminator T-1a, could be worse

Don't these Poindexters know that if you want to get massive funding for your robot, you make it look like a woman?

You know it's serious business when there is a dude in a white lab coat writing on a clipboard in a glass observation booth.

Next version:

The Honda Asimo can do all that without the wires.

not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

Could be an interesting summer.

Several copies of the Atlas robot are being provided as Government Furnished Equipment for the DARPA Robotics Challenge program with delivery scheduled in the summer of 2013.

bighairyguy: The upper body movements looked very realistic, but he walks like his underwear don't fit quite right.

That's what scares me the most about him. If that "person" were walking toward me, I'd be terrified. He looks like a menacing mother farmer.

/spellcheck made it farmer

mrlewish: not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

Because a robot can walk for weeks at a time, thereby testing the long term durability of the suit.

I thought he was going to do a little gangnam style.

mrlewish: not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

FTA: But why use a robot at all? Why not a lab assistant? Because the tests may include exposure to chemical warfare agents. No one but a robot is going to sign up to be be sprayed with nerve gas, especially in new, unproven gear.

Are there no prisoners available? Or unemployed grad students?

He picks his feet up too high (running height is roughly toe over knee)  and doesn't roll his feet.  Yet.  Wake me up when they can defeat an army of clones.
By the way, this is fricking awesome.

mrlewish: not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

FTA:  "But why use a robot at all? Why not a lab assistant? Because the tests may include exposure to chemical warfare agents. No one but a robot is going to sign up to be be sprayed with nerve gas, especially in new, unproven gear. "


Sounds like a pretty good reason to me.

Seems to me there are better forms of locomotion to emulate than human/bipedal. Big dog was cool and all, and so is this, but I think they need a designer on the team that can think beyond what they see out the window.

All of this has happened before...

DubtodaIll: The Honda Asimo can do all that without the wires.

Pretty sure the wires are just for the testing environment (it'd be a biatch to severely damage your million dollar robot due to an untied shoelace.)

The earlier versions of Petman show very loose wires for the power to the device.

Click Click D'oh: mrlewish: not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

FTA:  "But why use a robot at all? Why not a lab assistant? Because the tests may include exposure to chemical warfare agents. No one but a robot is going to sign up to be be sprayed with nerve gas, especially in new, unproven gear. "


Sounds like a pretty good reason to me.

Meh, stupid scientist never put that job on Monster. If it paid enough I'd sign up, can't be any worse than what I'm doing now, plus I look at death as an added bonus. Sweet death take me away.

Pretty soon it'll be asking for clothes, our boots, and our motorcycles

Why the hell is he in full JSLIST with the M50?

RoxtarRyan: Why the hell is he in full JSLIST with the M50?

Ah... testing the gear.

Would've been nice to do that BEFORE they issued it to everyone.

/yes, the gear works.
//wore it in a VX saturated environment
///....on my birthday.

Coronach: Seems to me there are better forms of locomotion to emulate than human/bipedal. Big dog was cool and all, and so is this, but I think they need a designer on the team that can think beyond what they see out the window.

The purpose of this robot is to test the durability and wear & tear of nuclear/biological/chemical protective suits for us skin jobs. Having a human shaped robot moving for days in bipedal manner is the goal.

Slaves2Darkness: Click Click D'oh: mrlewish: not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

FTA:  "But why use a robot at all? Why not a lab assistant? Because the tests may include exposure to chemical warfare agents. No one but a robot is going to sign up to be be sprayed with nerve gas, especially in new, unproven gear. "


Sounds like a pretty good reason to me.

Meh, stupid scientist never put that job on Monster. If it paid enough I'd sign up, can't be any worse than what I'm doing now, plus I look at death as an added bonus. Sweet death take me away.

Who says you'd die?  What if you just get exposed to a bad mix of chemicals and tar and only get really pissed off and have to fight yourself in a junkyard?  Can you give as good as you can get?  I hope so.
_{never pas sup the opportunity to reference Superman III}

Very fascinating technology. Unlike the flying car etc I think the one technology where Sci-Fi movies of the past kinda got semi correct in their predicition is the practical applications in the field of advance robotics.

The best use of robotics is obviously in military and tactical situations. When fully autonomous robots with self guidance and 'think' for themselves can replace humans on the infantry level then we'll know we've reach the apex in robotics.

Click Click D'oh: mrlewish: not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

FTA:  "But why use a robot at all? Why not a lab assistant? Because the tests may include exposure to chemical warfare agents. No one but a robot is going to sign up to be be sprayed with nerve gas, especially in new, unproven gear. "


Sounds like a pretty good reason to me.

I guarantee you that, that lab is not going to be allowed to come anywhere near any nerve agents especially with clip board dude standing right there.

The question still stands. Also that robot does not appear to have anywhere near the range of motion that a person does nor can it pick up objects and carry them on the shoulder or against them (compression wear) nor crawl on the ground in mud or dirt while twisting to fire a weapon or operate machinery.

Someone needs to make this into a 'Not a Single Fark' gif

What about Massive Dynamic?

I want to see it do the TANGO.

Coronach: Seems to me there are better forms of locomotion to emulate than human/bipedal. Big dog was cool and all, and so is this, but I think they need a designer on the team that can think beyond what they see out the window.

Actually I don't think there is. Why reinvent the wheel? Nature has perfected humans/animals to do what we need to do. All we have to do is to emulate our movements on robots.
Of course that is still many years away. When someone builds a robot that can do the most simple and basic of things any human can do such as shooting a gun, hold a pen, type, snap their fingers, pick their nose, draw on the sand with it's toes, walk on a balance beam then we'll know.

Can we send on a mission to Best Korea?

MrSteve007: All he needs is a good soundtrack.

+1

Ghastly: The Snow Dog: But can it beat up bikers and steal their clothes?

Fark you, asshole.

Just carry a change of clothes and don't let anyone call you Sarah: things will be copacetic.

Fano: Slaves2Darkness: Click Click D'oh: mrlewish: not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

FTA:  "But why use a robot at all? Why not a lab assistant? Because the tests may include exposure to chemical warfare agents. No one but a robot is going to sign up to be be sprayed with nerve gas, especially in new, unproven gear. "


Sounds like a pretty good reason to me.

Meh, stupid scientist never put that job on Monster. If it paid enough I'd sign up, can't be any worse than what I'm doing now, plus I look at death as an added bonus. Sweet death take me away.

That's because the ad was on craigslist. Something about wanting kungfu experts.

Oh well after I was raped by an Orangutan I stopped answering job ads on Craigslist, farker didn't even pay me for my time.

mrlewish: I guarantee you that, that lab is not going to be allowed to come anywhere near any nerve agents especially with clip board dude standing right there.

FTA:  Petman as a concept illustration.

Concept art?  How does it work?

mrlewish: Click Click D'oh: mrlewish: not to ask the obvious question but why not use a human to test the suit?

FTA:  "But why use a robot at all? Why not a lab assistant? Because the tests may include exposure to chemical warfare agents. No one but a robot is going to sign up to be be sprayed with nerve gas, especially in new, unproven gear. "


Sounds like a pretty good reason to me.

I guarantee you that, that lab is not going to be allowed to come anywhere near any nerve agents especially with clip board dude standing right there.

The question still stands. Also that robot does not appear to have anywhere near the range of motion that a person does nor can it pick up objects and carry them on the shoulder or against them (compression wear) nor crawl on the ground in mud or dirt while twisting to fire a weapon or operate machinery.

Of course it doesn't have the same range of motion a person does. It's a robot. It's my understanding that, principally, robots are not, nor will they ever be intended to truly mimic a human. That's where you start getting into all the wacky android shiat. I would think that, when (yes, when) we eventually figure out how to manufacture *legitimately* lifelike automatons, they won't be classified as robots.

Robots sweep your floors, build your cars, and march around like marionettes with a crackhead pulling the strings.

Anything beyond that? Hell, I dunno what we'll call it, but it probably won't be a robot, and it's probably not going to show up anytime soon.

I've heard of robots in Japan that are meant to care for the elderly. In my opinion, we don't have the computational infrastructure to properly code a sophisticated enough A.I. to properly care for a human being. Maybe I'm wrong, but the binary system seems too cut and dried for anything like that.  operly care for a human being. Maybe I'm wrong, but the binary system seems too cut and dried for anything like that.

DubtodaIll: The Honda Asimo can do all that without the wires.

No, Asimo cannot, not for more than 15-20 minutes. The harness is to prevent it from accidentally failing over in a failure mode and damaging itself. The power cables are to allow for continuous operation without changing a battery, something Asimo would have to do as well.

Coronach: Seems to me there are better forms of locomotion to emulate than human/bipedal. Big dog was cool and all, and so is this, but I think they need a designer on the team that can think beyond what they see out the window.

Emulating human motion is incredibly difficult. This is nearly the best, BTW. The point of humanoid robots are that whatever are developed must operate in the existing infrastructure and environment. Must be able to drive a car, climb stairs, navigate a bulkhead or doorway, and pretty much any other human occupied space.