Purely electric robots are lighter, more flexible, and better able to work.
Author | Xinxin
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Editor | Jingyu
Ten years ago, Boston Dynamics launched a robot called Atlas. Driven by traditional hydraulic technology, Atlas used dancing, parkour and other methods to entertain and scare a group of netizens in the past ten years. a group of netizens. At the same time, Boston Dynamics has become the world's number one robot brand.
A few days ago, Boston Dynamics announced online that Atlas was officially “retired” and released a video reviewing the “life” of this super Internet celebrity in the robotics world, which made people sigh.
However,Just two days later, Boston DynamicsAnnounced the launch of a new generation of Atlas, switching to electric driveno longer limited by the bulky and noisy hydraulic system, but replaced by the flexibility and quietness of electric drive.
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I have to say that Boston Dynamics’ online publicity is quite clear.
As the robot market is being revalued amid the AI craze, a number of technology giants have already spent money betting on Silicon Valley AI robot startups at the beginning of the year. Now, what does the arrival of the electric Atlas mean? Will the electric Atlas take over Big Brother’s internet celebrity status?
01.The new “electric Atlas”
“Atlas will move in ways that exceed human capabilities,” Boston Dynamics said.
In the middle of the empty computer room, the new Atlas lay flat on the ground like a corpse. Accompanied by the hum of the electric motor, after five seconds, Atlas's two legs were lifted up like a marionette, folded back, and landed. Then the entire upper body rose, the hollow head rotated 180 degrees, and the upper body rotated 180 degrees. , walking towards the camera.
A statement from Boston Dynamics said,New Atlas robot 'pushes the limits of full-body mobility and two-hand operation'“The electric version of Atlas is designed to be more powerful, more nimble and more agile.” “More powerful and with a wider range of motion than our previous generations.”
The previous latest generation of hydraulic Atlas (HD Atlas) can already lift and manipulate various heavy and irregular objects, and the electric Atlas will explore more actions on this basis.
According to Boston Dynamics CEO Robert Playter, they have installed “custom-made high-power and very flexible actuators on most joints.” “This means a huge range of motion.” “Most joints are larger than humans, or even It’s elite athletes who are stronger.”
According to its explanation, the new Atlas will be able to complete a series of actions that humans cannot complete, ultimately in order to be able to “handle tedious, dirty and dangerous tasks” in real-world applications.
This flexibility is like a “palette” for engineers to design new actions on Atlas. “We've been playing with it a lot and decided to share this excitement with the world.”
Another special thing is thatThe head of the new Atlas is a glowing ring light, a design inspired by Pixar's desk lamp character. Robert Playter said the robot's head was “one of the most distressing design elements” of the robot.
A lot of humanoid robots have heads that are more like human shapes. “They always look a little threatening or dystopian, and we wanted to get away from that. So,We made a very intentional decision about the shape of the head, with the clear intention of making it less human-like. “Hopefully it's friendly and open.”
In short, perhaps it is to avoid the uncanny valley effect.
02.“Electric + AI”, new Internet celebrity base
So why did Boston Dynamics end hydraulics and choose to turn Atlas fully electric? From cars to aviation, electrification has reached the emerging field of robots, and all-electric robots seem to be a major development direction.
Hydraulic robots have their own drawbacks.For example, hydraulic fluid leakage problem. Boston Dynamics released a clip of Atlas's fall failure, in which Atlas's feet sometimes seemed to be broken, and hydraulic fluid gushes out and spilled all over the floor. When other leaks occur, hydraulic fluid will spray everywhere.
Hydraulic systems also have high maintenance and upkeep costs. Due to the large size of hydraulic pumps, fuel tanks and pipes, the weight and volume of hydraulic robots will also be relatively large. In addition, there are noise and response speed issues.
In contrast, when electricity is used as a driving energy source, there is no hydraulic penetration problem. Electric robots are also quieter and more energy efficient than hydraulic robots. After removing the large hydraulic pump, they can be developed in a lighter and more compact direction.
In addition, Boston Dynamics’ relationship with the automotive industry may also be a potential factor. In 2021, Hyundai Motor announced the completion of its acquisition of Boston Dynamics, a deal valued at US$1.1 billion. Boston Dynamics said in a statement that this cooperation will help “build the next generation of automotive manufacturing capabilities.”
In recent years, Boston Dynamics has discovered that they can makeA “light electric motor” with the same responsiveness and strength as a hydraulic system, or enough responsiveness and strength.
They designed a compact set of actuators in the electric Atlas and “compared the capabilities of the new electric Atlas and the hydraulic Atlas, and the result was that the electric Atlas was stronger.”
But Boston Dynamics isn't the first company to launch electric robots. Yushu's H1 bipedal robot also has electric joint motors and is said to be the first robot to complete a standing backflip without using a hydraulic system, but the project is still in its early stages.
also,AI has also become the focus of Boston Dynamics.
“In addition to our decades of expertise in simulation and model predictive control, we equip our robots with new AI and machine learning tools, such as reinforcement learning and computer vision, to ensure they can operate efficiently and adapt to complex The reality is. “The Boston Dynamics team said they are ready to bring AI to the market immediately, starting with the Spot product and going further with the arrival of the electric Atlas.
According to Robert Playter, Atlas “definitely needs to be a universal robot,” but there's still a lot of work to be done in terms of versatility so that a humanoid robot can pick up any one of a thousand different parts and handle them reasonably. “This generality has not yet been proven. We think it's promising that AI will be one of the tools to help solve this problem.”
It is said that the electric Atlas will begin field trials with Hyundai next year, with mass production a few years later. Engineers also expect the humanoid robot to be able to change its own batteries. In a video released by Boston Dynamics in February this year, a clip of the hydraulic version of Atlas working with a car support rod was shown.
The differentiating factor between Atlas and other humanoid robots is that it can pick up heavy, complex, and large things. The support rod in the video may weigh about 20 pounds. Playter said that Atlas can “pick up the wheel” and other real-world tasks. It claims that “it has not seen other companies do this.”
The robot industry is difficult. In the more than ten years since the advent of hydraulic Atlas, some robot companies have been established and closed down. This has not hindered the increasing number of players in the humanoid robot market. Well-known ones include Apptronik, Tesla, 1X, Figure, etc. The company's humanoid robot.
Humanoid robots like Figure and Apptronik are now being tested on the production lines of BMW and Mercedes-Benz respectively. Musk has also joined the field of robotics, developing Optimus, which has gone through multiple iterations, claiming that Optimus will work in Tesla's factories in the future.
In addition, in the past two years, the variable AI has given these humanoid robot companies a glimmer of hope in achieving “universality.” The competition has become more lively, and billions of dollars have poured in.
Earlier this year, OpenAI-backed Norwegian robotics startup 1X Technologies AS raised $100 million to launch its second-generation robot, NEO, aimed at doing daily household chores. OpenAI has also partnered with Figure to develop AI models for humanoid robots.
“Frankly, they're going to start catching up to us as fast as they can — that's what we've seen so far. I think that's ultimately what's going to push the industry forward,” said Robert Playter.
03.A legendary decade of Atlas
Founded in 1992, Boston Dynamics has three treasures – the humanoid Atlas, the dog-shaped Spot, and the brick-moving Handle.
The current electric Atlas is based on decades of research and development history of the older generation of hydraulic robots. It once won a contract from the Pentagon and was first supported by the government, then by Google, then by SoftBank, and finally by Hyundai Motor.
Over the past decade or so, every once in a while, Boston Dynamics has released a new video of Atlas, a humanoid robot running, jumping, backflips, dancing, parkour, washing dishes and carrying objects.
“From PETMAN testing protective suits to the recently retired HD Atlas performing parkour, we have spent more than a decade advancing the development of humanoid robotics technology,” a Boston Dynamics statement said.
In order to pay tribute to this robot that pushed the limits of humanoid robots, Boston Dynamics released a video collection of Atlas, including footage of mistakes that caused a tragic fall.
Looking back in 2013, Boston Dynamics officially launched Atlas. The robot weighed more than two hundred kilograms, required a rope to connect to an external power source and computer, and had 28 hydraulic joints. It was born out of a competition held by the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
In 2014, Atlas demonstrated a kung fu move – standing on one foot on a pile of bricks.
In 2015, Atlas began to be able to remain upright without a safety line, and that year also demonstrated simple cleaning actions, including vacuuming carpets and throwing garbage into receptacles.
In 2016, Atlas walked in the woods. It stumbled, corrected its posture, bent down to pick up boxes, and opened doors.
In 2017, Atlas was able to do a backflip. Before doing the backflip, it jumped from one platform to another, turned 180 degrees while jumping, and made a small arm raising motion when it found its footing. .
In 2018, Atlas demonstrated a small parkour performance, jumping on top of a set of boxes by leaping over a log.
In 2019, Atlas showcased gymnastics routines including somersaults, handstands, 360-degree spin jumps, and mid-air split jumps that were choreographed into a show. At the time, Boston Dynamics stated that the performance success rate was 80%.
In 2020, Atlas showed off its dance moves, which covered a variety of dance moves such as running, jumping, swinging and spinning. At the time, some people thought it was CGI.
In 2021, Atlas showed another gymnastics performance, flipping, jumping, and standing firm again when people thought it was going to fall. At the time, these performance machines delighted the Internet and upset some, and some of the choreographed parkour was criticized by academics in the field of machines.
In 2023, Atlas began showing off its moves in real-life work scenarios, tossing planks of wood and tool bags in a scene that mimicked a construction site.
“Humanoid robots are very suitable for manufacturing, factory work, construction and other application scenarios.” At the time, the Atlas project leader explained, “The dream of humanoid robots is that they should be able to do everything we do, right?”