Boston Dynamics
Boston Dynamics has built a reputation for creating some of the world’s most eye-catching robots, and the company’s latest video proves once again that its mechanical canine, Spot, lives up to the hype. The highlight? A jaw-dropping seven consecutive backflips.
A Robot with Global Experience
Spot, the four-legged robot developed by Boston Dynamics, has been evolving since its first public appearance in 2015. Over the years, it has been deployed to patrol the ruins of Pompeii in Italy, herd sheep in New Zealand, and assist with operations on an oil platform in Norway.
Despite its ruggedness and adaptability, Spot has also displayed a playful side—twerking in 2018, welcoming the New Year with dance moves in 2020, and even joining the Rolling Stones in celebrating the 40th anniversary of Tattoo You. More recently, a group of Spots captured the spotlight by competing on America’s Got Talent and advancing through the competition.
Pushing Beyond Design Limits
Yet, backflips were never part of Spot’s intended skill set. That didn’t deter Boston Dynamics engineer Arun Kumar, who decided to push the limits of the robot’s hardware until it successfully performed the stunt.
My team didn’t build Spot for backflips,” Kumar explains in the video showcasing the achievement.My team didn’t think it was possible for the robot to pull off a standing flip until I started working on it. To make it happen, we had to push the hardware to its limits.”
Teaching a Robot Like a Dog
Kumar further outlined the training process, which relied on neural networks and reward-based learning—similar to the way one might train a real dog.
While watching Spot land seven backflips in a row is undeniably impressive, Kumar stresses that the deeper purpose of the project was to prepare the robot to handle real-world challenges—such as slips, trips, or falls. After all, as martial artists have long recognized, sometimes the best way to recover from a fall is to turn it into a flip.
Boston Dynamics’ Atlas robot shows off its breakdancing skills, Unitree’s G1 humanoid performs jumps and twists, and Astribot demonstrates its precision by folding laundry, practicing calligraphy, and assisting in the kitchen—delighting those inspired by Spot’s latest acrobatics.
Read the original article on: New Atlas
Read more: Back-Bending Robodog Tackles Confined Spaces with Greater Speed