Watch: “The World’s First Multi-Modal Bipedal Robot” May Soon be Available to You

How would you feel about owning your own AT-ST walker from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi? The newly announced Tron 1 biped robot is the next best option. It’s slightly smaller than a walker, and unfortunately, there’s no riding inside it.

Produced by the Chinese robotics company LimX Dynamics, known for its quadruped and humanoid robots, the Tron 1 is the commercial version of the company’s unique P1 Biped. Earlier this year, we witnessed the P1 navigating rugged woodland terrain and being struck with a branch.

Durable Design for Research Applications

The Tron 1 is also built to withstand rough treatment, as it is primarily intended for engineers to use as a testbed for humanoid robot motion control and embodied intelligence research. Unfortunately, it’s not designed for battling the Rebel Alliance.

To accommodate its various research applications, the robot is equipped with three interchangeable foot-ends tailored for different locomotion types.

The first option, the basic Point-Foot, features a rounded rubberized tip that offers the best agility, as demonstrated by the P1 during its walk in the woods. The second option is the Sole, which mimics a foot more closely, allowing for a better imitation of a human walking gait. Finally, the Wheeled foot-end allows the robot to smoothly traverse flat surfaces on motorized wheels, while still enabling it to tackle obstacles by locking the wheels in place to act as feet.

The Tron 1 features an automatic hardware recognition system that identifies the installed foot-end and adjusts the onboard motion-control software accordingly. Users can operate the robot in real-time using the included wireless remote or opt for autonomous operation through Python programming.

Specifications Overview

In terms of specifications, the Tron 1 has an aluminum/plastic body, stands 854 mm (33.6 in) tall, weighs under 20 kg (44 lb), and is equipped with a 12th-generation Intel Core i3 processor. It offers over two hours of runtime on a 1.5-hour charge of its lithium battery. Additionally, expansion ports allow users to connect peripherals like cameras, radar/lidar units, and robotic arms.

If you’re interested in acquiring your own Tron 1, the limited-time introductory price starts at $15,000. You can see the robot in multi-modal action in the video below.

Read the original article: New Atlas

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