>> WELCOME TO "WEDU QUEST."
I'M DR. SHANNON McQUAIG, A

MICROBIOLOGIST AT ST. PETERSBURG
COLLEGE.

ROBOTS ARE UD IN A VARIETY OF
INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS WHERE

REPETITIVE TASKS CAN BE MASTERED
BY THESE DEVICES.

ENGINEERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
SOUTH FLORIDA ARE NOW CREATING

THE NEXT WAVE OF ROBOTS WHICH
MIMIC ANIMAL AND HUMAN

MOVEMENTS.
>> ROBOTS HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED TO

HELP US WITH VARIOUS TASKS.
IN THE PAST, ROBOTS WERE LIMITED

TO USING WHEELS TO GET AROUND.
NOW DR. LUTHER PALMER AT THE

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING HAS

TURNED TO THE ANIMAL KINGDOM FOR
INSPIRATION.

>> WE BUILD SYSTEMS THAT WILL
WALK ALONG SOLDIERS OR DO SEARCH

AND RESCUE IN COLLAPSED
BUILDINGS THAT WE USE THE ANIMAL

MORPHOLOGY.
THAT'S WHERE WE ARE USING THE

TERM BIOMORPHIC.
WE FOCUS ON ANIMAL LEGS.

WALKING, RUNNING, CLIMBING ON
LAND.

DOGS HAVE BEEN USED IN
SEARCH-AND-RESCUE APPLICATIONS,

SO IF WE CAN MIMIC THE MOBILITY
OF A DOG, THEN WE CAN ALSO SEND

IT INTO SITUATIONS WHERE A DOG
CAN'T GO, SUCH AS HAZARDOUS

WASTE.
>> HE DEMONSTRATES THIS IN THE

BIOMORPHIC ROBOTICS LAB.
THIS CREATION WAS YEARS IN THE

MAKING..
>> THE SYSTEM HERE HAS TAKEN US

FOUR YEARS TO BUILD.
IT WAS PROBABLY TWO YEARS OF

SIMULATION WHICH INVOLVES
ALGORITHM DEVELOPMENT AND SOME

CALCULUS AND TRIGONOMETRY.
AND THEN WE DO THE BUILDING.

>> IF YOU ARE A LITTLE RUSTY ON
HIGH SCHOOL ALGEBRA, SO ARE WE.

WHAT IS AN ALGORITHM?
>> AN ALGORITHM IS A PLAN.

IT IS THE FORMAL PLAN.
IT'S DEFINED IN A WAY THAT A

COMPUTER CAN UNDERSTAND IT.
COMPUTERS OFN DEAL WITH ARE

STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE AND
THEY CAN MAKE A DECISION BASED

ON THAT.
IMPOSSIBLE FOR US TO FIGURE OUT,

EVERY ANGLE, DO SOMETHING
DIFFERENT.

WE WANT TO CREATE AN ALGORITHM
THAT HAS A SMALL FOOTPRINT, IN

OTHER WORDS FEWEST LINES OF CODE
THAT CAN ACHIEVE THE MOST.

>> THE REMOTE CONTROL USED FOR
THIS ROBOT IS A BASIC

DIRECTIONAL DEVICE.
>> WHAT WE WANT THE ROBOT TO DO

IS IF I SAY STRAIGHT, WE WANT
IT TO GO STRAIGHT.

IT DOESN'T SENSE THE FRONT.
DOESN'T HAVE A VISION SENSOR,

BUT IT'S ABLE TO OVERCOME
WHATEVER IT ENCOUNTERS BECAUSE

THE LEGS -- ♪♪
-- LOOK FOR THE GROUND AND BE

RESPONSIVE TO WHATEVER GROUND
LEVEL IT ENCOUNTERPARTS.

WHEN IT WALKS ON A HIGH OBSTACLE
COSESEWEWEAN FORCE IT TO WALK

SLOWER AND RAISE THE LEG HIGHER.
THAT PUTS THE LEG IN A POSITION

TO OVERCOME HIGH TERRAIN OR LOW
TERRAIN.

>> ONE OF THE DISCOVERIES
SCIENTISTS HAVE MADE ABOUT

ANIMAL MORPHOLOGY IS OUR LIMBS
WORK INDEPENDENTLY FROM OUR

BRAIN.
>> WHEN AN ANIMAL IS RUNNING

VERY FAST, THERE ISN'T ENOUGH
TIME FOR THE LEGS TO COMMUNICATE

WITH EACH OTHER.
LEGS HAVE TO OPERATE IN WHAT WE

CALL A --
IT MEANS IT DOESN'T HAVE

FEEDBACK FROM THE MASTER
CONTROLLER, OTHER LEGS OR EVEN

THE GROUND.
IT'S A FEED FORWARD.

IT WILL GO IN THIS PATTERN AND
IT HAS THE ABILITY TO MOVE AWAY

FROM THE PATTERN AS IT SEES FIT
WITHOUT ANY EXTERNAL FEEDBACK.

>> DR. PALMER HAS APPLIED THIS
CONCEPT TO HIS ROBOTS.

>> THERE IS A MICROPROCESSOR IN
EACH JOINT.

THIS SYSTEM HERE TELLS, IT
BASICALLY SAYS WHAT SHOULD THE

XYZ POSITION BE.
X FORWARD.

Y SIDE TO SIDE AND Z BEING UP
AND DOWN.

>> THIS DOCTORAL STUDENT HAS
JOINED IN THE EFFORT TO

UNDERSTAND HOW TO MAKE ROBOTS
ACT MORE LIKE ANIMALS.

>> EVEN SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS A
COCKROACH, AS UNSIGHTLY, THEIR

LEGS ARE INCREDIBLE.
WE DESIGNED A ROBOT AFTER A

COCKROACH BASED ON ITS ABILITY
TO BASICALLY CLIMB OVER AND

UNDER.
>> THIS COCKROACH-LIKE ROBOT

WITH ITS S LEGS IS STEERED BY
THE HUMAN OPERATOR BUT USES

ANIMALLIKE FEEDBACK LOOP TO
CLIMB OVER OBSTACLES.

>> WHY IS THE LEG OF A CHEETAH
DIFFERENT FROM A MOUNTAIN GOAT?

WHY IS THAT DIFFERENT FROM THE
LEG OF A CENTIPEDE OR HUMAN.

THE DIVERSITY IS REALLY MASSIVE.
IT'S AWE-INSPIRING TO BE ABLE TO

LOOK AT SOMETHING IN NATURE THAT
PRODUCES ALL OF THESE THINGS ON

ITS OWN.
WE CAN ONLY HOPE TO BE ABLE TO

EMULATE THEM AT SOME POINT.
>> THE WORLD OF RUNNING AND

JUMPING ROBOTS MAY SEEM A BIT
OUT OF REACH.

DR. PALMER THINKS PRACTICAL
APPLICATIONS ARE RIGHT AROUND

THE CORNER.
>> I ANTICIPATE THAT WE'LL BE

SENDING LEGGED SYSTEMS TO MARS
AND OTHER DISTANCE PLANETS.

THAT IS WHAT SERVES TO ME AS THE
NEAR-TERM SYSTEM AS WE PUSH HARD

TO MAKE THESE SYSTEMS MORE
ROBUST AND MORE CAPABLE.

>> IT TAKES A LOT OF PASSION TO
PUT IN THE LONG HOURS TO

OVERCOME THE CHALLENGES OF
CREATING BIOMORPHIC ROBOTS.

>> IN ORDER TO DO ROBOTICS, YOU
HAVE TO HAVE A LOVE FOR --

[[INAUDIBLE]]
YOU ARE PROBLEM SOLVING A UNIQUE

SCENARIO IN WHICH YOU HAVE A
COMPLICATED SOFTWARE STRUCTURE

AND A COMPLICATED HARDWARE
STRUCTURE.

IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG,
FERRETING OUT WHERE THAT ISSUE

IS CAN BE EXHILARATING AND FUN
AND AL BE VERY PAINFUL,

STAYING LATE AT NIGHT TRYING TO
FIGURE OUT WHAT'S GOING ON.

WHAT ATTRACTED ME TO ROBOTICS IS
THIS MIX.

>> FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE
BIOMORPHIC ROBOTICS LAB VISIT