WEBVTT

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

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MICROBIOLOGIST AT ST. PETERSBURG
COLLEGE.

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ROBOTS ARE UD IN A VARIETY OF
INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS WHERE

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REPETITIVE TASKS CAN BE MASTERED
BY THESE DEVICES.

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ENGINEERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
SOUTH FLORIDA ARE NOW CREATING

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THE NEXT WAVE OF ROBOTS WHICH
MIMIC ANIMAL AND HUMAN

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MOVEMENTS.
>> ROBOTS HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED TO

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

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

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UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA
COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING HAS

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TURNED TO THE ANIMAL KINGDOM FOR
INSPIRATION.

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

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AND RESCUE IN COLLAPSED
BUILDINGS THAT WE USE THE ANIMAL

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MORPHOLOGY.
THAT'S WHERE WE ARE USING THE

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TERM BIOMORPHIC.
WE FOCUS ON ANIMAL LEGS.

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WALKING, RUNNING, CLIMBING ON
LAND.

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

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

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

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WASTE.
>> HE DEMONSTRATES THIS IN THE

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BIOMORPHIC ROBOTICS LAB.
THIS CREATION WAS YEARS IN THE

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MAKING..
>> THE SYSTEM HERE HAS TAKEN US

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FOUR YEARS TO BUILD.
IT WAS PROBABLY TWO YEARS OF

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SIMULATION WHICH INVOLVES
ALGORITHM DEVELOPMENT AND SOME

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CALCULUS AND TRIGONOMETRY.
AND THEN WE DO THE BUILDING.

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

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

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

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COMPUTER CAN UNDERSTAND IT.
COMPUTERS OFN DEAL WITH ARE

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STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE AND
THEY CAN MAKE A DECISION BASED

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ON THAT.
IMPOSSIBLE FOR US TO FIGURE OUT,

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EVERY ANGLE, DO SOMETHING
DIFFERENT.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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BUT IT'S ABLE TO OVERCOME
WHATEVER IT ENCOUNTERS BECAUSE

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

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RESPONSIVE TO WHATEVER GROUND
LEVEL IT ENCOUNTERPARTS.

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

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

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TO OVERCOME HIGH TERRAIN OR LOW
TERRAIN.

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>> ONE OF THE DISCOVERIES
SCIENTISTS HAVE MADE ABOUT

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ANIMAL MORPHOLOGY IS OUR LIMBS
WORK INDEPENDENTLY FROM OUR

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BRAIN.
>> WHEN AN ANIMAL IS RUNNING

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

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WITH EACH OTHER.
LEGS HAVE TO OPERATE IN WHAT WE

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CALL A --
IT MEANS IT DOESN'T HAVE

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FEEDBACK FROM THE MASTER
CONTROLLER, OTHER LEGS OR EVEN

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THE GROUND.
IT'S A FEED FORWARD.

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

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

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

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>> THERE IS A MICROPROCESSOR IN
EACH JOINT.

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THIS SYSTEM HERE TELLS, IT
BASICALLY SAYS WHAT SHOULD THE

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XYZ POSITION BE.
X FORWARD.

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Y SIDE TO SIDE AND Z BEING UP
AND DOWN.

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>> THIS DOCTORAL STUDENT HAS
JOINED IN THE EFFORT TO

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UNDERSTAND HOW TO MAKE ROBOTS
ACT MORE LIKE ANIMALS.

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

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LEGS ARE INCREDIBLE.
WE DESIGNED A ROBOT AFTER A

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COCKROACH BASED ON ITS ABILITY
TO BASICALLY CLIMB OVER AND

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UNDER.
>> THIS COCKROACH-LIKE ROBOT

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

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ANIMALLIKE FEEDBACK LOOP TO
CLIMB OVER OBSTACLES.

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

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

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

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

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ITS OWN.
WE CAN ONLY HOPE TO BE ABLE TO

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

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JUMPING ROBOTS MAY SEEM A BIT
OUT OF REACH.

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DR. PALMER THINKS PRACTICAL
APPLICATIONS ARE RIGHT AROUND

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

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SENDING LEGGED SYSTEMS TO MARS
AND OTHER DISTANCE PLANETS.

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

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TO MAKE THESE SYSTEMS MORE
ROBUST AND MORE CAPABLE.

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

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OVERCOME THE CHALLENGES OF
CREATING BIOMORPHIC ROBOTS.

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

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[[INAUDIBLE]]
YOU ARE PROBLEM SOLVING A UNIQUE

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SCENARIO IN WHICH YOU HAVE A
COMPLICATED SOFTWARE STRUCTURE

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AND A COMPLICATED HARDWARE
STRUCTURE.

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IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG,
FERRETING OUT WHERE THAT ISSUE

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

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

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WHAT ATTRACTED ME TO ROBOTICS IS
THIS MIX.

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>> FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE
BIOMORPHIC ROBOTICS LAB VISIT

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www.cse.usf.edu/~palmer.
>> NEXT, WEAC