But I was wondering if even the robot minus the suit could be useful for space exploration. After all, what better way for robot missions to pave the way for manned ones later on, than for the robots to be as close to human beings as possible, allowing all facets of a manned platform to be tested in advance before sending real human beings.
How much does Petman cost seems you could pay some undergraduate to be a guinea pig for less and get a better idea of the suits comfort as well.
Mr Bird, the main cost for Petman is in the one-time R&D, but after that it could be reproduced for considerably less. Also note that Boston Dynamics is pursuing Atlas as another anthropomorphic platform, not for mere testing of suits but as system for navigating rough terrain and possibly making use of tools built for people.
Merely an opinion but an anthropomorphic form is not necessarily well suited to traveling on rough terrain. Bipedal robots have balance issues and the bipedal form is merely a jack of all trades and master of none when it comes to exploring its environment, be it swimming, crawling or climbing.
Rough terrain would include swimming, crawling, and climbing. A jack of all trades approach to this problem is appropriate.
Quote from: cordwainer on 04/08/2013 01:17 amHow much does Petman cost seems you could pay some undergraduate to be a guinea pig for less and get a better idea of the suits comfort as well.You can't plug graduate students into an electrical outlet.
Which brings up another point, fuel sources for agile robots. How do you make the extension cord long enough? Solar cells, fuel cells, nuclear thermocouples, ultracapacitors, grail engines all have their advantages and disadvantages. The most telling disadvantage is that they usually can't fuel up just anywhere like animals do. What kind of progress have they made in energy sources and efficiency with agile robots of late?