Little 12-Legged Robot Can Transport 175 Pounds - Neatorama

(Video Link)

Land Crawler xTreme weighs about 27 pounds and moves on 12 legs. The operator can ride on it, provided that s/he weighs no more than 175 pounds. Unloaded, it can move for 3 hours without recharging.

Official Website (Google Translate) via Popular Science

Cute, but I bet I could improve the weight to payload ratio a lot just by taking those neat little legs off and putting wheels on it.

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

Yeah, so the "xTreme" tag seems premature.

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

I was saying to myself, a chunky piece of equipment like that can only carry OH MY GOD LOOK AT THE GIANT SHOES ON TOP OF IT!!!

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

I am sure Segway is scared now!

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

I really like this. It is probably made more for novelty purposes rather than optimal performance, there is no need to 'upgrade' it. That's like taking a jeep and saying "yea it's cool, but I bet I could make it better by putting doors on it."

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

So when the beeping stops does it blow up?

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

A perfect seat for Yoda, this is.

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

You just know that your upstairs neighbor -- you know, the guy with the wooden floor -- will get one of these.

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

If someone is working a controller via a wire, it's not really a robot is it?

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

The mechanism looks like a total rip off of one of Theo Jansen's kinetic sculptures, Animaris Rhinoceros. Check out this video of it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2KkGFuRLew

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

This is a direct copy if not to say RIP-OFF
of the magnifisent works of the dutch artist
Theo Jansen.

He has invented this mechanical way to convert the circular motion to the walking motion, and has been using it for years in his creations, "strandbeesten"

check it out for yourself:
http://www.strandbeest.com/index.php

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

Ah, I didn't see your comment there Tao,
but needless to say I totally agree =]

And as they don't seem to credit him anywhere,
I took the time to send him a mail so he at least knows how he got ripped...

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

At this page he explains the motion,
and how he used computer simulation to find the 'golden' lengths of the rods:

http://www.strandbeest.com/beests_leg.php

Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)

Login to comment.

Click here to access all of this post's 13 comments

This website uses cookies.

This website uses cookies to improve user experience. By using this website you consent to all cookies in accordance with our Privacy Policy.