Agility Robotics demonstrated the multifunctional ostrich robot

A bipedal robot named Cassie, according to its developers, can become one of the reliable human helpers in everyday life, at work, in research and rescue expeditions

Robots are now being developed by many companies, like transnational corporations like Sony, and not very large organizations that specialize in robots. The latter is Agility Robotics , which recently introduced its latest development, the multifunctional bipedal robot Cassie. The developers believe that this robot can be used in various situations: for the study of the terrain, during rescue operations, at work and for the delivery of goods.

The two-leggedness of the robot and its bird-like manipulator legs make Cassie steady when walking on both level roads and cross-country terrain. The ostrich robot walks really well, so the developers plan to entrust him with an important lesson - delivering small loads to the customer's door. The creators of Cassie believe that it will be useful for various companies that are engaged in the delivery of cargo within the village.


The video shows one of the prototypes, which already has most of the capabilities that the current version of the robot has. An ostrich robot walks through the grass, the ground, including the wet one, it is also able to cross puddles and walk in the rain — the electronic filling and all other vulnerable elements are protected from water. The company's headquarters is located in Oregon, USA, where the weather changes frequently. So the robot is tested in a wide variety of weather conditions.
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During the development of their robot, specialists from Agility Robotics studied the bird morphology and peculiarities of the ostrich walking process. According to the authors of the project, Cassie is a robust, efficient and resistant to external factors.

The company itself is new, but its employees are people from more famous ATRIAS robots , engineers and scientists from the University of Michigan. When creating Cassie, experts used the lessons learned from working on ATRIAS robots projects. The head of the company says that some features of the human movement mechanism were used in the design of the robot.

The design of the legs of the robot is special. It uses only four joints. Servos are interconnected in such a way that the entire system of motion works as efficiently as possible, efficiently using energy resources.

The “thigh” of a robot has three degrees of freedom, like a human thigh. The robot can step forward and backward, left and right, plus the joints can rotate while walking on hinges, ensuring high maneuverability of the entire system. Also, the robot has powerful enough ankles, so that it can stand still if necessary. The computer is controlled by the system, which distributes tasks for each active structural member during the Cassie movement.

“The robot is designed to perform complex tasks. He can move without any support. This allows us to send the robot to work in the wild, ”says one of its creators.

The technology used to create the walking robot can also be used in the development of various prostheses, exoskeletons, and other systems. The advanced Cassie, equipped with a camera and an automatic control system, is quite suitable for going to the grocery store. Of course, this will not happen tomorrow, but in a few years you can expect the appearance of personal assistants who will help a person perform household and work tasks.


Render of the final version of Cassie with protection elements for vulnerable parts of the structure

The robot is already being produced as a commercial product, and the first batch is completely sold out by customers. In the summer, the second batch of Cassie will be released, so if you wish, you can purchase a couple of robots for your own needs.


A few days ago, Google’s division of Boston Dynamics showed a bipedal robot on wheels that moves very fast, plus it is able to balance, go around obstacles and even jump over them. On the video that has fallen into the network, you can clearly see what this robot is capable of: it performs complex dynamic movements, picks up and carries a load, bends on bends, balances. According to the founder of the company, this robot is an "experimental model with the replacement of legs by wheels, a very dynamic system that balances and at the same time understands how to move to a given point."