Page 67 - Modern Robotics Building Versatile Macines

LEARNING TO WALK 47

Raibert’s main focus these days is in the business world, where he
is devoted to the further development of a variety of mobile robot
designs and applications, as well as innovative animation and simu-
lation software.

Chronology

1870 Early walking machines are developed, but they can only walk

stiffly and in a straight line
1872 Eadweard Muybridge begins photographic studies of locomo-
tion in 40 different animals

1949 Marc Raibert born in New York City
1968 Ralph Mosher’s prototype “walking truck” is tested by the
U.S. Army
1973 Raibert graduates from Northeastern University with a degree
in electrical engineering

1977 Raibert earns his doctorate at MIT
A computer-controlled six-legged (hexapod) robot is developed
by Robert McGhee’s group at Ohio State University

1977–80 Raibert works for three years as an engineer at the Jet
Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California

1980 Japanese researchers build a four-legged (quadrapedal) machine
that can climb stairs

1981 Raibert becomes an associate professor of computer science
and robotics at Carnegie Mellon University; he establishes the
“Leg Laboratory” for research on walking robots

1982 Raibert’s first hopping robot moves in place and can keep its
balance
1983 A one-legged hopping robot runs and balances on an open fl oor
1984 Balancing techniques are successfully applied to a quadrupedal
robot, which can then trot