- On the move…ATHLETE robot wheels into the future. Credit: NASA/JPL
Sure, athletes are always in workout mode. But what about a robot?
Check out the moves of the All-Terrain Hex-Limbed Extra-Terrestrial Explorer – short named: ATHLETE
Under development at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California, ATHLETE is a 1/2-scale working prototype of a robot for potential use on the moon or Mars.
The concept is based on six wheels at the ends of six multi-degree-of-freedom limbs. ATHLETE uses its wheels for efficient driving over stable, gently rolling terrain. Because each limb has enough degrees of freedom for use as a general-purpose leg, the wheels can be locked and used as feet to walk out of excessively soft, obstacle rich, or other extreme terrain.
ATHLETE is envisioned as a heavy-lift utility vehicle to support human exploration of the lunar or Martian surface, useful for unloading bulky cargo from stationary landers and transporting it long distances over varied terrain.
For a sped-up video of how ATHLETE moves about, go to:
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/videogallery/index.html?media_id=16843450
By LD/CSE