DARPA recently completed field testing of its LS3 four-legged robot system at Fort Pickett in central Virginia. An agency press release reported the following:
Working with the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory (MCWL), researchers from DARPA’s LS3 program demonstrated new advances in the robot’s control, stability and maneuverability, including "Leader Follow" decision making, enhanced roll recovery, exact foot placement over rough terrain, the ability to maneuver in an urban environment, and verbal command capability.
Here's a video that shows some of the action:
Pretty cool, no doubt; but the thing that jumps out at us here at DT World HQ is the robot is sort of loud, which certainly would be a big concern if you were trying to sneak up on the enemy. (Maybe they'll figure that out as they go along.)
