# Ooh, cool new robot - almost kinda scary **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 3, 2006, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961 "2006-03-03T21:10:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/1 "2006-03-03T21:10:36Z")
A [robotic ‘pack-mule’](http://www.newscientist.com/channel/mech-tech/dn8802.html) reported on in today’s New Scientist. The video is pretty cool. But jeez, how long before we have At-Ats patrolling the streets? I know if I saw one of these things coming towards me, I’d run for my life. ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/2 "2006-03-03T21:16:46Z")
Awwwww. I actually felt sorry for the poor thing when he kicked it. It seemed so mean. It didn’t look too odd in the photo, but it does look quite weird when it has its “pants” on and is moving. ---
**Author:** ![Winston\_Smith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@Winston\_Smith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winston_Smith)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/3 "2006-03-03T21:17:45Z")
There’s no picture! I DEMAND PICTURES!!! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/4 "2006-03-03T21:24:42Z")
I wonder about the economics of this, especially as compared to remote-controlled mules. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/5 "2006-03-03T21:28:17Z")
> [@Winston Smith](#): > > There’s no picture! > > I DEMAND PICTURES!!! 😛 There is a picture. Are you sure you didn’t see a picture? ---
**Author:** ![YellowTail](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/b5ac83/32.png) [@YellowTail](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YellowTail)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/6 "2006-03-03T21:33:29Z")
It kinda looks like two guys in a horse suit but one’s facing the wrong way. ---
**Author:** ![Winston\_Smith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@Winston\_Smith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winston_Smith)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/7 "2006-03-03T21:35:47Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > There is a picture. Are you sure you didn’t see a picture? I don’t see the picture! It’s a _conspiracy_!! ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Carnage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/max_carnage/32/12775_2.png) [@Max\_Carnage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Carnage)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/8 "2006-03-03T21:44:15Z")
At least we know when the robot revolution occurs, they won’t be able to stealthily sneak up on us. ---
**Author:** ![JustAnotherGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/58f4c7/32.png) [@JustAnotherGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustAnotherGeek)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/9 "2006-03-03T21:51:44Z")
> [@Winston Smith](#): > > I don’t see the picture! It’s a _conspiracy_!! Not only did you miss the picture, _we’re hiding the video from you!_ 😛😃😉 ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/10 "2006-03-03T21:56:32Z")
Step One, Develop a robot that is “fast moving, highly reactive, autonomous both in power and possible intelligence”. Step Two, Make and distribute a video in which, to demonstrate the capabilities of the robot, you repeatedly kick it around a little. Step Three, Profit! Or, possibly, Armaggedon! Sucker’s noisy, ain’t it? Except at the end, when they’ve got it in what looks like some sort of laboratory (and they again give it a good kicking around, just to remind it that however fast moving, powerful, and autonomous it may be, we fragile, easily damaged biological types are the true masters), it’s got a bunch of wires and cords and doesn’t seem to be noisy at all. I assume the difference is between running on internal power and running off some sort of externally supplied electrical feed. Hey, you know what might improve it? Give it a visual sensor of some kind–like a nice photoelectric cell or something. And, to give proper depth perception, it would need two visual sensor, or, to save on photoelectric eyes, you could just have the one glowing red photoelectric sensor move back in forth in a constant rhythm. Also, it should have some sort of electronic voicebox, so that when we give it an order it can [respond appropriately](http://bellsouthpwp.net/m/e/mebuckner/cylon.wav). You know, that thing (with the internal motor running) sounds like kind of like a swarm of angry bees or something. Well, at least we’ll be able to hear them coming. All kidding aside, that’s pretty frakkin’ amazing. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/11 "2006-03-03T22:20:12Z")
> [@MEBuckner](#): > > You know, that thing (with the internal motor running) sounds like kind of like a swarm of angry bees or something. Well, at least we’ll be able to hear them coming. Since it’s a pack ‘animal’ I assume they’ll be deployed in herds. Networked herds. Time to get back to work on that EMP device I’ve got going in the basement. ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/12 "2006-03-03T23:09:12Z")
Ooh, very impressive. I did have a childish wish to see it kick back in retaliation though. 🙂 I wonder if they are also worling on an Electric Monk. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/13 "2006-03-03T23:23:06Z")
> [@Winston Smith](#): > > I don’t see the picture! It’s a _conspiracy_!! The link is in the text. Too bad this is a zillion times more expensive than a real mule. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/14 "2006-03-03T23:33:08Z")
> [@Wesley Clark](#): > > The link is in the text. > > Too bad this is a zillion times more expensive than a real mule. You need to think bigger. 😉 It’s like saying a tank is a zillion times more expensive than a bicycle. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/15 "2006-03-03T23:43:50Z")
But all it does is walk around with 80 lb of gear on its back. Real mules can do that, can’t they? ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/16 "2006-03-03T23:47:03Z")
BTW, here’s the manufacturer’s page: [http://www.bdi.com/content/sec.php?section=BigDog](http://www.bdi.com/content/sec.php?section=BigDog) ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/17 "2006-03-03T23:51:38Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > But all it does is walk around with 80 lb of gear on its back. Real mules can do that, can’t they? Sure, but how about they improve its power supply, software, make it bigger, attach armor, weapons, infrared, motion & optical recognition, etc? I really doubt they created this thing so it could haul a few ruck-sacks around. ---
**Author:** ![samm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/858c86/32.png) [@samm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samm)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2006, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/18 "2006-03-03T23:58:11Z")
Am I the only one that thought it would be fun to ride? Looked like it had a nice piaffe and a nice half pass. If only they could program it to canter without falling down also. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2006, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/19 "2006-03-04T00:08:12Z")
I’m not worried. My Old Glory Robot Insurance is paid up. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2006, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961/20 "2006-03-04T04:12:59Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Sure, but how about they improve its power supply, software, make it bigger, attach armor, weapons, infrared, motion & optical recognition, etc? I really doubt they created this thing so it could haul a few ruck-sacks around. That is going to be great. In 2020 the US will deploy a division of armored robot mules armed with lazer guided missiles. Its like a real life episode of South Park. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ooh-cool-new-robot-almost-kinda-scary/346961.md?page=2)