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Boston Dynamics’ frightening creation can do your dishes
Mon, 28th Aug 2017
FYI, this story is more than a year old

Boston Dynamics' frightening creation, the SpotMini,  is a nimble robot that handles objects and climbs stairs, which is meant to operate in offices and homes.

This is the company's first real shift into consumer robotics, as up until now their major focus was on military and industrial robots.

The SpotMini is a small four-legged robot that comfortably fits in an office or home.

It only weighs 25 kg or 30 kg if you include the arm.

SpotMini is all-electric and can go for about 90 minutes on a charge, depending on what it is doing.

Boston Dynamics claims that the SpotMini is the quietest robot they have ever built.

They claim that the SpotMini inherits all of the mobility of its bigger brother, Spot, while adding the ability to pick up and handle objects using its five degree-of-freedom arm and beefed up perception sensors.

The sensor suite includes stereo cameras, depth cameras, an IMU, and position/force sensors in the limbs.

These sensors help with navigation and mobile object manipulation.

SpotMini's predecessor and big brother, Spot, is also a four-legged robot with extraordinary rough terrain mobility and super-human stability.

It has been the breeding ground for a new approach to dynamic robot controls that brings true autonomy within reach.

It senses its rough-terrain environment using LIDAR and stereo vision in conjunction with a suite of onboard sensors to maintain balance and negotiate the rough terrain.

It can carry a 23 kg payload and operates for 45 minutes on a battery charge.

While the SpotMini won't be able to carry as much its smaller design does mean it can be easily be integrated into an office or home without encroaching on anyone's personal space.

Boston Dynamics is an engineering and robotics design company that is best known for the development of BigDog, a quadruped robot designed for the U.S. military.