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Subscribe for 1$Sign In * NEWS * IE PRO * NEWSLETTERS * IE ACADEMY * PODCASTS * SHOP * JOBS 1 Culture 🚀 FBI AND CISA ISSUE URGENT WARNING TO USE ENCRYPTED APPS AMIDST GROWING CYBER THREATS Kaif Shaikh 20 hours ago 0 2 Energy 🚀 WORLD’S FIRST NUCLEAR-POWERED DIAMOND BATTERY WITH 5,700-YEAR LIFESPAN UNVEILED BY UK Sujita Sinha a day ago 1 3 Innovation 🚀 WATCH: TOYOTA’S HUMANOID ROBOT BREAKS WORLD RECORD FOR LONGEST BASKETBALL SHOT Jijo Malayil a day ago 0 4 Energy 🚀 BREAKTHROUGH PROTON BATTERY BEATS LITHIUM LIMIT, BOASTS 3,500 CHARGING CYCLES Aman Tripathi a day ago 1 5 Military 🚀 CHINA CREATES CHAMELEON-LIKE CAMOUFLAGE TECH WITH ‘INVISIBILITY’ POWER FOR MILITARY USE Mrigakshi Dixit a day ago 0 6 Military 🚀 US ARMY PLANS NEW MISSILE FOR AUTONOMOUS LAUNCHERS TO TARGET BEYOND 620 MILES Kapil Kajal 2 days ago 0 7 Energy 🚀 200 MWE LEAD-COOLED SMR DESIGN FOR NUCLEAR FISSION ENERGY TO UNDERGO UK ASSESSMENT Abhishek Bhardwaj 2 days ago 0 8 Innovation 🚀 WORLD’S SMALLEST WALKING ROBOTS REDEFINE FORCE MEASUREMENT AT MICROSCALES Jijo Malayil 2 days ago 0 9 Science 🚀 MIDDLE-SCHOOL STUDENT SCIENTISTS DISCOVER CANCER-FIGHTING COMPOUND IN GOOSE POOP Srishti Gupta 2 days ago 0 10 Culture 🚀 IRAQI STUDENT’S 4,000-YEAR-OLD MATH MISTAKE WELL PRESERVED ON A CLAY TABLET Maria Mocerino 2 days ago 0 1 Innovation 🌟 ROBOT RAT ROLLS IN TO PLAY, BATTLE REAL RODENTS IN STUNNING TECH BREAKTHROUGH Mrigakshi Dixit 2 hours ago 0 2 Energy 🌟 GERMAN FIRM TESTS POWERFUL NASA BATTERY THAT OFFERS 30,000 CYCLES, 30-YEAR LIFE Jijo Malayil 2 hours ago 0 3 Science 🌟 TICKING TIME BOMB: ARCTIC OCEAN COULD FACE FIRST ICE-FREE DAY BY 2027 Mrigakshi Dixit 3 hours ago 0 4 Military 🌟 MILITARY MARKINGS ON CHINA’S MONSTER TILTROTOR DRONE FUEL TAIWAN CONFLICT FEARS Prabhat Ranjan Mishra 3 hours ago 0 5 Space 🌟 SPACEX COMPLETES STARLINK’S FIRST DIRECT-TO-CELL PHONE CONSTELLATION: ELON MUSK Mrigakshi Dixit 4 hours ago 0 6 Culture 🌟 8 US TELECOM COMPANIES BREACHED BY CHINA’S SALT TYPHOON CYBERATTACK: REPORT Sujita Sinha 5 hours ago 0 7 Military 🌟 OPENAI-ANDURIL TO BUILD SUPER AI FOR US MILITARY DRONE DEFENSE AGAINST CHINA Abhishek Bhardwaj 5 hours ago 0 8 Science 🌟 TODDLER BONES REVEAL ANCIENT AMERICANS MAY HAVE EATEN MAMMOTHS TO EXTINCTION Mrigakshi Dixit 6 hours ago 0 9 Culture 🌟 BITCOIN BREAKS $100,000 BARRIER FOR FIRST TIME AS TRUMP PUMPS CRYPTO BOOM Sujita Sinha 7 hours ago 0 10 Transportation 🌟 SONY-HONDA’S FIRST ELECTRIC SEDAN SET TO LAUNCH IN US, COULD OFFER 275-MILE RANGE Kapil Kajal 16 hours ago 0 * Share * * * * * * * * Innovation CHINA’S CAT-LIKE ROBOT DOG PERFECTS MID-AIR JUMPS TO CONQUER ASTEROID SURFACES THE ROBOT ADJUSTS ITS POSTURE MID-AIR USING REINFORCEMENT LEARNING, SWINGING ITS LEGS TO CORRECT TILT AND REORIENT ITS TRAJECTORY. Updated: Nov 27, 2024 09:11 AM EST Jijo Malayil 8 days ago 0 * Share * * * * * * * Researchers used AI to teach the robot how to adjust its posture mid-air using its legs. iStock Chinese researchers have created an AI-powered robot dog capable of leaping across the rugged, low-gravity surfaces of asteroids. Inspired by a cat’s ability to twist and land on its paws, researchers from the Harbin Institute of Technology developed a robot using reinforcement learning. According to a Chinese online media outlet, instead of relying on heavy stabilization hardware, the robot employs a “model-free” control system to swing its four legs in coordinated motion. Such a design allows the robot to adjust its posture mid-air, correct tilt, and even reorient to face a new direction. The advancement could transform how small celestial bodies are explored, offering new possibilities for space exploration and enhancing our understanding of these distant objects. LOW-GRAVITY INNOVATION Jumping into low-gravity situations is a significant difficulty in the robotic exploration of minor celestial planets that the current work addresses. These planets, which are relics of the solar system’s creation, are rich in resources like platinum that may help with future space research and provide important insights into the system’s origins. However, conventional wheeled rovers face major challenges due to the minimal gravity, which is often only a few thousandths of Earth’s, as they find it difficult to get traction. According to the South China Morning Post ( SCMP), to address this, researchers have developed a robot capable of adjusting its posture mid-air during jumps, using reinforcement learning. Unlike traditional systems that rely on heavy stabilization hardware, this robot uses a “model-free” control system, swinging its four legs in a coordinated motion. This allows it to correct its tilt and even reorient itself to adjust its trajectory. The team concentrated on resolving the issue of leg force imbalances, which can result in collisions, uncontrollable spinning, or the robot bouncing off the ground. Using air suspension technology, they developed a microgravity simulation platform to test their control technique and ensure the robot could safely land, modify its yaw for subsequent leaps, or correct altitude deviations during free fall. No mission has yet to send out a rover that can conduct long-term surface exploration despite the fact that space agencies have successfully landed spacecraft on asteroids to recover samples. According to SCMP, the success of these jumping robots has the potential to transform asteroid exploration, opening up new avenues for research into these extinct asteroids and improving the use of space resources. STABILIZING JUMPS The team developed a robot capable of stabilizing itself during jumps on low-gravity celestial bodies. In these environments, each jump can keep a robot airborne for up to 10 seconds, enough time for slight imbalances in leg force to lead to uncontrolled spinning or even cause the robot to drift into space. To address this, the team used reinforcement learning, specifically proximal policy optimization, to train the robot in a virtual simulation. Over seven hours, the AI learned to refine its movements for stable landings, correcting its pitch, roll, and yaw within seconds. For example, when launched with a steep forward tilt of 140 degrees, the robot stabilized in just eight seconds and could rotate mid-air by up to 90 degrees to reorient itself, reports SCMP. Biped Robot P1: Mastering Wilderness Navigation More Videos 0 seconds of 2 minutes, 45 secondsVolume 0% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Tomahawk, Storm Shadow, Taurus: The Power Trio of Precision Destruction 13:10 facebook twitter Email pinterest Linkhttps://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/n8VOBdhS Copied Live 00:00 14:46 02:45 RECOMMENDED ARTICLES The researchers constructed a microgravity simulation platform with air bearings to replicate the low-gravity conditions seen on asteroids and evaluate the system. Thanks to this configuration, the robot was able to float on an almost frictionless surface, and the outcomes validated the simulation and the efficacy of the control method. The robot is well-suited for deep-space exploration because of its lightweight, energy-efficient design and low onboard processing power requirements. Although the system has great potential for asteroid mining and scientific research, further work is required to make it more terrain-adaptable. 0COMMENT NEWSLETTER THE BLUEPRINT DAILY Stay up-to-date on engineering, tech, space, and science news with The Blueprint. Mail Me By clicking sign up, you confirm that you accept this site's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy ABOUT THE EDITOR Jijo Malayil Jijo is an automotive and business journalist based in India. Armed with a BA in History (Honors) from St. Stephen's College, Delhi University, and a PG diploma in Journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi, he has worked for news agencies, national newspapers, and automotive magazines. In his spare time, he likes to go off-roading, engage in political discourse, travel, and teach languages. Newsinnovation POPULAR ARTICLES 1 * innovation WATCH: TOYOTA’S HUMANOID ROBOT BREAKS WORLD RECORD FOR LONGEST BASKETBALL SHOT Jijo Malayil a day ago 0 2 * science 10 TIMES FASTER 3D BIOPRINTING TECH MAKES FUNCTIONAL TISSUES IN 40 MINS Mrigakshi Dixit a day ago 0 3 * military CHINA’S LIDAR SENSORS COULD EXPOSE US MILITARY TO CYBER ESPIONAGE: REPORT Prabhat Ranjan Mishra a day ago 0 4 * military US HYPERSONIC WEAPONS WILL HAVE TO BE MORE ACCURATE THAN RUSSIA-CHINA SYSTEMS: REPORT Abhishek Bhardwaj a day ago 0 RELATED ARTICLES * science SLINGSHOT SPIDERS LAUNCH ‘BALLISTIC WEB’ WHEN THEY HEAR APPROACHING PREY * culture 12,000 YEARS OF FRIENDSHIP: THE ORIGINS OF HUMAN-DOG CONNECTIONS IN AMERICAS * culture FBI AND CISA ISSUE URGENT WARNING TO USE ENCRYPTED APPS AMIDST GROWING CYBER THREATS * innovation FASTEST SWIMMING SOFT ROBOT INSPIRED BY MANTA RAYS REACHES 6.8 BODY LENGTHS/SECOND JOBS See All Find Your Place In The World BY Amply Scholt Energy DevOps Engineer Valkenswaard See Job StarApple C++ Engineer Veghel € 3.800 - € 4.100 per maand See Job Pax8 EMEA DevOps Engineer II Zwolle See Job belastingdienst DevOps engineer Linux Apeldoorn € 4.024 - € 6.110 per maand See Job Search More Roles FEATURED STORIES FOLLOW US ON * Events * IE Academy * Podcasts * News * Editor’s Pick * Trending * Latest News * Topics * Innovation * Entertainment * Videos * Guides * Military * Energy * For Engineers * Engineers Directory * Engineering Jobs * About Us * Contact Us * Advertise With Us * Subscription * Policies * Site Map * Pro * Premium * Newsletters Privacy Policy AI and Ethics Editorial Policy Terms of Services Do Not Sell My Personal Information © Copyright 2024 IE Media, Inc. 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