Yes, a robot could be designed to do this. Easy would be a mildly tilted surface with no obstacles, and the robot just has to get to the bottom. Moderately easy would be if the robot has to pump to get up speed. Maneuvering around obstacles would be a systems design challenge, but would be fairly orthogonal to the low-level control needed to balance and point where you wanted it to go -- it'd almost be like adding such steering to any vehicle.
Making it do tricks in pipes would be hard.
Yes. But only if its running Slackware. ;-)
Shoot, I spent five years of my life just getting four robots to pick up a part here and place it there. Never did please management. Is that simple enough? I guess I should mention it was only about 200 per minute 24 X 7. it did teach me it was time to quit engineering and start farming.
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Did you watch the video? No customers, no "circumstances" no bumps, just a smooth floor and what, 15 seconds of video? I still argue for this was a cool demonstration, but not that tough to do (for someone who is versed in the art).
yes, and it's been done - there are one wheeled robots, for example. But if by "ride" you mean to do jumps and to pedal it with feet shod with real shoes, that's a bit harder. But propelling one through a well marked path is not hard
In that particular case everything was operating open loop, and any balancing came from the track width of the miniature skateboard and the width of the feet of the robot.
Get a full size skateboard + 100lb robot to whiz down a paved road at 50 miles per hour -- that won't be trivial.
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. .I didn't say it would be. And what makes you so sure that the robot in the video was open loop?
message
Elsewhere in this thread that is concluded. I'm just a trusting soul.
A year or two ago I saw a Nova or some other PBS show that was about a DARPA challenge to make remote control vehicles. Most of the contestants used four wheel drive vehicles. But one group tried it with a motorcycle. The thing actually could balance and drive for a little while. Quite amazing.
George H.
When I was little I tried some stunt on my bicycle that didn't work and I jumped off. It just continued down the street, wobbling and recovering when it hit a pebble, until it slowed down, circled and fell.
jsw
Watch it again, George.
They were SELF controlled, not remote!
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