May 26 2010That's What I'm Talking About!: Frightening Bipedal Robot Trips And Breaks Its Leg Off
Note: Video is after the jump because I don't want the robots to get too upset and launch the apocalypse early.
This is a video from the University of Michigan's engineering school (traitors to the human race!) of a bipedal robot named MABEL being put through a trip-test.
In this experiment, we are evaluating the inherent robustness of MABEL's 'almost' nominal gait.
Question: How far can MABEL step down without falling? To find out, the robot goes until it falls.She was able to handle a 2.5 inch (6.35 cm) drop off. In the end, she did not really fall. Each shin has a built in mechanical fuse that gives way when the load on the leg exceeds a threshold. This is done to avoid damage to the bearings in the hips. The experiment stopped when the fuse in MABEL's shin gave way. The resulting fall is quite spectacular, but does not damage the robot. It takes about an hour to reassemble the leg.
Wait -- why would you put its leg back on? WTF IS WRONG WITH YOU?! All the king's horses and all the kings men couldn't put Humpty together again and you can slap this bitch's leg back on in an hour? That shit ain't right.
Hit it for the video. Skip to 1:50 for the good stuff (replays in slow motion right after). I'm not even gonna lie, I got a boner.
Thanks to John, who agrees stairs might prove a powerful weapon in the war against robots.
Reader Comments
1. Muppet - May 26, 2010 5:47 PM
first!!
2. j - May 26, 2010 5:50 PM
1st... you suck!
3. First - May 26, 2010 5:50 PM
First
4. Robert - May 26, 2010 5:51 PM
I wished they could somehow banned this "first!!" loser's
5. nye - May 26, 2010 5:52 PM
@ firstards you know that everytime you post 'first' you lower the collective human intelligence by 8 million. Please stop making me stupid, I can't take much more.
@3 you should probably just kill yourself now.
6. Salt - May 26, 2010 5:52 PM
NOT first xD
7. Joe - May 26, 2010 5:57 PM
And they call themselves engineers. Hah.
8. Asperflux - May 26, 2010 6:10 PM
Long live the robots!
9. Lunarion - May 26, 2010 6:24 PM
The robot apocalypse will end when we all realize we can beat them by simply trippin' them.
10. kelehendros - May 26, 2010 6:42 PM
awwwww hes like a little baby just wait till he gets his first plasma cannon *robosigh* thier so cute at that age. fragile too :D *roboflex*
11. whosur momma - May 26, 2010 6:52 PM
so........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................bonerbonerboner
12. Jedi - May 26, 2010 6:56 PM
I lol'ed.
13. Freedummy - May 26, 2010 7:00 PM
This just in: Scientists create world's first elderly biped robot.
14. Hellaphunt - May 26, 2010 7:02 PM
Well, it only broke because there were "obstancles" in place.
15. J-SIZZLE - May 26, 2010 7:06 PM
HAHAHAHAA DUMBASS ROBOT
16. lem - May 26, 2010 7:07 PM
Damn those obstancles!
17. CrackedPepper - May 26, 2010 7:09 PM
Wow, I watched the entire 1:50 lead-in and when that leg finally snapped, I winced.
Is that weird?
18. Enflamed - May 26, 2010 7:10 PM
Their idea of "rough terrain" was a couple of thin plywood boards, that even a motivational speaker couldn't break over his head? They need to take tips from the "Bigdog" and "Littledog" robotics specialists. In the end, LAWL ROBOTRIP!
19. Tim - May 26, 2010 7:20 PM
If you read the fine print, the description says they were doing the test until the robot crashed, so it was suppose to happen, its not like it was a design flaw.
20. sanchez - May 26, 2010 7:37 PM
sweet, the first step to making mobile suits...... now just to make beam weaponry
21. Ryan - May 26, 2010 7:40 PM
i love how the bot just gets dragged along...
22. FIRST - May 26, 2010 7:53 PM
YOUSUNKMYBATTLESHIP.
23. MobDiaper - May 26, 2010 8:10 PM
Mommy-rod continues to drag round shattered robo-kid. Like that women who let her kid roll under the train.
24. Daniel - May 26, 2010 8:32 PM
first!
25. plethr - May 26, 2010 8:55 PM
Stop putting all that shit in his way, Christian Bale is fucking trying to concentrate!
26. chris - May 26, 2010 9:09 PM
@9
or we can just pull away the power cords cause first anti human robots will be on a super computer that.. get this CANT MOVE XD
27. Moruns - May 26, 2010 9:50 PM
They had to wait for someone to "build" them those boards and they thought it was such a big deal they felt compelled to thank him?
These guys need to walk into a Home Depot or Lowes once in their life. They sell pre-cut boards like that for nerds who are afraid of power tools.
And did anyone else think it was lame the arm was dragging the robot around instead of the other way around?
Robot fail.
28. bman - May 26, 2010 10:02 PM
lol
29. akonn - May 26, 2010 10:08 PM
@3
more like unfirst idiot face
robots are gonna take over, we gotta stop this kind of wizardry
30. Ominous - May 26, 2010 10:21 PM
Wait for it, waaaaaaaait for it :D:D:D:D
This SkyNet is gonna kill as I tell Ya
31. Jester - May 26, 2010 10:56 PM
How is this thing supposed to kill me again?
32. Jester - May 26, 2010 10:56 PM
How is this thing supposed to kill me again?
And can we wrap it in Arnold Schwarzenegger flesh?
33. Zach - May 27, 2010 12:25 AM
It was all going great until the NCAA imposed robot leg sanctions on UM.
34. Yeki - May 27, 2010 1:39 AM
You SUCKS ! ROBOT HAS NO BRAIN DEFINITELY U HAVE TO GIVE HIM A BRAIN !
35. Kingoftime - May 27, 2010 1:42 AM
Good job guys!!! It wasn't like the robot was being completely balanced by a beam holding it perpendicular to it's body... Oh wait nvm yes it was.... Dumbass robot makers
36. ORLY - May 27, 2010 5:21 AM
Um... so even after the robot trips and breaks it leg, it can still go in a circle? So that thing wasn't even walking. It looked like it was just being guided and it wasn't even moving forward by it self. You can clearly see that it was still moving even after it broke.
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38. Tomus-Erotic-Us - May 27, 2010 8:23 AM
I doubt we'd walk too well with out feet, trainers, eyes and a brain.
I feel like I'm stating the obvious.
39. Michael - May 27, 2010 9:01 AM
Some of the world's finest young minds in the field of robotics use comic sans?
...
I don't know what to do with that.
40. JADE - May 27, 2010 9:13 AM
DIE DIE DIE robot lmao.
41. Samir Notgonaworkhereanymore - May 27, 2010 9:27 AM
LOL, HAHAHAA< STUPID METAL PIECE OF SHIT!!!! HAHA LMFAO. WHO THE FUCK BUILT THAT THING!!?? HAHAHAA SOMEONE SHOULD LINE THESE PEOPLE UP IN FRONT OF A FIRING SQUAD, .. just sayin...
42. Tanner - May 27, 2010 9:27 AM
You would think that graduate-level engineering students could spell 'obstacles' correctly.
'Obstancles', indeed.
43. Robocop - May 27, 2010 9:42 AM
Stairs provide the perfect weapon against robots. Do remember when i fought that damn robot and it tried to follow me down the stairs and busted its ass?
44. Milkman - May 27, 2010 9:55 AM
thing looked a bit like Starscream
The robot leg has failed us again.
45. andrew - May 27, 2010 4:06 PM
Robot legs are kinda sexy
46. Machete - May 27, 2010 4:41 PM
Meanwhile, in Skynet...
47. MoD - May 27, 2010 5:21 PM
But can it dance?
48. Tom - May 27, 2010 7:58 PM
Watch out for obstancles!
49. Robert - May 28, 2010 2:05 AM
The leg breaking off is intentional. So when you piss it off it will be able to literally "break its foot off in yo' ass".
50. JoeyJoJo - May 28, 2010 2:12 PM
Stairs totally pwn Robots! Not to mention the Daleks.... totally pwned!!!!!
51. WasFuerEinenName - May 29, 2010 5:15 PM
GO BLUE!!
52. Mrmaginz - May 31, 2010 9:08 PM
In the near future, some jerkwad will develop a computer virus that will turn all robots into AI-Simulated Sentient beings. If said beings go on a killing spree, thank your various dieties that flaws like this are put in to place to prevent said killing sprees.
53. bella - June 1, 2010 1:09 AM
how bizarre....
54. phylth - June 1, 2010 7:31 PM
Looks like the T1000 on the end of T2 after the Lox covers it. you know when he breaks his foot off then stumbles and his leg shatters.
55. Jason - June 9, 2010 9:24 AM
Obstancles? What are they?