Dr. Prahlad Vadakkepat of the Mechatronics and Automation Laboratory in the National University of Singapore created another robot that can play soccer like Pele - the MaNUS robot.
Often seen as the bare Robovie-V robot, the MaNUS is able to move colored shapes, avoid any obstacles, can climb a flight of stairs, sit and stand, is equipped with visual sensors and has dynamic motion.
The MaNUS biped robot stands approximately at 46cm and weighs 2 Kg. This robot is quite sophisticated with 17 degrees of freedom (DOF) attributed to 17 joints. These joints are powered by motors and must be controlled simultaneously in order for the robot to move. The joints are modelled after a human, and with each leg having six DOF, it can imitate the way we walk.
A visual sensor allows MaNUS to avoid any obstacles that may lie on its path. This soccer playing humanoid has eight additional sensors. To keep all the sensors in symphony, a two-layered control system is required when it has to coordinate its sensory info and walking.
Special motions like ball kicking or playing soccer are made possible through its low-level control, which is processed from the tilt and force sensors.
MaNUS Features:
National U. of Singapore (NUS)
Mechatronics and Automation Lab.
