“Caltech engineers have developed a multimodal robot system — a humanoid robot with a transforming drone that launches off its back.
Sitting on the back of the humanoid robot, a Unitree G1 machine, the drone, called M4, can transform — switching between driving and flight modes. We’re not talking Optimus Prime or Megatron here; instead, the drone-expelling bot is more like Soundwave, a Decepticon that housed different, mini transformers, like drones, in its chest.
M4 is capable of reconfiguring its body (transforming) into several different types of motion — it can assess the environment it needs to enter and automatically select the most effective combinations of motion to maneuver. M4 can roll on four wheels, turn its wheels into rotors and fly, stand meerkat-style on two wheels, “walk” by using its wheels like feet, use two rotors to help it roll up steep slopes on two wheels, and also simply tumble towards its destination.”
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“Caltech engineers have developed a multimodal robot system — a humanoid robot with a transforming drone that launches off its back.
Sitting on the back of the humanoid robot, a Unitree G1 machine, the drone, called M4, can transform — switching between driving and flight modes. We’re not talking Optimus Prime or Megatron here; instead, the drone-expelling bot is more like Soundwave, a Decepticon that housed different, mini transformers, like drones, in its chest.
M4 is capable of reconfiguring its body (transforming) into several different types of motion — it can assess the environment it needs to enter and automatically select the most effective combinations of motion to maneuver. M4 can roll on four wheels, turn its wheels into rotors and fly, stand meerkat-style on two wheels, “walk” by using its wheels like feet, use two rotors to help it roll up steep slopes on two wheels, and also simply tumble towards its destination.”