1960 – Cycloidal Propulsion Omnidirectional Drive – Howard Hansen (American)

CLARK'S experimental cycloidal machine. Two non-drive rear wheels counter torque. Source: Mechanix Illustrated, April 1963. CYCLOIDAL PROPULSION A revolution in land vehicles may come from this new invention which can provide perfect maneuverability. PUT a pencil at the top of a sheet of paper and start making loops—as if you were practicing a capital O, …

1983 – “Kludge” Omnidirectional Mobile Robot – John M. Holland (American)

1983 – "Kludge" Omnidirectional Mobile Robot by John M. Holland. Kludge with legs contracted. Kludge at a 1984 exhibition. John M. Holland. The focus in this post is on the unique mobility base, and not on its navigation and sensor qualities. Patent Information: Publication number    US4573548 A Publication date    4 Mar 1986 Filing date    23 …

1979 – “Rodney” Self-Programming Robot – David L. Heiserman (American)

"Rodney", the Self-Programming Robot is based on the book How to Build Your Own Self-Programming Robot by David L. Heiserman [TAB, 1979]. ByRamiro Molinaon September 18, 2013  This book is geared towards those that have good knowledge of electronics and are willing to jump into a project that involves CPU based control. It outlines how to …

1968 – Android Space Manipulator (Concept) – General Electric (American)

Android Space Manipulator Robots May Tend Ailing Satellites -One of the frustrations of scientists is "burned out" satellites, those which, because of a malfunction or a worn-out part, inertly orbit the earth, doing no worldly good. "Such a satellite becomes a million dollar bit of space debris for lack of a two-dollar part. It would …

1973-8 – Daedalus ‘Wardens’ (Concept) – Bond, Martin, Grant et al (British)

An autonomous Warden building, servicing and maintaining Daedalus.  Above image source: Robots, by Peter Marsh, 1985 Autonomy and the Interstellar Probe – Sourced from here. by Paul Gilster on March 19, 2013 daedalus_final_report …..The span between the creation of the Daedalus design in the 1970s and today covers the development of the personal computer and …