a history of cybernetic animals and early robots
Model of an 8-legged walking platform. Article comes from the May 1976 edition of the Russian hobby magazine "TM". Note: My OCR program is unable to recognise the Russian characters due to the poor quality of my electronic copy (in djvu format).
William Richard Bradshaw (1851–1927) was an Irish-born American author, editor and lecturer who served as president of the New York Anti-Vivisection Society. He is known best for his science fiction-type novel The Goddess of Atvatabar: being the history of the discovery of the interior world, and conquest of Atvatabar (1892). Extract from the book. Chapter …
Read More “1892 – “Hockbockid” Walking Mechanical Ostrich (Fictional) – Bradshaw (American)”
The mouse machine was built around two servo motors. One is underneath the robot and drives the two rear wheels. The second servo, visible in the front part, moves a steering wheel to the left or right. There are three of those old fashioned relays visible on the left, used to activate the servo motors. …
Read More “1968c – Cybernetic Mouse – Johan de Boer (Dutch*)”
Johan de Boer's description (from private correspondence 2010) "A second project [ RH: to the Cybernetic Mouse] was the maze where a light was used to indicate the position of an imaginary mouse in the maze. The maze could be changed with small removable barriers. Each square had a small light bulb that would be …
First-Step by David Buckley September 1987 Four Legged Walking Robot, uses 3-D pantograph arrangement to produce a gravitationally decoupled leg mechanism similar to that used by Shigeo Hirose, A Study of Design and Control of a Quadruped Walking Vehicle, The International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol 3, No. 2, 1984. Won a Silver medal …
Read More “1987-88 – “First-Step” Quadruped Walking Machine – David Buckley (British)”