Image of the Day: Robot Leaps Small Buildings in a Single Bound

Image of the Day: Robot Leaps Small Buildings in a Single Bound

August 28, 2012

Sand Flea is an 11 pound robot that drives like an RC car on flat terrain, but can jump 30 ft into the air to overcome obstacles. That is high enough to jump over a compound wall, onto the roof of a house, up a set of stairs or into a second story window.

The robot uses gyro stabilization to stay level during flight, to provide a clear view from the onboard camera, and to ensure a smooth landing. Sand Flea can jump about 25 times on one charge. Boston Dynamics is developing Sand Flea with funding from the US Army’s Rapid Equipping Force (REF).

Earlier versions of Sand Flea were developed by Sandia National Laboratory with funding from DARP) and JIEDDO.