Marc Raibert

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Marc Raibert
Marc Raibert - Empowering the Future (cropped).jpg
Raibert in 2023
Born (1949-12-22) December 22, 1949 (age 73)
Nationality American
Alma mater
Known forFounder and Chairman of robot maker Boston Dynamics
Scientific career
Fields Robotics
Thesis Motor Control and Learning by the State Space Model
Doctoral advisor Berthold K.P. Horn and Whitman Richards

Marc Raibert (born December 22, 1949) is the Executive Director of the Boston Dynamics AI Institute, a Hyundai Motor Group organization that is focused on solving the most important problems in robotics and artificial intelligence to achieve fundamental advances in the engineering and science of robotics. [1] Raibert was the founder, former CEO, and now Chairman of Boston Dynamics, a robotics company known for creating BigDog, Atlas, Spot, and Handle.

Contents

Before starting Boston Dynamics, Raibert was professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT and an associate professor of Computer Science and Robotics at Carnegie Mellon University. At CMU he founded the Leg Laboratory (1980), a lab that helped establish the scientific basis for highly dynamic robots. Raibert developed the first self-balancing hopping robots, a significant step forward in robotics. [2] [3] Raibert earned an Electrical Engineering, BSEE from Northeastern University in 1973 and a PhD from MIT in 1977. His dissertation was titled "Motor control and learning by the state space model" and was advised by Berthold Horn and Whitman Richards. [4] [5] Raibert was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2008 for biomechanically motivated analysis, synthesis, control, and application of multi-legged robots.

Raibert's dream is to advance bipedal and quadrupedal robotics to a supernatural state. [6] Boston Dynamics was acquired by Google in December 2013. On the acquisition, Raibert commented that he was "excited by Andy Rubin and Google’s ability to think very, very big... with the resources to make it happen." [7] In March 2016, Google began offering Boston Dynamics for sale. [8] The company was acquired by SoftBank in June 2017. [9] In 2020, Boston Dynamics was acquired by Hyundai Motor Group. [10]

Patents granted to Marc Raibert

Actuator system

An actuator subsystem preferably for a robot or bionic linkage. A joint between two robotic or bionic members includes at least first and second actuators such as piston-cylinder assemblies connected between the members. A hydraulic circuit includes a sensor subsystem for sensing the magnitude of the load on the piston-cylinder assemblies and/or members. A fluid supply system includes an actuatable control valve operable to supply fluid to one or both piston-cylinder assemblies. A control circuit is responsive to the sensor and is configured to electronically control the fluid subsystem to supply fluid to the first piston-cylinder assembly when the sensor subsystem senses a load below a predetermined magnitude and to supply fluid to both piston-cylinder assemblies when the sensor subsystem senses a load above the predetermined magnitude. Co-inventor: Aaron Saunders

Robot apparatus and method for controlling jumping of robot device

A robot apparatus that is able to perform jumping. In a leg structure 110 of the robot apparatus, connecting bars 113, 114 and pivots 112a to 112d constitute a four-point link mechanism. A rod 117 is inserted into an opening formed in the distal end of a leg part 116. A coil spring 118 as an elastic member is provided between one end of the rod 117 and the distal end of the leg part 116. A bar member 120 is connected and secured to a preset point of a connecting member 115 as a knee joint. The coil spring 118 is extended/contracted by the stretching/contraction of the connecting member 115. By the operation of the four-point link mechanism, the trajectory of the distal end of the leg part is linear. The coil spring 118 is mounted at a position such that the distance between a driving shaft 101 and the distal end of the bar member 120 has a substantially linear relationship with respect to the force virtually operating between a driving shaft 101 and the distal end of the bar member 120. Co-inventors: Takashi Yamamoto, Martin de Lasa, Shervin Talebinejad, Darrin Jewell, Robert Playter

In fiction

Several of the MIT Leg Lab robots appear in the movie Rising Sun .

Appearances

Raibert was a keynote speaker at the 2016 Congress of Future Science and Technology Leaders.

On May 11, 2018 Marc Raibert took part in TechCrunch Sessions: Robotics 2018 [11] where he spoke about the SpotMini robot that Boston Dynamics will begin to sell in 2019.

In April 2019, Raibert spoke at the TechCrunch Sessions: Robotics 2019, where he presented the newest uses for the SpotMini robot. [12]

In October 2022, Marc Raibert presented at the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems in Kyoto on “A Culture of Robotics Research.” [13]

On November 16, 2022, Marc Raibert presented at Bloomberg’s New Economy Forum in Singapore about the future of robotics and the mission of The AI Institute. [14]

See also

Related Research Articles

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A humanoid robot is a robot resembling the human body in shape. The design may be for functional purposes, such as interacting with human tools and environments, for experimental purposes, such as the study of bipedal locomotion, or for other purposes. In general, humanoid robots have a torso, a head, two arms, and two legs, though some humanoid robots may replicate only part of the body, for example, from the waist up. Some humanoid robots also have heads designed to replicate human facial features such as eyes and mouths. Androids are humanoid robots built to aesthetically resemble humans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Machine</span> Powered mechanical device

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An actuator is a component of a machine that produces force, torque, or displacement, usually in a controlled way, when an electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic input is supplied to it in a system. An actuator converts such an input signal into the required form of mechanical energy. It is a type of transducer. In simple terms, it is a "mover".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mechatronics</span> Combination of electronics and mechanics

Mechatronics engineering, also called mechatronics, is an interdisciplinary branch of engineering that focuses on the integration of mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, electronic engineering and software engineering, and also includes a combination of robotics, computer science, telecommunications, systems, control, and product engineering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Audio-Animatronics</span> Trademark for a form of robotic animation

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The Hyundai Beta engines are 1.6 L to 2.0 L I4 built in Ulsan, South Korea.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hydraulic brake</span> Arrangement of braking mechanism

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">BigDog</span> Quadruped robot built by Boston Dynamics

BigDog is a dynamically stable quadruped military robot that was created in 2005 by Boston Dynamics with Foster-Miller, the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the Harvard University Concord Field Station. It was funded by DARPA, but the project was shelved after the BigDog was deemed too loud for combat.

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The MIT150 is a list published by the Boston Globe, in honor of the 150th anniversary of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2011, listing 150 of the most significant innovators, inventions or ideas from MIT, its alumni, faculty, and related people and organizations in the 150 year history of the institute.

John Matthew Hollerbach is a professor of computer science and research professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Utah. He is the editor of The International Journal of Robotics Research, a Senior Editor of Presence: Teleoperators & Virtual Environments, and a Governing Board member of the electronic journal Haptics-e.

Atlas is a bipedal humanoid robot primarily developed by the American robotics company Boston Dynamics with funding and oversight from the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The robot was initially designed for a variety of search and rescue tasks, and was unveiled to the public on July 11, 2013.

References

  1. "Hyundai Motor Group Launches Boston Dynamics AI Institute to Spearhead Advancements in Artificial Intelligence & Robotics".
  2. Raibert, Marc (1986). Legged Robots that Balance. MIT Press. ISBN   0-262-68119-6.
  3. "Boston Dynamics" . Retrieved 2007-06-30.
  4. Raibert, Marc Harold (1977). "Motor control and learning by the state space model". DSpace. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  5. "Marc Raibert". www.ai.mit.edu.
  6. "Marc Raibert: What's New Since BigDog? (IROS 2013 Keynote)". IEEE Spectrum: Technology, Engineering, and Science News. 5 November 2013.
  7. Markoff, John (14 December 2013). "Google Adds to Its Menagerie of Robots". The New York Times.
  8. Stone, Brad; Clark, Jack. "Google Puts Boston Dynamics Up for Sale in Robotics Retreat". Bloomberg.com.
  9. Lunden, Ingrid (9 June 2017). "SoftBank is buying robotics firms Boston Dynamics and Schaft from Alphabet | TechCrunch". TechCrunch.
  10. "Hyundai Motors Acquires Boston Dynamics: How Can Robotics Scale Car Manufacturing?". 15 January 2021.
  11. "Boston Dynamics will start selling its dog-like SpotMini robot in 2019". 11 May 2018.
  12. "Boston Dynamics showcases new uses for SpotMini ahead of commercial production". TechCrunch. 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-22.
  13. "IROS 2022 - Robot Research and Development Plenary Speakers".
  14. "Hyundai Motor Group Outlines Plans to Accelerate New Economy through Smart Mobility Solutions".