The video of Salto, UC Berkeley’s jumping robot, was released two years ago, but now the university’s Biomimetic Millisystems Lab is showing off Salto’s new skill of precise hopping, pogo-style, according to New Atlas.
The latest version of Saltatorial Locomotion on Terrain Obstacles (Salto) is being called Salto-1P, and has been designed to hop between designated spots, almost like hopscotch. Salto-1P can also hop between objects that vary in height.
The upgrades to Salto-1P have added a greater number of consecutive jumps and provided the robot with more control, which brings Salto closer to its goal of navigating through difficult terrain in search and rescue situations. For its newfound precision, it uses what the creators call a “deadbeat foot placing hopping controller.”
The controller uses a Taylor series approximation, which can be used to approximate answers to complex questions. The speed and direction of Salto’s hopping is regulated by altering the way it lands. Additionally, Salto uses aerodynamic thrusters and an inertial tail to control its altitude while hopping in the air.
Currently, Salto is limited to jumping between pre-defined points, but to expand its abilities, researchers would probably need incorporate vision and route-planning systems to help Salt0 become more equipped to explore different terrains.