ASTM seeking members for legged robotics subcommittee

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The new legged robotics subcommittee from ASTM International is seeking participation from experts in the field. The goal is to have as many voices contributing to this work as possible. If you are interested in joining this new subcommittee, please go to this page to start the membership process.

The subcommittee will focus on test and performance standards for legged robots. The new subcommittee (F45.06) is under the jurisdiction of ASTM’s robotics, automation, and autonomous systems committee (F45). The subcommittee will be chaired by F45 member Bowen Weng, a technical specialist at the Transportation Research Center in East Liberty, Ohio. 

The new subcommittee will be developing standards and testing procedures to evaluate the performance of the class of mobile robots primarily relying on articulated limbs and legged mechanisms for locomotion. These include but are not limited to quadruped robots, bipedal robots, and humanoids that operate semi-autonomously or in fully automated modes.

“The ability to maintain balance has been the key challenge and primary interest for legged robot researchers for decades since the invention of these robots,” Weng said. “As a result, the standard to evaluate the balancing capabilities, to understand if it falls over under varying conditions, against different disturbances, will be a reasonable starting point for the subcommittee’s work.”

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According to Weng, standards developed by the subcommittee will provide community-wide, agreed-upon references. 

“These standards will help to mitigate risks, identify hazards, save costs, improve efficiency, and ensure consistency and quality,” says Weng. “These standards will help users and customers to know what a robot can and cannot do and will help build consumer confidence in legged robots.” 

RoboBusiness 2023, which is produced by The Robot Report, will be hosting a keynote panel on Oct. 18 about the state of humanoid robotics development. The panel will explore the technological breakthroughs that are propelling humanoids into the real world. Jeff Cardenas (Apptronik), Jonathan Hurst (Agility Robotics) and Geordie Rose (Sanctuary) will share insights into the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead and discuss the industries poised to be early adopters. 

RoboBusiness is the leading event focused on developing commercial robots. There will be 60-plus speakers, 100-plus exhibitors and demos on the expo floor, networking receptions and more. You can check out the current list of speakers, to which more will be added. The Pitchfire Startup Competition will again be held at RoboBusiness. During the competition, five robotics startups deliver five-minute pitches to compete for a $5,000 first-place prize and invaluable feedback from industry investors.