11/5/2022
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdojWYOK0Nc
It wasn’t until the end of September that Gunnies World Records verified the 100M dash that Cassie had run almost six months prior. Originally I was planning on just attending as a spectator, however, Cassie had broken just before the first attempt was started. The students from the Dynamics Robotics Laboratory asked me to take a look. I had no tools.
The robot would start, but would not enable. A pin had pulled out on the battery communication line. I quickly pushed down on the pin and wrapped in tape. I couldn’t believe it but Cassie stood up and got to the starting line.
The first couple attempts ended in falls. Cassie has no arms, so it lands directly onto the battery and computer at full speed. On the third or so run, the robot would no longer turn on. There is a photo out there of the moment that came next. A crowd of grad students and a couple Agility employees circled around me while I take Cassie’s battery out and hold it to my ear. There is no soft ticking noise, which means the battery management system has shut down. I used the only screw driver someone could find to remove the cover and reset the microcontroller. Once again, Cassie stood up and went to the starting line.
Taken on my 70 year old Rolleiflex film camera. I don’t think my grandpa could have imagined what I just captured
I don’t want to take any credit away from the amazing team of researchers at the DRL. Making a collection of gearboxes and motors run at 4 m/s is insane. This is more than twice the speed that Asimo could run, and we are outdoors. The gait was incredibly lifelike. It was like watching a mess of metal parts become a living animal.