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Interview
Innovations in Mobile Robotics
An Interview with Nick Kohut (Co-Founder, Dash Robotics)
Nick Kohut and a lab mate turned their academic interest in mobile robotics into an exciting business-Dash Robotics, which sells a small, insect-like running robot that you can control with a smartphone. We recently asked Nick about advances in running robot technology, the benefits of aerodynamic turning , and his thoughts on the future of robotics.
CIRCUIT CELLAR: How did you come to use aerodynamic forces to turn running robots? What led you to this field of research?
NICK: This actually started with biologists like Robert Full and Tom Libby studying lizards. Bob and Tom had discovered that when lizards jump they use their tail as a form of attitude control. They had also shown that in a wind tunnel they will use their tail to turn. I was tasked with getting a robot to turn using a tail, which I did with some pretty good success. TaylRoACH (the robot I built in 2012) ended up being the fastest turning legged robot in the world. It could turn 90° in 1/4 of a second. After I had shown that, I started to wonder what else the tail could do. I tried a lot of things - mostly back of the envelope ideas-like stability on inclines or using as a "7th leg" in confined places. A lot of those didn't work out, and someone suggested I use it as a helicopter blade, half-joking. It got me to thinking, what if you used it as a sail? I ran the numbers in like an hour and realized, man, this might actually work. Continue Reading
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