last year, we featured a robotic creature developed by american engineering company boston dynamics. the compact design included a face-style sensor system that can detect and respond to its surroundings. now, it appears that the clever canine has got itself a new friend — one that is capable of opening doors. a new video from the firm — titled ‘hey buddy, can you give me a hand?’ — has already amassed over 1.7 million views in less than 24 hours. watch the video above, and read on for more info.

boston dynamics robot dog
the robotic canine positions itself in front of the obstacle

 

 

the footage shows a modified ‘SpotMini’ robot with an arm extending out of its head. after being summoned by its companion, (an unmodified ‘SpotMini’), the robotic canine positions itself in front of the obstacle before turning the handle and holding the door open — allowing both robots to pass safely through. SpotMini is described by boston dynamics as ‘a small four-legged robot that comfortably fits in an office or home.’ weighing just 25 kg (30 kg with the arm), the all-electric canine can last up to 90 minutes on a single charge.

boston dynamics robot dog
the modified SpotMini then holds the door open with its arm

boston dynamics robot dog
both robots pass safely through

nina azzarello I designboom
feb 13, 2018

  • So wonderfully stage managed 🙂 Lovely – my cats loved it – they want to know when the metal dogs will learn to lock themselves in the bathroom depriving me of amenities while they have theirs. Yes that happened this morning and they only let me back in after I went shopping for them.

    mikka says:
    Feb 14, 2018
    Reply

  • You guys continue to amaze

    fred rehak says:
    Feb 14, 2018
    Reply

have something to add? share your thoughts in our comments section below.

comments policy
LOG IN
designboom's comment policy guidelines
generally speaking, if we publish something, it's because we're genuinely interested in the subject. we hope you'll share this interest and if you know even more about it, please share! our goal in the discussion threads is to have good conversation and we prefer constructive opinions. we and our readers have fun with entertaining ones. designboom welcomes alerts about typos, incorrect names, and the like.
the correction is at the discretion of the post editor and may not happen immediately.

what if you disagree with what we or another commenter has to say?
let's hear it! but please understand that offensive, inappropriate, or just plain annoying comments may be deleted or shortened.

- please do not make racist, sexist, anti-semitic, homophobic or otherwise offensive comments.
- please don't personally insult the writers or your fellow commenters.
- please avoid using offensive words, replacing a few letters with asterisks is not a valid workaround.
- please don't include your website or e-mail address in your comments for the purpose of self-promotion.
- please respect jury verdicts and do not discuss offensively on the competition results
(there is only one fist prize, and designboom usually asks renown professionals to help us to promote talent.
in addition to the awarded designs, we do feel that almost all deserve our attention, that is why we publish
the best 100-200 entries too.)

a link is allowed in comments as long as they add value in the form of information, images, humor, etc. (links to the front page of your personal blog or website are not okay). unwelcome links (to commercial products or services of others, offensive material etc. ) will be redacted. and, ... yes, spam gets banned. no, we do not post fake comments.

forgot password

(292 articles)

PRODUCT LIBRARY

a diverse digital database that acts as a valuable guide in gaining insight and information about a product directly from the manufacturer, and serves as a rich reference point in developing a project or scheme.

technology news

all technology news