Google’s Schaft Robot Dominates Pentagon Contest
It may not be the prettiest robot on the scene, but the angular blue creation from Google Inc.’s newly acquired Japanese start-up is poised to secure more Pentagon funding to develop a creation capable of venturing into dangerous disaster zones to help humans.
Schaft Inc.’s robot dominated the two-day Pentagon Robotics Challenge Trials this weekend in Florida, where 16 teams competed at the NASCAR race track south of Miami for one of eight slots to secure more federal development funds.
The Pentagon set up a kind of robot Boot Camp, where the entrees had to run through a series of eight tests, from turning off a value and opening a series of doors to removing “debris” and driving an all-terrain-vehicle.
Schaft, which was recently acquired by Google, led the field, securing 27 of 32 possible points.
The top eight winners are now eligible to secure up to $1 million in funding in 2014 in the run up to a final competition next year where the Pentagon will award $2 million to the ultimate winner.
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