How dancing robots could help the construction industry

Image taken from the Boston Dynamics YouTube page.

At the end of 2020, a viral video of dancing robots made a splash across social media. The video is creeping up to 30 million views on YouTube, giving the development teams at Boston Dynamics and Trimble some much deserved recognition for their groundbreaking robotics work. The actual purpose of these robots, though, is far more useful than a fun dance routine.

These robots were designed for automating repetitive tasks such as construction site scans and surveys. However, they’re also equipped to navigate the challenging and sometimes dangerous terrain of project sites. These robots will be tasked with collecting data during preliminary stages of construction to allow for adjustments to architectural and project designs as needed. 

As the teams continue to iterate on human-like movement design, it’s anticipated that these robots could have even more functions on job sites — including heavy lifting and holding heavy materials for extended periods of time. Simulating human movements, like dances, helps model and overcome many of the roadblocks faced by programmers in creating more efficient robotic movement. 

Mechanical engineering is at the forefront of this innovation. Through combining complex engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, this branch of engineering is responsible for the design, manufacturing and maintenance of mechanical systems. Mechanical engineering is also considered one of the oldest and broadest branches of engineering, and APEGA is proud to continue regulating this essential and innovative profession.

Learn more about these hard working, and hard dancing, robots.