Dino Robot Steps Out

In the Leg Laboratory, part of the Artificial Intelligence Lab, researcher Peter Dilworth's latest robotic creation is about to take its first baby steps. "Butch," a four-legged robot modeled after a Protoceratops dinosaur, introduced itself to a small group of scientists last December. The one-meter long, 18-kilogram robot will soon be able to balance on its metal feet and take a couple of steps forward, says Dilworth.

Dilworth previously built "Troody," a two-legged dinosaur robot that is on display at the Boston Museum of Science. But Butch is his first prototype that will be sturdy enough to roam outside the lab. And it actually looks like a rumbling, quadruped dinosaur, down to its shieldlike frill and beaked jaw. An onboard computer will send signals to 26 tiny electric motors that move the robot's joints and keep it upright. Once he fixes a control glitch, Dilworth says Butch will walk steadily with a slow, shuffling gait.

Over the next few years, Dilworth plans to sell his walking robots to museums and zoos around the world. In addition to the entertainment value, he says, building these robots sheds light on the neural and mechanical strategies real animals use to move around.