Video Friday is a weekly selection of amazing robotics videos collected by your friends on IEEE Spectrum robotics. We also publish a weekly calendar of upcoming robotics events for the next few months. Please send us your events for inclusion.

Robotics Summit & Expo: May 10-11, 2023, BOSTON
ICRA 2023: May 29 – June 2, 2023, LONDON
RoboCup 2023: July 4-10, 2023, BORDEAUX, FRANCE
RSS 2023: July 10-14, 2023 DAEGU, KOREA
IEEE RO-MAN 2023: August 28-31, 2023, BUSAN, KOREA
CLAWAR 2023: October 2-4, 2023, FLORIANOPOLIS, BRAZIL
Humanoids 2023: December 12-14, 2023, AUSTIN, TX, USA.

Enjoy today’s videos!

It’s a grain weevil and it’s designed to keep people out of grain bins. I like it because it’s a great example of how you can solve a real, valuable problem in a unique way with a relatively simple, focused robot.

[ Grain Weevil ]

While Paris sleeps, Spot is hard at work testing some of the RATP Group’s 35,000 building components. The RATP Group (Autonomous Transport Authority of Paris) is a French public transport operator serving the Greater Paris area. Performing thousands of construction jobs every year, the company has turned to mobile robotics to inspect hard-to-reach and hazardous areas to keep employees out of harm’s way.

[ Boston Dynamics ]

Thanks Rene!

Looks like Agility Robotics and the new Digit have had a productive (and popular!) time on ProMat.

[ Agility Robotics ]

I still can’t believe this makes sense. But it is so?

[ Tevel ]

Unitree is currently selling lidar for $330.

[ Unitree ]

We recently had the honor of hosting Madeline Gannon (Robot Whisperer and Head of ATONATON) at our Portland headquarters. No wonder the week in our store ended with a game of industrial basketball with our ABB IRB 8700 basketball hoop.

[ Loupe ]

Thanks Madeleine!

We showcased Stretch, our autonomous crate handling robot that automates trailer unloading, at Promat 2023. From efficiency to ease of use, listen to our team to find out how Stretch works, what’s new and what’s next in warehouse automation!

[ Boston Dynamics ]

KAIST has developed a four-legged robot locomotion technology that moves up and down stairs without the aid of visual or tactile sensors in an emergency where it is impossible to see because of smoke, and moves without falling on bumps such as tree roots.

[ KAIST ]

Here’s how Pickla’s box unloading robot works.

[ Pickle Robot ]

It’s quite possible that the most destructive combat robot ever created has been redesigned and is heading to RoboGames 2023.

Use the code “HardCore” to get a discount on RoboGames tickets!

[ RoboGames ]

AI smarter than babies? Depends on what you mean by smarter, of course.

[ NSF ]

Someone can do it with a telepresence robot, but I can’t even in real life, sigh.

[ Sanctuary AI ]

Chen Li from the Terradynamics Laboratory at JHU delivers a presentation on “The Necessity and Feasibility of Alternative Robots for Traversing Sandy and Rocky Extraterrestrial Terrain”.

[ JHU ]