Technology

Black Maker Month: Anthony Fudd

I was surprised when I met Anthony for the first time at the 2012 Barbot competition in San Francisco. This guy was part of the Lego Mindstorm team. How cool is that! Not only does he know how to make cool stuff with Legos, but he actually makes Legos. I appreciated the use of not one, but two Mindstorms for the TipsyBot that Anthony built. I’m not sure it made my drink taste any better, but it was pretty fun to see.

Robot Acrobats and Balancing a Broom on Your Chin

Robot Acrobats and Balancing a Broom on Your Chin

You may have seen this video go viral this week. It’s exciting to watch and marvel at. So, why is this inverted pendulum thing so challenging? Go find a broom and balance it on your chin. Notice how often you have to move to keep the broom stable above you. arch institutions to accomplish incredible tasks.

The Institute for Dynamics Systems and Control at ETH Zurich has experience with multirotor interactions with inanimate objects. In the past, they’ve had quadrotors juggling a ball, assembling structures, and balancing an inverted pendulum. Now an ETH Zurich student has taken their work with pendulums and multirotors to the next level.