Walking Truck
Also known as GE Quadruped, Cybernetic Walking Machine
Hydraulic four-legged vehicle from General Electric that an operator drove by moving his own arms and legs inside a force-feedback harness.
| Maker | General Electric |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| First shown | 1965 |
| Status | Retired |
| Height | 3.35 m |
| Mass | 1360 kg |
| Top speed | 2.2 m/s (7.9 km/h) |
| Degrees of freedom | 12 |
| Actuation | Hydraulic cylinders, three powered joints per leg |
| Power | Onboard internal combustion engine driving hydraulic pumps |
| Autonomy | None, direct human force-feedback teleoperation |
Built for the US Army by Ralph Mosher at General Electric, the Walking Truck was a rideable quadruped meant to carry loads over ground that wheels could not cross. Each leg had three hydraulically powered joints, and the driver commanded them through a master-slave linkage that fed contact forces back to his own hands and feet. Operators could walk the machine, step over obstacles and lift heavy objects with a leg, but the control scheme was so tiring that the project ended after trials.
Of note
- Built under the US Army Cybernetic Anthropomorphous Machine programme
- Could lift loads of several hundred kilograms with a single leg
- Preserved at the US Army Transportation Museum at Fort Eustis
Maker: www.ge.com