Space-bound humanoid takes a four-armed approach to astronaut assistance
In microgravity, walking doesn't exist. Balance doesn't exist. What does exist is the need to grip surfaces, manipulate tools, move through narrow corridors, and not go flying every time you push against something. Two legs solve none of those problems.
Orbit Robotics, an academic spinout from ETH Zurich, built Helios around a single premise: don't design for a gravity environment if you're going to work in microgravity. The result is a four-armed robot that looks like the febrile delirium of a science fiction writer but represents one of the most coherent bets in space engineering in years.
According to the company, Helios uses two pairs of arms with complementary roles. Two anchor the robot to interior surfaces while the other two do the work: unloading cargo, handling tools, moving equipment. This lets it stabilize and operate at the same time, something a two-armed and two-legged humanoid simply can't do...
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