Multi-talented quadruped robot now climbs ladders faster than any other [Video]

The ANYmal quadruped robot not only walks on four legs, it can also roll on four wheels, stand up, throw boxes, and make its way up and down stairs. As if all that wasn’t enough, the thing can now also climb ladders.

Created by engineers from the ETH Zurich research institute, the ANYmal first caught our attention back in 2017, when it developed the ability to use elevators in high-rise buildings. It has since become commercially available via ETH spinoff company ANYbotics. Another startup is marketing the wheeled version, which is now called the Swiss-Mile robot.

The current model of the ANYmal has a normal walking speed of 0.75 m (2.46 ft) per second, and can amble its way across indoor or outdoor terrain for 90 to 120 minutes per battery-charge. It’s equipped with sensors such as a 360-degree lidar module, six depth-sensing cameras and two optical cameras, all of which feed …