[This is an especial item for ash
They'll be doing your walking for you next year...
New moneymaker: sponsor my robot $1 per metre?].

CU Robot Close to Walking History
Ithaca Journal (NY) (03/31/08)
Ashmore, Tim

Cornell University engineers have developed Ranger, a
four-legged robot that may have set a world record for the longest distance
walked by a robot. Ranger, which uses about half the electricity of an average
computer screen, was able to walk 1.2 kilometers on an indoor track before a
loose inertia sensor stopped the test. Mechanical engineering graduate student
Rohit Hippalgaonkar says the group believes energy efficiency is extremely
important. "We use a good 1,000 times less energy than [Honda's] Asimo,"
Hippalgaonkar says. "We believe that our robot walks closer to a human walking
than Honda's robot does. That's part of the reason why it takes so little
energy." Cornell professor Andy Ruina, head of the bio-robotics and locomotion
lab, says studying human movement is key to robotics research. He says because
humans are designed to use less energy, a robot that uses less energy would walk
more like a human. Ruina estimates that Ranger could walk up to five kilomete
rs, or about 3.1 miles, on a single battery pack.
Web Link |

Thanks for the clarification.

I don't think too many people would take the "1000" literally. It seemed to indicate just "a large amount" rather than a specific number.

And, yes, some valuable lessons can be learned from passive walkers when it comes to implementing powered robotics.

I sometimes also argue along a similar line when it comes to modern "grent" computer h/w versus the s/w and algorithms that were used 10-20 (or even more!) years ago when h/w ran a lot slower and had fewer resources to squander.

(Such arguments may or may not be related to my own investment in those old-time codes .