It turns out that what comes naturally to most of us
bipedal hominids – walking – isn't so easy after all.
Just ask Nick Krouglicof, assistant professor of
mechanical engineering, who spends a good deal of time
researching, designing and building machines that can perambulate.
Krouglicof, whose credentials include organizer of a
walking machine contest sponsored by the Society for
Automotive Engineers and advisor to the newly-formed Union
walking machine team, has been contacted by producers of the
TV show Junkyard Wars about the possibility of being an
expert advisor for an episode this fall.
So this week, Krouglicof was producing an audition tape
in which he describes and demonstrates various types
of walking machines, with footage from an SAE contest.
Junkyard Wars, which airs on the Learning Channel, seems
to appeal to those who love to create things from, well, junk.
A typical show pits two three-member teams in a
10-hour contest to design, build and test devices ranging from trucks
to cannons to torpedoes. Materials come from a huge pile
of discarded stuff that each team may use. There's lots of
cutting, welding, drilling and agonizing. Check out their Web site at http://tlc.discovery.com/fansites/junkyard/junkyard.html.
If he is selected (And we like his chances; how many
walking machine experts are there, anyway?), Krouglicof would
be an expert advisor to one of the teams.
“I told the producer that this is really hard to do,”
Krouglicof said. “I'm not sure they can do it in 10 hours.”