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By the numbers: CHARLI

• 1.5: Years in physical development
• 4.7: Height in feet
• 27: Weight in pounds
• 29: Total motors in arms, legs, and head (not counting hands, now in development)
• 276: Parts
• 16: Number of undergraduate and graduate students involved
• 20: Dollar amount won by Dennis Hong in a bet with Derek Lahr. over who would walk first, CHARLI or Hong's son, Ethan. Hong's young child bested CHARLI.

CHARLI in the News

Since CHARLI debuted in April 2010, he's been a cover boy for "Popular Science" and quite the talk of magazines and online blogs geared towards the robotics community. Here's a quick sample of who's talking about CHARLI:

Popular Science: “The Loneliest Humanoid in America” August 2010.

Engadget: Virginia Tech researchers reveal full-sized CHARLI-L humanoid robot

Spectrum, published by IEEE: “These Humanoid Robots Could Kick Your Asimo”

Iheartrobotics.com: CHARLI & DARwIn

Cool Robot Toys: Virginia Tech Students Build Full-Sized Humanoid Robot

All in the family

CHARLI is one of many autonomous robots built by Dennis Hong and his students at the Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory. Some of his older brothers and sisters and gadgets include:

• DARwIn: A fourth-generation autonomous, humanoid robot best known internationally as a RoboCup star;
• RAPHaEL: A robotic hand with possible military applications, operated by a compressed air tank;
• STriDER: A three-legged walking machine that improves on a classic “War of the Worlds” concept, but with peace in mind; and
• IMPASS: An autonomous high-mobility locomotion platform that can mount nearly any surface, no matter the terrain, using retractable spokes.