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Michael Hughes
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make.co
THE HEXANAUT
YOUTUBE.COM/MATTDENTON
Whether they realize it or not, fans of Star Wars,
Harry Potter, and the Disney+ series Andor may
already be familiar with UK creator Matt Denton’s
movie magic. But in 2012, Denton’s futuristic
fabrications transcended the silver screen and
landed in the real world with the debut of
Mantis — a six-legged, two-ton, human-piloted,
steel behemoth.
Originally commissioned for commercial use,
a company noticed the smaller hexapods Denton
was creating in the 2000s and requested a 400-ton
version to explore underwater seabeds. Because
of the scale, Denton was funded for Mantis to
test this tech at 2 tons. Operated over Wi-Fi or
using the two onboard three-axis joysticks and
28 buttons inside the cockpit, Mantis’ top speed
is 1km/h and, despite its weight, exerts the same
pressure as a human foot under each footpad.
Mantis took over three years to build with
Denton tackling the work alone for the first eight
months. Denton recalls it “was a challenge for
me on a daily basis mentally. I had never done
hydraulics that big before and certainly never a
hydraulic power pack running on a diesel engine
or controlling 18 actuators simultaneously.” Each
leg joint was particularly difficult with Denton
using twin bearings driven by a linear ram that
pivots each joint. Afterwards, the team found
rotary actuators that could have made Mantis’
legs a single, strong unit. “I was learning on the
job…even in those three years, I found better ways
to do the mechanics.” It’s “a sort of Frankenstein
thing,” joked Denton. “It’s a 486 processor clocked
to a gigahertz, but running a Linux system.” The
result is a breathtaking, engineering feat earning
Denton the Guinness World Record for “Largest
Rideable Hexapod Robot” in 2017.
With the processing power of Arduinos and the
possibilities of 3D printing, Denton has lately been
exploring giant 3D-printed versions of classic
Lego vehicles. To Denton, these “have changed
everything” and he hasn’t counted out using his
new skills to tackle hexapods again in the future.
Follow more of his latest builds at instagram.
com/mantisrobot. —Sophie Martinez
M81_008-11_MOE_F1.indd 9M81_008-11_MOE_F1.indd 9 4/12/22 10:45 AM4/12/22 10:45 AM
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