MIT readies Atlas robot for Darpa competition

Robots from across the world are competing in two-day competition organised by the Pentagon's Darpa research unit.

The organisers will challenge the machines with a series of trials near Miami that they say will help spur on development of rescue robots that can be deployed in future man-made disasters.

Contestants were given the choice of designing their own machine or programming Atlas - a two-legged humanoid robot designed by Google-owned Boston Dynamics.

Among the 17 groups taking part is a team from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which has opted to use Atlas.

Team leader Seth Teller explains how challenging it was to get the robot ready in time.