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Researchers have developed a new quadrupedal robot that could theoretically outrun the fastest humans.
The robot, called Black Panther 2.0, is a joint project by researchers at the robotics startup Mirror Me and the Center for Interdisciplinary Mechanics at Zhejiang University in China, according to Xinhua, a media outlet run by the Chinese government.
The robot, which weighs 84 pounds (38 kilograms) and stands 2.1 feet (0.63 meters) tall, can sprint 100 meters in less than 10 seconds. In a video, the team behind the robot claims it tops out at 10.4 meters per second (23.3 mph), which would put it just short of the world-record pace of 10.44 m/s that Usain Bolt achieved at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics.
To achieve these speeds, researchers equipped the robot with flexible, knee-like joints on each of its four legs,and added reinforced carbon-fiber structures to maintain their integrity under the strain of the robot’s weight traveling at top speed.
Xinhua reported that Black Panther 2.0 uses artificial intelligence (AI), including machine learning, to adapt its movement to its environment.
The intended use for the robot’s speed is unclear. Other quadruped robots, such as the DEEP Robotics Lynx, have been suggested for security purposes and for surveying hazardous environments, but that robot has a top speed of just 4.9 m/s (11 mph) — less than half the speed of Black Panther 2.0.
In 2012, Boston Dynamics demonstrated a speed of 12.6 m/s (28.3 mph) for its cheetah robot. However, this was a substantially larger and heavier device that has not been brought to market.
Live Science reached out to the lead researcher for Black Panther 2.0 at Zhejiang University but did not hear back by publication time.
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