According to China’s state media, The Global Times, China has launched the world’s largest electrically operated quadruped bionic robot. This robot resembles a yak. And such contribution towards the robotics field is pushing China to become a global leader in robotics by 2025. It is also enabling China to lead in the field of military tech.
According to the sources, this robot can move forward and backward, and it can turn and even walk diagonally. It even sprints and dashes, and jumps high without losing its footing. Moreover, this robot, called the “mechanical yak” is assembled with sensors to keep track of surrounding terrain and environment by keeping in touch with them. Moreover, it is trained that it can adapt to different types of terrains, including trenches, cliffs, muddy roads, grasslands, deserts, and snowfields. It could also be equipped with weapons.
This robot is capable of carrying up to 350 lbs and can attain a speed of 6.2 mph which is equivalent to 10 km/h. Therefore, it is expected to be a part of reconnaissance missions in complex scenarios, that seem challenging for humans. Such scenarios may include remote border regions and risky combat areas. This robot can also gather information related to tactics specifically on the battlefield.
The mechanical yak can also operate by lifting and bringing supplies including food and other necessities to mountains, deserts, plateaus, and forests. So, this robot can serve smoothly at places, where there is a crossing difficulty for conventional vehicles. China possesses a robot dog as well, named “Geda”, which weighs 70 lbs and can lift about 40 kg load. This robot dog is programmed to use facial recognition and to understand voice commands.
China is contributing a lot to the Robotics field. Its military prowess exceeds building robots, as the country has declared that it launched three warships in a day, and fired an unknown missile from a hypersonic vehicle last year. Thus China is making incredible progress.