HUMANOID ROBOTS RAN AN INCREDIBLE HALF-MARATHON IN CHINA
History was recently made at a half-marathon in Beijing. In addition to the 12,000 runners, 21 robots competed in the event. They may have outshone the human rivals but did not outpace them. This humanoid robot race, which is regarded as a world first, proved to be both amusing and educational about the level of robotics in the opposite region.
The only restriction on the competing robots' designs was that they had to walk on two feet rather than wheels. Other than that, it was free for all, leading to intriguing design decisions with conflicting outcomes. Robots wearing kid-size sneakers or shoes made of duct tape were among the tactics employed. Teams had to patch them up mid-race to keep them from falling because some didn't have a head, and others did. Others, like many of them, utilised knee protectors to keep them from shattering if they fell.
Only six of the twenty-one robots completed the race, according to Wired. Nearly every robot encountered challenges, ranging from overheating to falling while competing. While other robots were drenched with liquid, one required a cooling pad to survive. Two or three human operators raced behind each robot to help manage its pace using control panels or to clear its route.
Tiangong Ultra, a robot created by UBTech and the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Centre, emerged victorious. In contrast to the slowest human participant, who took three hours and ten minutes to reach the finish line, it completed the race in two hours and forty minutes. Even though it was the robot champion, it did not have a flawless journey. Its crew had to replace its batteries three times after it fell once. Tiangong Ultra was notable for being the tallest robot, standing at 5'9". Its shortest rival, however, was only 2 feet 5 inches.
The marathon garnered a lot of attention despite the obstacles, both domestically and internationally, with many runners pausing to snap photographs with Tiangong Ultra. It was an interesting race, demonstrating the recent advancements in robot technology.
“Until five years ago or so, we didn’t really know how to get robots to walk reliably,” Alan Fern, a robotics professor at Oregon State, told Wired. “And now we do, and this will be a good demonstration of that.”