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A robotic cheetah that can silently run and jump at speed has been showcased in the USA by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) this week.
The mechanical big cat - a four-legged creature comprised of gears, motors and batteries - has been in development for more than a year, but previously had to be plugged in to mains power via a cable.
Now the robot, called WildCat, has been unleashed. It’s been filmed by its creators bounding around outside across grass at a steady pace of 10 mph, and even jumping over a hurdle.
The researchers, who are funded by the US defence agency DARPA, believe the robot could eventually achieve speeds of up to 30 mph - that’s faster than Usain Bolt.
Getting a robot to run at a consistent speed across the relatively rough terrain of a grassy field was a bit of a challenge. The research team ended up incorporating software that was inspired by the way world-class sprinters run: by increasing their stride length rather than taking quicker steps.
Mechanical engineering professor Sangbae Kim explained: “Many sprinters, like Usain Bolt, don’t cycle their legs really fast. They actually increase their stride length by pushing downward harder and increasing their ground force, so they can fly more while keeping the same frequency.”
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