Robots by local university hit the slopes
A hexapod ski robot developed by Shanghai Jiao Tong University recently completed its beginner and intermediate-level trials as well as human-interactive skiing in northeast China's Shenyang.
Reality not fiction: A hexapod ski robot developed by Shanghai Jiao Tong University recently completed its beginner and intermediate-level trials as well as human-interactive skiing in northeast China's Shenyang.
During its test, the agile robot skied with people along a 400-meter-long, intermediate-level track with a gradient of 18 degrees at a speed of more than 10 meters per second.
The robot is capable of emulating people skiing and planning the best route on its own.
In addition, it takes a sharp turn when encountering obstacles and continues to control its direction while maintaining its skiing posture and speed.
Developing such a robot was a great challenge for the university, because skiing requires stability and flexibility. Its independent research and development team carried out extensive scientific research to make breakthroughs in key algorithmic designs, such as robot-performance control and perception planning.
In addition to independent planning by the robot itself, people can control the robot remotely.
"The ski robot is not only an embodiment of the spirit of 'Sci-tech Winter Olympics,' but also provides unlimited imagination for the post-Winter Olympics era with the concept of 'human-machine integration,'" one team member said.
"After the Winter Olympics, this robot will combine advanced technologies such as 5G and wireless networks through remote control to realize the competitiveness of ski robots in human-machine-same-field skiing and create a new entertainment mode for skiing enthusiasts."
