Two-legged robot’s 100-meter record is astonishingly quick
- This two-legged robot’s attempt at the fastest 100 meters ever run by a bipedal machine is pretty impressive
- It’s proof, if needed, that robots are getting more and more advanced
- It completed the impressive feat in just 24.73 seconds
Published on Jan 25, 2024 at 9:35 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Jan 26, 2024 at 5:41 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
This two-legged robot’s attempt at the fastest 100 meters ever run by a bipedal machine is proof that robots are getting more and more like us.
The two-legged robot’s name is Cassie and she completed the impressive feat in just 24.73 seconds.
Cassie set a new Guinness World Record for the 100 meter dash in 2022 with an average speed of 4m/s (9mph).
READ MORE! Tesla robots were given submachine guns to fire at a Cybertruck
Her speed was much slower than a human can achieve (9.58 seconds for men set by Usain Bolt and 10.49 seconds for women set by Florence Griffith-Joyner).
But, it’s impressive for a robot of Cassie’s design.
And it seems robots just get more and more advanced and useful, like this one that can physically lift your car and park it for you.
Elon Musk also posted an unbelievable video of a Tesla humanoid meticulously folding clothes earlier this month.
What’s more, robots are helping reveal secrets from history that were previously unaccessible – like this robot revealing the inside of the Great Pyramid.
Cassie’s knees were inspired by an ostrich, the fastest-running bird on the planet, bending in the same way.
She was created by engineers at Oregon State University and manufactured by their Agility Robotics department.
Cassie is not the fastest legged robot in existence, however.
That title goes to WildCat: a bulky quadrupedal prototype.
Developed by Boston Dynamics, it’s capable of speeds of 30.6 km/h (19 mph).
What sets Cassie apart is her bipedal design.
This allows robots to traverse spaces designed for humans in a way that’s impossible for robots that walk on four legs.
Cassie’s creators claim that picking up speed wasn’t actually the hardest challenge.
It was starting and stopping that threw up a real challenge for Cassie’s creators.
In fact you can see some of her bloopers in the video below:
“Starting and stopping in a standing position are more difficult than the running part, similar to how taking off and landing are harder than actually flying a plane,” OSU professor, Alan Fern, said.
Another hurdle (pun intended but not something Cassie actually tackled) was that the robot ran “blind”.
Cassie is not autonomous and has no external sensors.
That means she has to be steered by a human – think remote-controlled car.
However, with this AI humanoid learning how to make coffee just by watching humans do it – it seems some robots don’t even need to be taught ‘human’ tasks.
Cassie previously ran a 5K – however she didn’t reach the speeds that won her the World Record.
In fact, it took her 53 minutes to complete the distance.
“This may be the first bipedal robot to learn to run, but it won’t be the last,” said OSU robotics professor Jonathan Hurst.
“I think progress is going to accelerate from here.”
DISCOVER SBX CARS: The global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie
All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
