Velociraptor robot is faster than Usain Bolt, thankfully doesn’t have giant claws (yet)
Come on guys, it's almost like you're actively trying to get the human race killed...
Remember the Cheetah? It’s a robot with a top speed of 29.3mph, and its potential for hunting down humans is terrifying. But now there’s a newer, faster robot on the block, and it’s named after everyone’s favourite prehistoric killing machine.
Like the Cheetah, the new Raptor robot was created by the robotic maestros at Boston Dynamics, and its design was modelled on the Velociraptor.
While it doesn’t have razor sharp claws for disembowelling prey (for now, anyway), it does have the ability to sprint on two legs, with flexible carbon fibre feet for pavement-pounding duties.
Each leg also has a ‘tendon’, which acts as both a shock absorber, and an energy reclaimer, providing a little extra momentum in each step – the same principle used in the robotic kangaroo we’ve covered previously.
Combined with a side-mounted ‘tail’ which spins at high velocity helping the Raptor balance and even jump over obstacles, it can reach a top speed of 28.5mph.
That’s just under the top speed of the Cheetah, but it’s still faster than the speediest man in the universe, Usain Bolt, whose top recorded speed is 27.44mph.
Boston Dynamics was bought by Google last year, so we could very well see Street View Raptors prowling the streets, once the design has improved enough to allow it to run free of its support rail.
When that day comes, the end will truly be near. See you in the bunker…
READ MORE: We might as well surrender now. The Robotic Kangaroo is terrifyingly awesome
[via CNET]
Esat Dedezade
Contributor