China Military Robot Looks Like A BigDog Ripoff

China, seen by some to be the world’s factory (as well as cloning place), is back in the news – this time around with what you see above. Does it look all too familiar? If the answer is in the affirmative, then chances are you would have been thinking of the DARPA-sponsored BigDog military robot. Well, what you see here is a robot that was recently featured over at the 2014 Beijing International Emergency Rescue Expo, where it was described by Chinese media as ‘eye-catching’.

I suppose that beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, and it is not exactly the most pleasing thing to look at, perhaps due to the camouflaged exterior. Hailed as a “mountain four-legged moving robot”, this was specially built to traverse across rocky terrains, having footing that is as sure as a mountain goat. It is also said to have been tested successfully under situations where roads have already been destroyed, regardless of whether it is in a wartime situation or at a disaster scene such as an earthquake or landslide.

This robot will tip the scales at 130 kg, and it has the ability to tote up to 50 kg of supplies and items, not to mention being able to amble along at a top speed of 3mph as it navigates through slopes of up to 30 degrees.

Edwin Kee
Categories: Military, Robots
Tags: China