A few months after Chinese startup Astribot released jaw-dropping video footage of its humanoid sidekick, the company has now released a teaser video for the S1, showing the bot making waffles, feeding the cat, serving tea, and going to the pot.
When the S1 was first announced back in April, we wondered why all the promotional images only showed the top half of the bot. Now we know why, as the newly developed S1 has stepped into the spotlight for its official launch.
While much of the development of human-like robots has focused on getting bipeds into factories and manufacturing facilities, Astribot appears to be targeting domestic tasks, which you can see in the promotional video below (be sure to watch until the end).
Astribot S1: Launch
Astribot decided against using a pair of jointed lower limbs for the S1, opting for a much less complicated and ultimately more reliable setup of motorized wheels and “knees” and a single “leg” that bends at the base. It also appears that the humanoid helper isn't running solely on battery power, as a cable is clearly shown attached to the base at one point in the video.
Despite the obvious differences from the April prototype (such as a much less pronounced chest area and a fuller head module (as opposed to the old basic camera/sensor add-on)), the company's website doesn't appear to have been updated yet. So the S1 is still shown as having a top speed of 10 meters per second and an acceleration of around 100 m/s2seven degrees of freedom in each arm and the ability of each arm to lift loads of up to 10 kg.
At the end of the arm, there’s a sensor-packed double-digit gripper rather than the human-like robot hand that’s common in human-like development, but that doesn’t seem to stop the S1 from performing a range of complex tasks. And the AI-learned tasks shown here give the robot a more rounded feel that suggests it’s impending production readiness.
Astribot
Again, rather frustratingly, the company doesn’t go into any detail about the hardware specs or AI learning methods used to teach the humanoid its skills, which now include martial arts training, vacuuming a room, making waffles and feeding the cat, as well as the ability to play with the feline friend remotely using VR goggles.
Still, it’s impressive stuff from a very young company. All the footage is claimed to be real and recorded at 1x speed, and no teleoperation was used, other than to tease the cat. And that’s all we can share right now, but we’re waiting for more information from the company and will update you as soon as it arrives.
Source: Astribot