When we think of robots that mimic animals, the first company that comes to mind is Boston Dynamics, with its little quadruped that resembles a dog, O Spot. But the company now has a small competitor, the Unitree Go1, which looks like a “mini version” of Spot. The little robot was imagined to be a touring companion, as demonstrated in the advertising video below:
As we can see, there appears to be a fair amount of robotics experts who are determined to finally replace the dogs. The Unitree Go1 has a robust system for detecting obstacles and positioning, so that it can always position itself next to its owner and follow him at a predetermined distance.
The robot is very light, weighing 12kg, which means he is more agile than strong. Even to carry a simple bottle of water, he started walking a little crookedly. So really, at least at this point in development, the Unitree Go1 seems to be more of an adornment or a toy than necessarily a robot with a practical use for your everyday life. Remembering that there are special vests that you can attach to your dog so he can carry your water too.
Unitree Go1 is now available for purchase in three different price ranges. We have the Unitree Go1 Air by US$ 2.700, the default Unitree Go1 by US$ 3.500 and Unitree Go1 Edu, which arrives in US$ 8.500. Unfortunately Unitree didn’t go into much detail about the difference between each model, but the The Verge reports that the more expensive models can reach a top speed of 17 km/h, and the Unitree Go1 Edu offers a programming API as well.
A very important piece of information that Unitree left out is the autonomy of the Go1. We don’t know how much battery power the robot offers, but in comparison Spot can usually run for 90 minutes at most, so the Unitree Go1 should be on for less time than that.
As companies offering robots in this style become more and more diverse we will have different and more affordable robot options. And who knows, in time they will actually start to replace the dogs, offering something to walk by their side without bringing those discomforts of living creatures, such as the need to feed and care and the possibility to offer affection and affection.
Source: The Verge – .
