Chinese company Xiaomi has unveiled a four-legged robot called CyberDog: an open source experimental machine that the company says has "incredible capabilities".
CyberDog is the latest example of technology companies wanting quadrupeds in robotics. The most notable example of the trend is the Spot, a machine made by the American company Boston Dynamics. The Spot was launched last year for $ 74.500 and has many different uses, from inspecting hazardous mines to helping doctors connect with their patients remotely. It has also been tested by both law enforcement and the military, without a weapon.
The purpose for which Xiaomi envisions CyberDog is unknown. In a press release, the company stressed the open source nature of the machine design and that it would release only 1.000 units initially for "Xiaomi fans, engineers and robot enthusiasts".
The company says it hopes these early adopters will "advance the development and potential of four-legged robots." The first 1.000 units will cost just 9.999 yuan, or about $1.540 (it's unclear if the price will be the same for any future releases).
Το ίδιο δελτίο τύπου αναφέρει ότι το CyberDog έχει την ικανότητα να ανταποκρίνεται σε φωνητικές commands και να ακολουθεί τον ιδιοκτήτη του σαν πραγματικός σκύλος. Ωστόσο, κοιτάζοντας τις εικόνες του CyberDog, είναι σαφές ότι η Xiaomi δεν προτείνει το μηχάνημα ως αντίπαλο του Spot. 
Η Xiaomi αναφέρει ότι το CyberDog είναι αρκετά ευκίνητο για να κάνει backflips, μπορεί να περπατάει με ταχύτητες 3,2m/s (έναντι 3,9m/s του Spot) και έχει βάρος 3kg (έναντι 5,2kg του Spot). Το CyberDog τροφοδοτείται από την πλατφόρμα τεχνητής νοημοσύνης Jetson Xavier της Nvidia και είναι εξοπλισμένο με μια σειρά από κάμερες και αισθητήρες. Αυτά περιλαμβάνουν αισθητήρες αφής, μονάδα GPS, fisheye lenses ευρείας γωνίας και μια κάμερα RealSense D450 της Intel για ανίχνευση βάθους. Αυτά τα στοιχεία επιτρέπουν στο ρομπότ να περιηγείται ημιαυτόνομα.
"CyberDog can analyze its environment in real time, create navigation maps, plan its destination and avoid obstacles. "Combined with human posture and face recognition monitoring, the CyberDog is able to track its owner and escape obstacles," said Xiaomi. The machine can also respond to voice commands, recognize words and wake-up instructions, or it can be controlled using a smartphone app.
The CyberDog also has three USB-C ports and an HDMI port, which Xiaomi says can be used to customize hardware. The company says that LED sensors, panoramic cameras and search lights could be added to the robot.
