What stands 178 cm tall (5 ft, 10 in), weighs 85 kg (187 lb) and has five-fingered hands with 12 degrees of freedom? That’s right, it’s the Kepler Forerunner humanoid robot, and it’s set to debut next week at CES.
Manufactured by China’s Kepler Exploration Robot Company, the Forerunner is designed to be a direct competitor to Tesla’s Optimus robot. That said, it is a bit more expensive. Whereas the latest price estimate for the Optimus is less than US$20,000, the Forerunner ought to go for about $30,000.
One of the robot’s big selling features are the proprietary planetary roller screw actuators in its arms and legs. These deliver up to 8,000 Newtons (1,798 pound-force) of thrust to the elbow, knee and ankle joints.
According to Kepler, these actuators “surpass conventional motors in delivering precision control, enhanced power and quick responsiveness, adeptly handling complex tasks.” Custom rotary actuators move the waist and shoulder joints.
Kepler
The Forerunner perceives its surroundings via a group of sensors located in its head. These devices include a wide-angle binocular camera, a far-field array of four microphones, an accelerometer and an AHRS (attitude and heading reference system). It can also speak to people via a synthetic voice module and stereophonic speakers.
All of the sensory data is processed via Kepler’s proprietary Nebula AI system, reportedly allowing the robot to navigate complex environments and avoid obstacles while walking across uneven terrain. Its hands can both sense and gently grasp objects, plus they also allow the robot to pick up and carry heavy objects – an exact lifting/carrying capacity hasn’t been provided at this point.
Kepler
According to Kepler, several versions of the Forerunner will be available, aimed at applications such as manufacturing, inspection, high-risk tasks, outdoor work, plus robotics research and education.
Production and shipping should commence in the third quarter of this year. You can see the robot in action, in a video on the company website linked below.
Source: Kepler
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