Ropid the robot can walk, run, and hop
(Credit:
Robo-Garage)
Japanese robot wunderkind Tomotaka Takahashi has created a new humanoid robot that can jump 3 inches off the floor, an impressive feat for a small bipedal machine.
Known for his anime-inspired robotic creations used for product promotion, Takahashi's latest bipedal walker is called Ropid (from "robot" and "rapid").
The cute carbon fiber and plastic droid weighs 3.5 pounds and has 30 degrees of mechanical freedom.
Seen in the video below, Ropid can get up, walk, run, and even jump 3 inches into the air.
It does all that while maintaining its balance thanks to its four onboard gyro sensors and four accelerometers.
Takahashi's stylish robots, such as Chroino, are often featured in magazines and on TV in Japan.
It took Takahashi two and a half years to develop Ropid at his Kyoto University-based start-up Robo-Garage. The robot is based on patented technology developed in 2007.
(Via Robot Watch)
Crave freelancer Tim Hornyak is the author of "Loving the Machine: The Art and Science of Japanese Robots." He has been writing about Japanese culture and technology for a decade. E-mail Tim. 
At 3.5 lbs it can't be much bigger than 12 inches.