Does humanity really need quick, agile insectile robots? Of course!
(Amazingly quick TITAN-XIII spider robot)
In their paper published in Robomech Journal, designers Satoshi Kitano, Gen Endo, Koichi Suzumori, and Shigeo Hirose argue that insectoid robots are better suited to carrying objects across uneven ground.
The current trend within load-carrying robotic design is towards a more mammalian-type automaton, with four vertical legs.
The Japanese researchers point out that insectoid robots have a lower centre of gravity and are therefore more equipped to stay upright.
Whereas other designs moved one leg at a time, the Titan XIII moves diagonal pairs of legs forward at the same time - just like mammal-bots do.
If the robot loses its footing it is designed to swing round on its standing diagonal legs until it is steady on at least three limbs.
It is controlled via wifi using a specially designed computer programme.
I'm not scared of these robots because I've seen plenty of science fiction movies, my friends. Look at this short video to see the terrifying scuttling insect robots of Runaway, a great 1984 movie by sf writer Michael Crichton.
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