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Korean robot draws worldwide attention

Posted March. 23, 2017 07:12,   

Updated March. 23, 2017 07:19

한국어

Korea’s first animated film about robot, “Robot Taekwon V,” was released in the summer of 1976. It became a mega-hit movie among kids who went wild with excitement about a 56-meter tall, 1400-ton gigantic robot flying over the sky and fighting against evil enemies. “Mazinger Z,” Japanese super robot, uses weapons following operation orders. On the other hand, Robot Taekwon V moves and fights together with a mentally-connected pilot. Robot Taekwon V was a brave and trusted friend of many kids in Korea. After a huge success of the animated film, Robot Taekwon V has become an iconic symbol of robots in Korea.

Lim Hyun-kuk (44) of Korea’s robot company “Korea Future Technology” is a big fan of Robot Taekwon V. Lim says his heart starts pounding when he listens to the original soundtrack of the film. He went to a specialized commercial high school in order to use a computer as much as he wants. Eventually, he created an actual robot similar to his idol Robot Taekwon V. Lim worked with Vitaly Bulgarov, a robot expert who participated in the production of the movie “Transformer,” and developed Korea’s robot “Method-2.”

Will Method-2 become more popular than Robot Taekwon V? Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and the third richest person in the world, shared his experience of being suited up in Method-2 at the 2017 MARS conference, which is an exclusive conference for a few robot and artificial intelligence experts, on his twitter account on Monday local time. “I just got to pilot an awesome robot thanks to Korea Future Technology,” Benzos twitted. “I feel so much like Sigourney Weaver in sci-fi classic Aliens.” The footage of Bezos riding in Method-2 has been uploaded on YouTube. In the movie, Metod-2 raised her arm as Bezos raised his arm.

The first robot controlled by a human pilot was invented by Japan in 2012. A 4-meter tall, 4.5-ton robot had four legs with wheels. The U.S. introduced a similar wheel-leg robot two years later. Though there are many areas requiring further improvement, Method-2 can walk upright on its legs, which is thought to be one of the most advanced technologies in the robotic field. The robot industry requires application of a variety of scientific technology and is regarded as one of core industries in the future. Method-2, designed by a small- and medium-sized company, deserves more attention going forward whether it will serve as a launch pad for the development of the robotic industry in Korea.