Japan Robot Samurai Learns to Wield a Sword from a Human World Champion (VIDEO)

First Posted: Jun 08, 2015 08:07 AM EDT

Robots that learn from humans or their environment aren't anything new. A robot that learns how to use a sword from a master swordsman, though, is something else. Scientists have created the MOTOMAN-MH24 robot, which has learned from and competed against Isao Machii, a five-time world record holder in the art of iaijyutsu, a combative quick-draw sword technique.

There are four challenges that the robot must face in total: the diagonal cut, the rising cut, the horizontal cut and the "thousand cuts" test of endurance.

First, the Motoman robot learned from Machii through motion capture, sensors and its programming. Then, it was time to see whether the robot could surpass Machii.

The researchers found that the robot could perform all of the different cuts. However, the robot lacked the same refinement as a human swordsman. This was partially made up for by the robot's accuracy; it could slice a pea pod in half horizontally. During the thousand cuts, Machii led in the beginning, though soon tired so that he and the robot finished almost simultaneously.

This latest effort reveals how robots can learn from and possibly even surpass humans. It also shows that machines can learn to mimic actions that require more "human" touch.

Want to see the robot in action? Check out the video below, courtesy of YouTube.

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