A robot competition on Mount Tai gave Chinese teams a steep outdoor test of balance and mobility, while organizers presented the event as a step toward wider practical use of robotics.
The inaugural CMG World Robot Mount Tai Competition took place Monday, Nov. 2, in Tai’an, Shandong province. China Media Group (CMG), an organizer, said nearly 90 teams from across China took part on a trail linking Hongmen and Zhongtianmen. CMG put the route at about 3.9 kilometers, with more than 3,100 steps.
A Sept. 11 plan from Tai’an officials outlined four formal events: humanoid robot racing, legged robot racing, load-carrying tests for legged robots and exoskeleton assistance. It also listed an all-terrain scouting challenge. The plan set a 2.6-kilometer formal course for humanoid robots, with an optional 600-meter challenge stage, and a roughly 3.2-kilometer course for legged robots.
AFP reported that a canine-style robot won the four-legged speed category in 43 minutes, 41 seconds. The fastest humanoid finished in 27 minutes, 26 seconds on a shorter course, AFP said, so the times were recorded over different routes. AFP also reported that engineers repaired one humanoid after it collapsed and that another tumbled down steps.
A Xinhua video showed a robot dog moving ahead of its human controller, then stopping to wait. Liu Wenqiang, vice president of the China Center for Information Industry Development, said the contest was meant to move robotics research toward dependable, affordable systems for public services and physically demanding work.
Yang Hongtao, Tai’an municipal party secretary, described the competition as a step toward wider industrial use of robots. Tai’an officials said they hoped it would help expand the city’s robotics and embodied-intelligence sectors, attract projects and strengthen cooperation between researchers and industry. Those were stated aims for the event.
UNESCO added Mount Taishan to the World Heritage List in 1987.
