Summary of Key Points
The Tian Gong Omni humanoid robot won the championship in the 400-meter final of the 2nd World Humanoid Robot Games with a comical running posture of “covering its face in shame,” sparking curiosity among netizens: Who taught this posture? Can humans learn it? This article addresses these questions through scientific research and explanations from the robot development team, and also reveals the technical significance behind robot competitions—forcing improvements in both hardware and algorithms, ultimately enabling robots to adapt to real-world scenarios.
1. Is the Anthropological “Face-Covering Running” Pose More Efficient? The Answer is No
Many people wonder if the anthropological robot running posture of covering the face would be more energy-efficient. In 2014, American researchers conducted an experiment where 13 people ran on a treadmill in four different postures (normal arm swinging, hands behind the back, arms crossed in front of the chest, and head held high), measuring their energy consumption. The results showed that normal arm swinging was the most energy-efficient, while crossing arms in front of the chest and holding the head high consumed 9% and 13% more energy, respectively. The robot’s “face-covering running” posture combines the two less efficient postures, making it the most energy-consuming. Therefore, this human-like posture not only does not make running faster but also makes it more exhausting and slower.
2. Why is Human Arm Swinging More Efficient? The Key Lies in Reducing Body Rotation
Arm swinging requires effort, so why does it save energy? The reason is that it reduces body rotation. When running, the lower limbs turn in opposite directions to the moving foot (right foot turns left, left foot turns right). Without arm swinging, the body would rotate wildly, requiring extra effort with each direction change. Arm swinging counteracts this by generating a force that opposes the body’s rotation—swinging the left arm forward when the right foot moves and the right arm forward when the left foot moves. This significantly reduces the body’s rotation, saving more energy than the energy consumed by arm swinging itself, essentially achieving a higher efficiency with less effort.
3. The Robot’s “Face-Covering Running” Pose: An Optimal Solution Iterated by the Robot Itself
The robot’s posture was not taught by humans but was developed through simulation. The development team initially used a human-style 100-meter running posture, but after extensive data analysis, they found that the “face-covering running” posture better met the engineers’ goals (running fast, not falling, and not overheating). There are two main reasons for this: First, rapid arm swinging can cause the robot’s shoulder joints to overheat, and the “face-covering” posture avoids this by reducing high-frequency movements. Second, the robot’s waist and legs are strong enough to maintain balance without the need for arm swinging.
4. Diverse Robot Running Postures: Hardware and Algorithms Determine Differences
Not all robots use the “face-covering running” posture. At this competition, many robots used arm swinging postures similar to those of humans, but each robot’s posture was unique. This is due to differences in their hardware: some robots have well-designed shoulder joints that can handle high-frequency arm swinging, while others rely on arm swinging for balance due to weaker waist and leg strength. The diversity in running postures reflects each robot’s optimal running method tailored to its specific hardware and algorithms.
5. Robot Competitions Are More Than Just for Fun: They Drive Technological Progress for Real-World Applications
The significance of robot competitions goes beyond winning gold medals. At this event, robots broke several human athletic records in the 100-meter and 400-meter races, thanks to continuous improvements in hardware (such as more powerful motors and better cooling systems) and algorithms (such as more intelligent balance control). These advancements will enable robots to transition from the competition stage to real-world applications, such as logistics, disaster relief, and long-distance inspections—for example, moving efficiently through earthquake rubble or handling goods in warehouses, truly integrating into various industries.
This article uses the amusing robot running posture as a starting point to address public curiosity and reveal the logic behind the development of humanoid robot technology: Every seemingly strange design is the result of collaborative efforts between technical teams and robots, all aimed at making robots more practical and useful.