Yamaha Motobot: we move on to phase two

Yamaha Motobot – Yamaha “used” the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to announce that its “humanoid riding robot”, better known as Motobot, has entered its second phase of development.

Thanks to the collaboration of the research and development company SRI International, phase two of the Motobot project will develop the Japanese brand's new technology inside a real circuit. This new phase will serve Yamaha to create an army, if we are allowed the term, of superbikes driven by "self-aware" robots, even if the Japanese brand has said that its goal is to make Motobot capable of autonomously perform a lap of the track at over 200 km/h by 2017.

Why is Yamaha pursuing this project? Because Motobot is a test bed. The technology used and developed is destined, in fact, to be applied in the future to support systems for the pilot in the flesh and, furthermore, it could open up some development opportunities in this lucrative business. In the meantime, let's look back at this video released a few months ago by Yamaha, where Motobot is seen riding a customized Yamaha R1M specially equipped to be managed by the robot itself. “I'm getting better every day, but I'm not sure I could beat even you when you were five.", while we see images of Valentino Rossi as a child. Even then, Yamaha stated that Motobot is capable of racing on a circuit at speeds of up to 200 km/h and that the goal is to develop new solutions capable of increasing rider safety on the track. At the end of the video the robot raises the gauntlet at number 46: "I am Motobot, I was created to overtake you".