If you grew up between the eighties and nineties of the last century, surely you remember seeing the occasional series or movie starring huge robots; be it Mazinger Z, Transformers, or Gundam. Now, if you could go to the bay of the Japanese city of Yokohama, you will see an imposing 20-meter replica of the RX-78 Gundam rise.
The giant robot resembling the 1970s anime figure Gundam has been tested in Japan. As you can see in the video, a recent walking test of the Gundam robot, showed it walking unaided as well as kneeling down in a power stance. The tests have taken place at the same site where the nearly 20-meter-high, 25-ton robot began construction, in the port of Yokohama. For now, testing has been limited to a series of very limited movements, including footsteps, crouching, etc.
Not surprisingly, the giant Gundam robot‘s movements are clumsy, short, and inaccurate. But let’s remember that this robot will walk and move weighing more than 25 tons; an achievement in terms of engineering that has taken months and months of work. A few months ago we saw him move his legs and now he is able to move his whole body. Little by little, of course.
Back in July, we reported that the huge humanoid robot will make its full debut at the Gundam Factory Yokohama on October 1, 2020. However, the RX-78 Gundam robot’s full unveiling has unsurprisingly been put on hold due to COVID-19.
“This decision was made to ensure the health and safety of our fans and employees in response to the worldwide spread of COVID-19,” the manufacturer said in a statement on the website. “We apologize to all of our fans who were looking forward to our grand opening and ask for your understanding. In the meantime, we will be making preparations so that all of our visitors can enjoy themselves in safety.”
