Hyundai shows off walking car project

South Korean car maker Hyundai gave a look at work it is doing on a vehicle with robotic legs to let it walk or crawl over treacherous terrain.

Hyundai showed off its Elevate project on the eve of the Consumer Electronics Show gadget extravaganza, billing it an unprecedented "Ultimate Mobility Vehicle" that combines technology from electric cars with robotics. Elevate is designed with four mechanical legs with wheels for feet, according to a small-scale model shown at the press event.

Elevate vehicles can roll along on extended legs or retract them to be driven like a car. "This design is uniquely capable of both mammalian and reptilian walking gaits, allowing it to move in any direction," Hyundai said in a release. Elevate can climb over walls as high as five feet (1.5 meters) while keeping the vehicle body level with the ground.

Read more at Tech Xplore

Image Credit: Hyundai

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