Researchers have developed a prototype cheetah robot.
Scientist Folkertsma has dedicated four years of research and development to constructing a scaled-down robotic version of the fastest land animal in the world, with a view to replicating its movements.
The prototype developed by Folkertsma weighs in at 2.5 kg and is 30 cm long: twenty times lighter than a real cheetah and four times smaller.
Taking into account the weight difference, the robot moves using only about fifteen percent more energy than a real cheetah.
The robot can currently reach a speed of about one kilometre per hour.