Humanoid robots play table tennis doubles in PingPongDuo demo
Researchers from Shanghai Innovation Institute, Arkcon Robotics, the University of Hong Kong and Nvidia built the system, which reached 18 consecutive returns.
Researchers from the Shanghai Innovation Institute, Arkcon Robotics, the University of Hong Kong and Nvidia have developed PingPongDuo, a table tennis doubles system in which two humanoid robots play on the same team, according to etnews.com. In a demonstration, the pair alternated shots and reached up to 18 consecutive returns.
The two robots take turns hitting the ball and swap positions during play, with one moving aside to open space for the other. The system calculates collision risk and adjusts the robots' positions accordingly while the rally continues.
In one test, a robot moved 2.15m to vacate its spot and returned to position in 2.4 seconds, reaching a top speed of 2.23 m/s.
The researchers describe PingPongDuo as the first humanoid table tennis doubles system.
Quick answers
What is PingPongDuo?
It is a table tennis doubles system in which two humanoid robots play on the same team, alternating shots and swapping positions.
How many consecutive returns did the robots achieve?
In a demonstration, the two robots reached up to 18 consecutive returns.
Who developed PingPongDuo?
Researchers from the Shanghai Innovation Institute, Arkcon Robotics, the University of Hong Kong and Nvidia.