Town vigorously promotes development of humanoid robot industry

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(People's Daily Online) 10:26, August 21, 2024

Photo shows a humanoid robot taking selfies with visitors at the World Robot Conference 2023 in the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, or Beijing E-Town, in suburban Beijing. (File Photo)

In Hefei, east China’s Anhui Province, at the Chinese new energy vehicle company NIO’s Second Advanced Manufacturing Base, a 1.7-meter-tall robot steps towards the production line with small strides. Trained to perform tasks, it methodically completes quality inspections on door locks, taillight covers, and seat belts, finally affixing the car logo with delicate precision.

This marks the world’s first instance of a humanoid robot collaborating with humans on a car assembly line, performing both assembly and quality inspection. In the highly repetitive environment of an automotive production line, robots are introducing new possibilities.

A thousand kilometers away is the place making the greatest strides in humanoid robotics, the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, or Beijing E-Town, in suburban Beijing’s Yizhuang. It has emerged as an innovation hub for the humanoid robot industry, with the size of the sector accounting for over 50 percent of the capital city’s total.

Beijing E-Town has been strategically planning its humanoid robot industry since 2022, according to a staff member of its robot and intelligent manufacturing industry bureau. In a relatively short period of time, it has attracted over 100 companies related to humanoid robots.

The Zhongguancun (Yizhuang) International Robot Industrial Park, covering an area of 250,000 square meters, has become the center of their efforts. It is home to industrial giant UBTECH as well as Beijing Embodied Artificial Intelligence Robotics Innovation Center, or HUMANOID.

At HUMANOID, a humanoid robot called Tien Kung can follow the instructions of staff members. On April 27, 2024, the center revealed its independently developed general-purpose humanoid robot as a technological research platform.

When Tien Kung made its debut, it achieved the world’s first instance of an anthropomorphic full-size fully electric-driven intelligent robot running, as the robot sprinted onto the stage.

“This reflected the technological strength of our team,” said Li Chunzhi, deputy general manager of the center.

Measuring 1.63 meters in height and 56 kilograms in weight, Tien Kung showcases an impressive array of capabilities including climbing stairs and navigating obstacles. It has already demonstrated high-level embodied intelligence capabilities, including visual recognition, voice interaction, and unstructured object handling.

The center was established by industrial leaders like UBTECH, Beijing Jingcheng Machinery Electric Holding Co., Ltd. (Jingcheng Machinery Electric), and Beijing E-Town Robot Technology Industry Development Co., Ltd. in November 2023. It aims to build itself into a globally influential source of innovation in embodied artificial intelligence (Embodied AI) and a demonstration zone for Embodied AI.

The center has attracted top global scientists and engineers in embodied AI robotics, with research personnel accounting for over 70 percent of its total staff members. According to Li, three of the four heads of the center’s technical department are PhDs who returned from renowned overseas universities and have extensive experience in related fields.

Photo shows a humanoid robot called Tien Kung walking in the open air. (File photo)

UBTECH on its own has also developed a series of increasingly advanced humanoid robots since 2012. Its industrial humanoid robot Walker S, introduced in 2023, is the model working in NIO’s Hefei manufacturing plant.

The company’s dedication to innovation is evident in its impressive patent portfolio. By the end of 2023, UBTECH had secured over 2,100 patents related to robotics and artificial intelligence, including more than 400 overseas patents, over 50 percent of which were invention patents, according to Jiao Jichao, vice president of UBTECH. The company has more valid humanoid robot patents than anyone else in the world.

Although Beijing E-Town houses over 100 companies related to humanoid robots, it aims to attract more upstream and downstream enterprises in the sector.

Founded in 2015, Beijing Chietom Precision Transmission Technology Co., Ltd. (Chietom) is a company that specializes in developing and manufacturing rotate vector (RV) reducers, essential components applied in industrial robot joints. It has emerged as a leader in the field of high-precision transmission technology for robots.

Zhang Yueming, chief scientist of Chietom, said the company started research on reducers for humanoid robots in 2019. Zhang, also a renowned expert in robot reducers and a professor at Beijing University of Technology, led his team as they achieved scientific breakthroughs on the core technologies of RV reducers. Today, Chietom can produce 200,000 reducers annually, addressing a crucial technological bottleneck in the industry.

Photo shows a humanoid robot called Tien Kung identifying and grasping objects. (File photo)

The practical applications of humanoid robots are already being explored in various industries.