WATCH: Katana-wielding Robot VS a Japanese Sword Master

 by Jolene Creighton

Each year brings us closer and closer to a society that is populated by robots. Or at the very least, it brings us closer to a society that is supplemented with robots. They already make our cars; they can transform into other structures on command; and soon, they might even be our soldiers. To show just how precise and advanced these creations are, a movie was recently released by the Yaskawa Bushido Project which shows a sword master facing off against a robot.

The sword master is Machii Isao. He holds five Guinness World Records. One of these is the record for the "Fastest 1,000 Iaido Sword Cuts," which he completed in just 36 minutes and 4 seconds. That may sound like a long time, but it equals nearly 28 cuts a minute, which is just about 1 cut every 2 seconds (you try swinging your arms about like that 1,000 times and see how long it takes you).

To make the video, the Yaskawa Electric Corporation tracked the movements of Machii, and then they taught the robot how to mimic these actions.

Although the robot is shown to complete its tasks with amazing precision, for safety reasons, during filming, the cameramen wore helmets and armor. All of the other staff stood behind clear acrylic shields.

The robot shown here is an "industrial robot" using a katana. It is known as MOTOMAN-MH24, and it is the world's most advanced industrial robot. Of course, it wasn't made to be a sword fighter; rather, since it is so precise, it is expected to assist with medical treatment (though to be honest, I don't think I'd want this blue guy slashing me open for surgery).


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