Lenovo is apparently getting into humanoid robotics.
Beijing-based Zhongke Huiling recently introduced its CASBOT 01 humanoid robot, developed in partnership with the Chinese tech giant as part of its Fire Seed Project. According to reports, Zhongke Huiling is the first core partner in its program that seeks to drive innovation in robotics and artificial intelligence.
Zhongke Huiling told 36KR, a Chinese tech news website, the CASBOT’s first deployment will be at Lenovo’s notebook manufacturing factory. The robot is being trained to perform precise micro-assembly tasks.
The company says CASBOT is designed to perform tasks that traditional industrial robots can’t in flexible manufacturing environments. That’s why the humanoid is starting with laptop assembly rather than automotive factories like leading Chinese humanoids by Fourier and UBTECH.
Its intelligence level is between L3 and L4, which is a transitional state and not yet fully autonomous. The highest intelligence level is 5. At this point, the robots are performing electronics assembly tasks from a stationary base. Its software is self developed. The company plans to expand its applications once its AI is finetuned.
Standing 179 centimeters (5 feet 10 inches) tall, the bipedal humanoid has a reported 52 degrees of freedom (DoF). The dexterity puts the CASBOT 01 in the same league as other contemporary Chinese humanoid robots like Fourier’s GR-2, Kepler’s Forerunner K2 and Xpeng’s Iron. It’s also in the same range as NASA’s Robonaut R2, which was the first humanoid robot to go into space in 2011.
It’s on the high end compared to perceived leaders in humanoid robotics today like Tesla’s Optimus and the Figure 02, but Chinese robotics firms emphasize articulation and flexibility much more than their North American counterparts.
There are humanoids with much higher degrees of freedom like Torso 2 by Clone Robotics which boasts 164 and Kengoro by the University of Tokyo with 174. Also, the most advanced iterations of Honda’s legendary Asimo have 57 DoF. Honda retired Asimo in 2018.
Its five-fingered hands weigh just 800 grams each for delicate tasks. A demo video posted on the Chinese microblogging platform Weibo shows the CASBOT using a tablet, changing a lightbulb, fetching items from a refrigerator, and playing a piano. The hands are supported by the robot’s AI-driven control system that drives precise and human-like movements.
Zhongke Huiling boasts the CASBOT’s 550 TOPS computing power, which means it can perform 550 trillion operations per second. Weighing 60 kg (132 lbs), the CASBOT 01 runs for about 4 hours on a single charge. Its joints achieve high torque density (207Nm/kg) and efficiency (over 80%).
Founded in 2023, Zhongke Huiling filed a patent in January 2024 that describes a method for finetuning a robot’s camera position for optimal image clarity during industrial defect detection.
Zhongke Huiling plans to release an upgraded version of the robot, CASBOT 02, in 2025 with enhanced AI and mobility capabilities. Founded in 2023, the company recently relocated to the Zhongguancun Dongsheng Science and Technology Park, a hub for tech innovation.