engineering

Kuratas

Kuratas is a engineering topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Kuratas rather than just read about it. In short: Kuratas is a rideable and user-operated mecha built by the Japanese company Suidobashi Heavy Industry. Billed as "the world's first giant boarding robot", the Kuratas was unveiled when the website was opened in 2012.

Key takeaways

Kuratas belongs to engineering; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Kuratas to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Kuratas from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Kuratas is a rideable and user-operated mecha built by the Japanese company Suidobashi Heavy Industry. Billed as "the world's first giant boarding robot", the Kuratas was unveiled when the website was opened in 2012. It was demonstrated at Wonder Festival. In June 2015, MegaBots challenged Suidobashi Heavy Industry to its first robot duel confronting Kuratas versus their Mark II.

Developers The Kuratas robot was developed by artist Kogoro Kurata (after whom the suit is named), and roboticist Wataru Yoshizaki. Kurata stated that he was inspired by the mecha frequently featured in anime, especially those of the series Armored Trooper Votoms, which he watched as a child. "When I was a kid, I thought there were going to be giant robots in the future. But no matter how long I waited, people were only able to make small robots, like ASIMO. Eventually, I thought 'I can't wait anymore,' and set out to make one myself." Kurata's goal was to create a piece of art that emulated the mecha he had watched growing up. Yoshizaki was brought onboard the project to create the software for the robot's movement and pilot interaction.

Mechanics The vehicle weighs approximately 4,500 kg (9,900 lb), and is approximately 4 m (13 ft 1 in) tall. It can be crewed by one person; that operator would sit in the "body" of the robot in a seat, with the control device in front of them. The Kuratas can also be controlled externally by remote control. Kuratas sports a four-wheeled, thirty joint exoskeleton. which is controlled by the pilot or can be controlled remotely. The remote operator uses a 3g touch screen phone as the primary interface. The on-board pilot's user interface (UI) is a Kinect based device. The vehicle can be "armed" with multiple weapons, such as a 6,000 round per minute twin BB rotary cannon, a "LOHAS" launcher which fires either water bottles or possibly fireworks, and a powered humanoid hand called the "iron crow" that is capable of picking up objects, and is linked to the pilot by "what appears to be a Mattel Power Glove". The main Suidobashi website lists two other "weapons", a "Kuratas Handgun", and a "Pilebunker". Currently, the Kuratas is not capable of walking, but is able to drive forward and backwards on its four wheels at around 10 km/h. It cannot turn without external assistance. As of 25 April 2013, Kuratas has a price of US$1,353,500 (¥134,555,495, or €1,040,976).

In the media In January 2014 it was reported that a yellow customized construction type Kuratas was planned to be featured in the then upcoming film series The Next Generation: Patlabor.

See also Mecha Powered exoskeleton Glossary of robotics

References

External links Suidobashi Heavy Industry

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Kuratas

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Kuratas claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In engineering, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Kuratas before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Kuratas ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Kuratas

In research: Kuratas appears in engineering research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Kuratas in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Kuratas is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2012 robots, Entertainment robots, Individual mecha, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Kuratas outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Kuratas in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Kuratas means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Kuratas out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kuratas in simple terms?

Why does Kuratas matter?

Because it connects several engineering ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Kuratas?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Kuratas.