Image via Kawaski Heavy Industries
Kawaski has blown people’s minds by revealing the CORLEO, a four-legged robot horse you can ride, on April 3. Needless to say, this is nothing anyone was expecting from Kawaski or even asked for, but it might be a revolutionary invention when it comes to personal mobility in the great outdoors.
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Some will argue we already have horses, making the CORLEO unnecessary or even inferior. We haven’t ridden one, so obviously we can’t say anything about what this robot is like. But it’s a different way to get around and at the very least could be a lot of fun.
It’s not entirely like a horse, lacking the long neck and head, instead looking more like a motorcycle where the rider grips handlebars and there’s a small windscreen. Plus, you don’t have to clean up any manure or feed the thing bags of oats.
Instead, the Kawaski CORLEO is powered by hydrogen fuel cells located in the rear section of the body. We assume refueling can be done at a hydrogen station where cars go. That begs the question, will this robot be street legal?
Obviously, the big draw with this Kawaski is its off-road capabilities. It can climb, jump, and auto-level to keep the rider steady – all things an adventure or dirt bike can’t do. Riders use the stirrups on the underside as well as the handlebars to control the robot.
A digital dashboard shows the trail the rider is traveling, speed, fuel level, direction of travel, and other vital info. There’s a heads-up display which will even show the rider exactly which direction to take to stay on a trail and reach a particular destination.
We question how something like this will impact outdoor trails. After all, if you venture into the great outdoors much, you know firsthand e-mountain bikes have had an effect, and it’s not all good.
For now, we don’t get to see CORELEO truly in action. The preview video features heavy amounts of CGI, making it clear this is a concept and not something that’s coming to market anytime soon. Still, it’s generating plenty of at least casual interest, which is precisely what Kawasaki wants.
Image via Kawaski Heavy Industries
