Robot sparring partner

[emattson]

Boston Dynamics had unveiled a new Atlas robot for commercial use. It is entirely powered by electricity. I can imagine if they can bring the price down, the robot can be a perfect sparring partner for practice. He can try out deadly karate strikes without fear of injuries. The robot can measure his kata and accurately critique them. Any thoughts?

[richardaik]

I will love that massively because sparring in Virtual Reality i can't do leg related work.

[emattson]

Using virtual reality may be the best option for the near future since we already have primitive hardware which can work by tracking both hands and feet. It can buzz certain parts of the body if you make a hit. Some options: are Skywin VR Tracker Belt, Tracker Hand and Feet Strap Bundle for HTC Vive System Tracker Pucks; Sony mocopi 3D Mobile Motion Capture for VR and 3D Content Creation; Rebuff Reality Trackstrap Plus for Vive Ultimate Tracker, Vive Tracker, Tundra Tracker, 20+ Hrs Playtime, Full Body Tracking in VR Chat & Dance Dash. Apple is reportedly still working on full body tracking for Vision Pro so the platform can eventually support fitness apps. Unfortunately, there's no VR standards, making it very hard to code software.

[emattson]

Another option is full-body exoskeleton suits hooked up to a computer loaded with all sorts of kata--from the basics to advanced. You can put on the suit and code it to what kata you want to learn. It then can move your arms and legs perfectly matching correct blocks and strikes. After enough hours, you will know the moves through muscle memory. It can then let you do a kata and give accurate feedback immediately after each move. Obviously, it needs to be customized to be best suited for body size and type. Also each person may have style preference which it needs to be customized. It will be expensive though; each exoskeleton costs $3,000 to $4,000 in 2024 dollars.

[emattson]

Sensei George Mattson commented that having an exoskeleton moving your body will not produce muscle memory. The person has to do it himself many, many times. Still, the exoskeleton can position his body to help him learn quickly.