'Robo-Roo' Robot Jumps Just like a Kangaroo (Video)

In case you haven't, meet 'Robo-roo'--the robot that jumps just like a Kangaroo.

Scientists crafted this masterpiece together as part of the Festo's Bionic Learning Network, a company that has previously worked on robots that mimic such natural designs as Smart Robotic Seal and a robotic arm that looked similar to an elephant's trunk.

For the past two years, the German group has been secretly concocting just how to make this robot more realistic, according to The Daily Mail. Dubbed the 'BionicKangaroo,' this robot is controlled by gestures that help it to create energy needed for the next jump.

The robot does this with an elastic spring that partially 'charges' its legs for landing, according to Evan Ackerman in IEEE.

"With the BionicKangaroo we have precisely reproduced the most characteristic features of natural kangaroos: recuperating and storing energy, and then releasing it once more in the next bound," said Heinrich Frontzek, head of Corporate Communication and Future Concepts at Festo, via NWN. "In the artificial kangaroo, we realized the function of the natural Achilles tendon by means of an elastic spring element made of rubber."

Festo notes that this latest creation is to help demonstrate how energy from movement can be recovered quickly and sufficiently.

According to IEEE, the new robot will be officially revealed next week in Hannover Messe.

Want to see the robotic kangaroo in action? Check out this video of the robot, courtesy of YouTube.