Scientists created the closest-ever version of the "Bionic Man," the robot can breathe and perform other bodily functions with mechanical organs.
The parts come from 17 distributors spread across the globe, this is the first time they will be assembled into a humanoid machine, the Associated Press reported via the Washington Post. The parts will include a"working kidney and circulation system to cochlear and retina implants."
"(It's) an attempt to showcase just how far medical science has gotten," lead roboticist of the project and Richard Walker, managing director of Shadow Robot Co., told the AP.
"Bionic Man" has between 60 and 70 percent of the body functions as a living human. It's over six feet tall and can walk with the help of a Rex walking machine normally prescribed to people who have suffered spinal injuries. An electric heart pumps "blood" (which carries oxygen like human blood) through artificial veins. The robot even has a mechanical kidney.
The robot was modeled after Bertolt Meyer, a social psychologist at the University of Zurich who was born without the lower part of his arm and now sports a "bionic prosthesis."
"We wanted to showcase that the technology can provide aesthetic prostheses for people who have lost parts of their faces, for example, their nose, due to an accident or due to, for example, cancer," Meyer told the AP.
Meyer said he felt a bit uneasy when he saw the bionic embodiment of himself.
"I thought it was rather revolting to be honest," he told the AP. "It was quite a shock to see a face that closely resembles what I see in the mirror every morning on this kind of dystopian looking machine."
The robot still needs some work; it does not contain skin, a digestive system, a liver, or a brain. I cost about $1 million to create the humanoid.
"Bionic Man" will make a grand appearance at Friday's Comic Con festival in New York. The impressive robot will also be featured Smithsonian Channel documentary titled "The Incredible Bionic Man," set to air Oct. 20.
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