Carrying nearly 40 kilograms despite their slender limbs, an unusual group of robot dogs were recently spotted moving up and down the steps on Mount Tai, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in east China’s Shandong Province.
These robot dogs were undergoing weight-bearing climbing tests. Their mission is to free human porters from the longstanding challenge of garbage removal on Mount Tai.
Ma Yufei, head of the property management team at Taishan Cultural Tourism Group, explained that these robots are industrial-grade quadruped machines developed by a domestic technology company.
Regarded as the foremost one of the Five Great Mountains of China, Mount Tai is of both historical and cultural significance. However, due to its steep terrain and narrow, winding roads, large-scale mechanized cleaning operations have long been unfeasible on Mount Tai. For years, human porters have had to carry trash up and down the mountain on foot.
“In 2023, Mount Tai saw a record 8.62 million visitors, generating 24,000 tonnes of waste,” Ma said. “The difficulty and cost of garbage collection and removal have both increased significantly, making efficient cleanup a real challenge.”
Robot dogs could help to make waste removal faster and more efficient at this famous venue. These robots are designed to excel in rough terrain, move steadily on slippery surfaces, climb stairs with ease, and cross obstacles like wooden barriers and platforms up to 40 cm high. Each can carry a maximum load of 120 kg and operate for over four hours on a single charge, according to testers. “In the past, we had to carry everything ourselves. But if these robots can be deployed after fine-tuning, it will greatly ease our workload,” said Zhao Xingzhong, a cleaner on Mount Tai