As if it isn’t crazy enough that a 14-year old set the world record for solving a Rubik’s Cube in under five seconds last November, a couple of software engineers have now built a robot that can crack it in just over one second.
Comprised of a number of stepper motors, 3D-printed parts, webcams and an Arduino chip all connected to a Linux system, Jay Flatland and Paul Rose’s robot can consistenly solve Rubik’s Cube puzzles in less than 1.2 seconds.
The duo use the Kociemba algorithm to solve the puzzle, and have drilled holes into the middle of each of the cube’s six sides to allow the robot to manipulate it.
To test the machine, its cameras are covered so they can’t see the cube until it’s properly scrambled.
The current machine record time to beat is 3.253 seconds, which means Flatland and Rose can look forward to trumping it soon. They are currently in the process of applying for a world record.
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