Turkish engineers debut real-life Transformer, morphing from a car to a robot

A team of Turkish engineers has turned sci-fi into reality by introducing Turkey's first domestic robo-car this week at the Ankara-based Gazi University's technopark. The team, including 12 engineers and four supporting technicians, created the LETRONS model robo-car named "Antimon" in eight months. The car's supporting software was also developed at the technopark.

The robo-car can talk, understand commands and move its head. The remote-controlled robo-car was transformed from a real unused car and entirely redesigned with new features. Management software allows voice interaction and high performance movement capability. The car also features angle-controlled arm movements by means of its power dynamic actuators and sensors. The vehicle doesn't have room for a driver or passenger like its sci-fi counterparts.

Speaking at the launch event, Turgut Alpagot, the marketing director of Letvision and one of the car's engineers, said the robo-car responds to voice commands and can move its parts. The creatively designed car is not allowed into traffic and the team is planning to add more features on it, like walking, in near future.

So far, the robo-car has attracted great interest from companies and its launch video has been viewed by many in only a week. "When we say hello to Antimon, it responds immediately," Alpagot said. The team said Letrons-model cars can be built from different car models.

Letvision is supported and awarded by the Industry Ministry and KOSGEB as a registered successful startup and R&D company.