It's one of the most advanced robots under development by the US military.

The cheetah, described as the 'Ferrari in the robotics world', could be used on the battlefield in just ten years, according to its creators.

The stealthy machine can run faster than Usain bolt, jumps 16 inches (40 cm) and gallops for 15 minutes - all while using less power than a microwave.

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It's a robot unlike any other: inspired by the world's fastest land animal, controlled by video game technology and packing sensors - including one used to maneuver drones, satellites and ballistic missiles

It is the creation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who had to design key elements from scratch because of a lack of or shortcomings in existing technology.

That includes powerful, lightweight motors; electronics that control power for its 12 motors; and an algorithm that determines the amount of force a leg should exert within a split second.

This allows the machine to reach speeds of up to 30mph (48kph) over difficult terrain.

Insight gleaned from the design of their prototype could have real-world applications, including the design of revolutionary prosthetics, wearable technologies and all-terrain wheelchairs.

There are hopes the robot will be able to be used in search and rescue operations in hazardous or hostile environments where it's too risky to send a human rescuer.

The elegant machine can run faster than Usain bolt, jumps 16 inches (40 cm) high and gallops for 15 minutes

The cheetah, described as the 'Ferrari in the robotics world', could be saving lives on the battlefield in just ten years, according to its creators. Researcher Hae Won Park is shown here plugging batteries into the cheetah

'In the next 10 years, our goal is we are trying to make this robot to save a life,' said MIT Professor Sangbae Kim.

'When the robot is running, at every step, we calculate the appropriate amount of the force to the legs so that the robot can balance itself,' added MIT research scientist Hae-Won Park.

Sensors inside the robot measure the angle of the leg and that information is sent to an onboard computer that also organises data from the Inertial Measurement Unit which is also used to manoeuvre drones.

The project is funded by the US Department of Defense's Advanced Research Projects Agency, who is developing a similar robot being alongside Boston Dynamics.

HOW DOES A CHEETAH RUN? The cheetah is Earth's fastest land animal, able to accelerate to 60 mph (96 kph) in a few seconds Speed and agility are hallmarks of the cheetah. The predator is the fastest land animal on Earth, able to accelerate to 60 mph (96 kph) in just a few seconds. As it ramps up to top speed, a cheetah pumps its legs in tandem, bounding until it reaches a full gallop, the MIT team say - and their robo-cheetah can do the same The flexible spine, as well as unique leg muscles, give a cheetah's legs abroad swing range, allow the animal to achieve a stride of 25 ft (7.6 metres). The MIT team say the act of running can be parsed into a number of biomechanically distinct gaits, from trotting and cantering to more dynamic bounding and galloping. In bounding, an animal's front legs hit the ground together, followed by its hind legs, similar to the way that rabbits hop — a relatively simple gait that the researchers chose to model first. 'Bounding is like an entry-level high-speed gait, and galloping is the ultimate gait,' Kim says. 'Once you get bounding, you can easily split the two legs and get galloping.' As a cheetah bounds, its legs touch the ground for a fraction of a second before cycling through the air again. The percentage of time a leg spends on the ground rather than in the air is referred to in biomechanics as a 'duty cycle'; the faster an animal runs, the shorter its duty cycle. Advertisement

'In the next 10 years, our goal is we are trying to make this robot to save a life,' said MIT Professor Sangbae Kim, who is pictured here alongside a prototype of the robotic cheetah

MIT researchers Randall Briggs, left, and Will Bosworth monitor the robotic cheetah during an early test run

MIT scientists said the robot (left), modeled after the fastest land animal, may have real-world applications, including the design of revolutionary prosthetics, wearable technologies and all-terrain wheelchairs. The machine could beat Usain bolt (right) in a race

The company says its version is powered by an off-board hydraulic pump and uses a boom-like device to keep it running in the centre of the treadmill.

Crafting the cheetah robot took five years of designing, testing, tweaking and plenty of confidence to ignore those who said electric motors aren't strong enough to propel a running mechanical cheetah powered by batteries.

Researchers had to exercise a lot of patience during test runs. The robot broke dozens of legs manufactured by 3D printers and reinforced with Kevlar strips and carbon fiber.

Strong, lightweight components make untethered running possible, including a carbon fiber-and-foam sandwich frame that can absorb the forces generated by running and jumping.

Some off-the-shelf components, including an Xbox controller for manoeuvring the robot and wireless internet communications for sending commands, were also used.

Each leg is propelled by three motors that can generate powerful forces at slow speeds.

Still, researchers continue to tweak their prototype, looking to add additional sensors that would eventually make the robot autonomous.

Strong, lightweight components make untethered running possible. Each leg is propelled by three motors

Researcher Hae Won Park works on the software for a robotic cheetah with a Xbox game controller