Humanoids this, humanoids that…. But when you strip away the hype, THIS is what a humanoid really is — 21 joints talking over RS-485, each motor balancing power, precision, and timing. Intelligence is the easy part. Control is the hard part. Source: @UnitreeRobotics

Nov 6, 2025 · 10:19 AM UTC

I guess I'm out of the loop on this, RS-485, really? There exists far better serial-bus options than that.
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I agree! But this is their official documentation 💁🏻‍♀️
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Intelligence is also the hard part
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Kung Fu Cybernetics starts from control. And with unknown noise in a partially observable high regret space. Most of the intelligence on machines now is just computer vision and RL or MPC, ie. mechatronics.
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what? writing an rs485 driver takes < 1 day and the actual control logic on almost all of these qdd actuators is just a 1 line formula from the MIT cheetah paper the balancing logic is the intelligence
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We need as much of a focus on manufacturing hardware & making it better i.e harmonic acctuatores as there is on building the software … nevertheless I’d say the hardest part of a building a efficient humanoid is engineering the software stack but I’m just a comedian what do I know
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It’s all hard. But why have 21 motors for tasks that need 3?
Very well said. It is true in so many domains. Other way we put it: "Intelligence is easy, Engineering is hard"
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People underestimate how much engineering finesse goes into “simple” motion. Control is everything.
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So true! "Intelligence is the easy part. Control is the hard part."
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I think RS-485 is a bit archaic for the task😉 -it would be CAN bus at the least.
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I have an rouge idea to building new age motors
no, durability of those parts are vital. More parts, more problem and maintenance service . These robots are nice , but its expensive luxury. the same as luxury cars full of parts and electronics- All needs extra maintenance and money
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Why do people on Twitter make these cringe slogans like "Intelligence is the easy part. Control is the hard part."