LEO the robot that can walk, fly and skateboard!

Image source, Caltech

Image caption, Check out LEO, the robot that can skateboard!

Check out LEO, the bipedal robot that can walk, fly, AND skateboard!

The name LEO, which is short for Leonardo, comes from the robot's full title: Legs Onboard Drone.

It was designed at Caltech University in the US, where the researchers were inspired by birds and insects that can change between walking and flying instantly.

Describing how the robot works, Soon-Jo Chung, a professor at Caltech, said: "Think about the way birds are able to flap and hop to navigate telephone lines."

Image source, Caltech

Image caption, The researched at Caltech studies how birds changed between walking and taking flight

A bipedal robot means it has two legs and moves in a similar way to humans.

LEO is capable of walking at 20cm per second, but he can travel faster if he mixes that with bits of flying.

It is the first robot that uses multi-joined legs and propellers together to create the perfect balance - he can even be poked and prodded without falling over!

Image source, CalTech

Image caption, LEO in action on some rocky terrain

Researchers who designed the robot are hoping it can be used for tricky tasks, such as repairs that are too high and risky for a human to carry out.

The team behind the robot hope that robots like LEO could be used on missions to Mars and other space stations in the future.

What do you think of LEO? Let us know in the comments!