Car manufacturer Ford uses a'mechanised posterior' to simulate a sweaty person's bottom, it has been revealed. Ford says it uses the robot designed to imitate a large man who has just finished exercising, to test the durability of its seats. The American car maker says the'Robutt' guarantees customer's seats will stay springy after several years of use. Robutt, Ford claims, reveals the'exact pass pattern of a person's sitting behaviour' and allows the firm to build better car seats. Footage of the creation was released by Ford to show the unusual process.

Car manufacturing company Ford has created a new device to help engineers design comfortable products: the Robutt. The robot was invented so that engineers at the company can test the wear and tear that comes with 10 years of driving a new car. It has the ability to sit on a car seat 25,000 times in three weeks, mimicking the effect of a decade of use. The Robutt helped a team designing the new Ford Fiesta create seats that would weather 10 years of use. The Robutt sits on a seat 25,000 times in three weeks.