Tag Archives: robot

Robot Mouth is the Freakiest Thing You’ll See Today

by Noemi Twigg
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Robot Mouth

There’s something to be said about robots and how they can definitely be used to make our lives better. Like this mute quadriplegic who was able to scratch an itch by himself for the first time in 10 years. Imagine not being able to scratch an itch! I would go nuts. Then there are those robotic creations that I am just not so sure about. Like this robot mouth created by professor Hideyuki Sawada from Kagawa University in Japan. There really is no better description than that – robot mouth. The robot is a mouth. A robot mouth. I am still feeling the remnants of my freaking out as I Read more »

Wins and Fails This Week in Geek v 20

by Dina Ely
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Wins and Fails This Week in Geek v 20

-1 to keyloggers, +1 to pioneering TV, -1 to collegiate education, +1 to privacy and, of course, a big old +1 to robots, too. Not sure what the preceding means? Read on and learn all about it in this, our milestone twentieth edition of Wins and Fails This Week in Geek. WIN: +1 Google receives 1 skill point for reinventing the wheel as they roll out their Facebook “like”-esque feature called “+1”, which allows users to share content they enjoy with others. To use +1 you need a public Google profile; your name will be displayed along with your vote. The feature isn’t fully implemented yet but Google users are Read more »

These Robots Make “Fails” Look Like “Wins”

by Noemi Twigg
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These Robots Make “Fails” Look Like “Wins”

Pop quiz, guys!  Can anyone tell me the Three Laws of Robotics according to Isaac Asimov? I have no doubts that you all were able to rattle out the three laws without hesitation, but have you heard of this competition that actually aims to break the Second and Third Laws of Robotics? I can hear you thinking “Now, that’s what I’m talking about!” The competition is called Antimov Competition, and it was held last October 16 in Boulder, Colorado. The concept behind the competition is to create robots that complete trivial tasks “in the most inefficient and laborious way possible.” Additionally, the robots need to destroy themselves while completing the Read more »

Wishing for An Extra Pair of Hands? Get the Universal Gripper

by Noemi Twigg
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Wishing for An Extra Pair of Hands? Get the Universal Gripper

Have you ever had those moments when you wished you had an extra pair of hands?  I think everyone has had that experience at least once in his life.  I know Wolowitz did! For the sake of those who have not seen that TBBT season 4 episode, I will not divulge details any further.  Let me give you this quote as a teaser, though (not verbatim, based on memory): Nurse: Where is the rest of the robot? Wolowitz: I only made the arm/hand. Nurse: Oh, because that is all that you need, isn’t it? Now go watch that episode – you won’t regret it! This is not about TBBT, though. Read more »

Why Does This Wasp Fighting Robot Need A Mohawk?

by James Johnson
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Why Does This Wasp Fighting Robot Need A Mohawk?

I’m all for building robots that can handle simple everyday tasks, what I don’t understand is why you would give the robot a mohawk and then send it scurrying up a ladder. Invented in Utsunomiya, Japan by Professor Sekine, the robot (pictured above) can scurry up a ladder with a single command and spray insecticide (via a remote) at angry nests of wasps. The robot is fairly large at 5’6″ and is made out of wood and lightweight metal which makes it perfect for scaling ladders and killing nests of bees and other bugs. Read more »

HRP-4 Athletic Robot. Just In Case You Have $300,000 To Waste

by James Johnson
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HRP-4 Athletic Robot. Just In Case You Have $300,000 To Waste

Kawada Industries doesn’t just want you to have a humanoid robot helper, they want you to have a humanoid robot helper that’s athletic and that’s what they’ve recently announced alongside Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST). Called the HRP-4, the robot is 5 feet tall, built with 34 joints and weighs just 86 pounds, 8.8 lbs less than last years model from the company, the HRP-4C fembot. I’m still not sure how the demonstration shows off the “helper” part of the robot, after all they simply had it stand on one foot, twist its waist and follow a few spoken commands. On the other hand the Read more »

LEGO Johnny Five is robotic perfection

by Robin Parrish
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LEGO Johnny Five is robotic perfection

The only thing more impressive than this Johnny Five from Short Circuit built entirely out of LEGO bricks? The amount of flawless detail crammed into a LEGO build this small. Every single detail of Johnny Five is absolutely perfect. There’s his three-pronged hands, his face with the eyebrows and huge eyes, the tiny little radio dish on top of his head, his hydraulics, the red toolbox he added in Short Circuit 2 (yes, I watched those movies way too many times when I was young), and treads that actually work. And did I mention that the red toolbox actually opens and has tiny tools inside? It’s so good, it makes Read more »

Splitterbot does just what a standard audio splitter does, but cuter

by andy
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Splitterbot does just what a standard audio splitter does, but cuter

I feel just a little shame posting this Splitterbot guy just after some important leakage, but the fact is that anything with a little robot face on it has to be worth a look, even if it’s more expensive and barely more functional than a standard audio splitter. Yes, indeed, the Splitterbot is a friendly little white guy (I mean he’s made from white plastic) who sits on your keychain waiting for your need to share a banging tune with one of your mates. At this point, his head conveniently comes off (completely, mind you, not just tilting back like our R2-D2 trash can) so you can plug him into Read more »

CubeStormer: robot solves Rubik's Cube in record time

by andy
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Though plenty of new puzzles have come from the house of Rubik since the Cube, there’s no denying it still holds a special place in the heart of geeks and enthusiasts. For that reason, and for the joy of combining the Rubik’s Cube with robotics, we present CubeStormer from RoboticSolutions. The claim is that this Lego Mindstorms RCX Speedcubing Robot can solve any 33 in under twelve seconds. The video shows this: I’m happy to take their word on the machine being handed random cubes. Just brilliant. Kinda makes your human attempts at solving the cube rather futile, eh? Never mind. You can always dress up as a Rubik’s Cube Read more »

PLEN Desktop Hobby Robot

by Darice de Cuba
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PLEN Desktop Hobby Robot

Meet PLEN, an android-robot created by Akazawa Japan. PLEN can walk, dance, skate and more. This cute little robot only 23 cm tall can be controlled through Bluetooth by your Android smartphone or PC. PLEN comes with 20 pre-programmed motions, it also comes with an Android app to program your own motions for it. There are only 50 units fabricated of PLEN, each costing 2999 dollars. So this is a very expensive limited edition android-robot. The PLEN is sold as an assembly kit, you’ll only need a cross point screw driver and some time and patience to get it assembled and going. This robot looks like a true collectors item Read more »