Production of Sony’s AIBO, probably the world’s most famous robotic dog, may have been discontinued in 2006, but that didn’t stop other Japanese companies to keep on developing similar robots. 12 years after AIBO saw the light of day, Tokyo-based NSK took the wraps off a more advanced (nameless) robo-dog [JP].
Unlike AIBO, the NSK robot is designed to actually fulfill a purpose one day: serving… → Read More
We’ve shown you robots completing various tasks in the past, but this new model, a small hobby humanoid, can ride a bicycle like a human being. It’s not the first of its kind (Murata’s robot and Panasonic’s EVOLTA robot come to mind), but the model that’s pictured on the left costs just US$2,220 in its standard configuration.
Dr. Guero [JP] from Japan modified KHR3HV, a bipedal robot made by… → Read More
Honda isn’t the only Japanese car maker active in robotics (with Asimo etc.), Toyota has been active in this area for quite some time, too. Big T showcased a total of four robots yesterday, all with the healthcare and nursing markets in mind. It’s not a surprise Japan’s biggest car company is focusing on these areas, as its home country has the oldest society in the world (23% of the population… → Read More
And we’re another step closer to Robocalypse: researchers at the Nara Institute Of Science And Technology (NAIST) in Tokyo are working on a robot that’s supposed to one day dress humans autonomously. The current prototype, which NAIST says is the world’s first robot of its kind, can help to put a T-shirt on a dummy in about 10 seconds.
What’s interesting is that for the arms, NAIST uses WAM… → Read More
Japan-based Murata caused quite a splash in the tech world with their awesome unicycle humanoids a while back, and now the company is applying the robot technology used in those machines for something that’s not just entertaining to watch. The advanced balancing system in particular is what makes their newly developed “assistance car” so special.
As you can see in the video embedded below, the… → Read More
RIBA II is the name of a cute caretaker robot from Japan, which we covered before but now have a professionally made video of. The two-armed robot was developed by Tokai Rubber Industries and RIKEN (a private research institute based out of Tokyo) and is supposed to make life easier for care facility personnel.
RIBA II is able to “gently” lift people (weighing up to 80kg) off the floor and onto… → Read More
And we’re one step closer to the Robocalypse: a research team at the Nagoya Institute of Technology has developed a passive robot that can walk on its own. All it needs to get moving is a gentle push – no motors, sensors or even electricity needed. Its legs and ankles are powered by potential energy only.
The makers says the robot is made of aluminum and took 100,000 steps in a row during a… → Read More
Using carbon nanotubes, Stanford researchers have been able to create touch-sensitive, gooey skin for AI sensing, prosthetics, and touch-sensitive sex androids. The skin could give robots touch-sensitivity and allow patients to regain feeling in their artificial limbs.
The tubes, when embedded into the plastic skin, act as tiny, compressible springs. These tubes can bend and squeeze as… → Read More
Do you remember Actroid-F, the super-realistic humanoid that we’ve shown you last year? Her makers, robot venture Kokoro and Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), have apparently been working hard since then to create a “brother” for her.
According to AIST, people kept asking the institute why it only manufactured a female robot, and they not only did… → Read More
The Japanese have them, the Germans have them, the Vietnamese have them, and now China has them, too: ping pong robots. A team of researchers at Zhejiang University in Eastern China has worked a total of four years to come up with two humanoids that can play ping pong with each other or against human players.
The robots, named Kong and Wu, are 160cm tall, weigh 55kg and feature 30 joints. A… → Read More
We’ve already shown you Panasonic‘s cool hair-washing robot on video, but the company is currently showcasing two more robots at the CEATEC 2011 tech exhibition in Japan: one is the so-called HOSPI-Rimo (an assistance robot that we covered two weeks ago), the other model is aptly named RoboticBed.
The video below shows the HOSPI-Rimo (Remote Intelligence and Mobility/pictured above) in action… → Read More
Panasonic took the wraps off a new version of it’s super-strange (and awesome) hair-washing robot at the CEATEC 2011 tech exhibition that currently takes place in Japan (the first version is about one year old). The robot handles the entire process of hair washing autonomously: wetting, shampooing, conditioning and drying.
The new version washes your hair with a total of 24 (instead of just 16)… → Read More
I’m sure all of you remember BigDog, the utterly terrifying biomimetic robot platform that dances over rough terrain on weird legs and makes a sound like it’s full of angry bees. You didn’t think they were going to give up on it, did you? No, it’s been a rousing success apparently, so much so that they decided to build one that outdoes the original in every way.
The AlphaDog, as they’re calling… → Read More
We covered quite a few personal assistant robots from Japan in the past, but none of them were labeled as “personal porters”. But now Professor Gen Endo from the Tokyo Institute of Technology has built a unique prototype of a robot that follows the owner around and can carry stuff for them, too.
Owners simply pull the robot with the help of a cord, and the self-propelled, battery-powered robot… → Read More
Panasonic Japan announced [press release in English] the development of the so-called HOSPI-Rimo yesterday, a cute “Communication Assistance Robot” specifically designed for medical use. HOSPI-Rimo (Remote Intelligence and Mobility) is supposed to make it easier for bedridden patients to get in touch with doctors or family members living far away (“virtual visits”).
Technically, the mobile… → Read More
Japanese tech powerhouse Kawasaki is working on the so-called Power Assist Suit, a wearable robot that helps humans carry objects weighing 30-40kg without any effort from the muscles. The suit is actually one of quite a few similar models currently available in Japan.
The Kawasaki robot features a total of four motors in the parts covering the hips and knees (see picture below). The control… → Read More
And we’re yet another step closer to the Robocalypse: mini humanoid Nao (pronounced “Now”), which was first shown back in 2005, can now walk to a charging station whenever his battery is running low to get more power – all by himself.
Nao’s maker, Paris-based Aldebaran, has designed him to be a mix of autonomous and programmable robot, but so far, Nao had to be charged by its human master… → Read More
I popped into the Microsoft tent at Maker Faire yesterday and spied the new Robotics Developer Studio 4, a beta product that allows programmers to control robotic platforms from within Windows. Microsoft is focusing on the software for these robots and will depend on outside vendors to produce hobbyist and production systems for those who want to give things a try.
The program also features a… → Read More
I reviewed the Mint floor cleaning robot just about a year ago, and found it a delightful little device as long as you know what you’re getting. While it doesn’t have the capabilities of the Neato (or Smarbo) or the fire-and-forget simplicity of the Roomba, it’s great for hardwood floors, and it’s quiet, compact, and cute.
Evolution Robotics has put together an upgraded model of the little guy… → Read More
In honor of the Iron Man Triathlon in Hawaii, Panasonic has created a tiny EVolt mascot that will run, swim, and bike the course’s full 142 miles in about a week. The teeny little robot will run on EVolt batteries and, since he’s 10 times smaller than a human, he gets to take much longer to finish the course. → Read More
Panasonic sure knows how to promote their EVOLTA brand of rechargeable batteries: first, a cute mini robot powered by the batteries hoisted itself up a 500 meter-cliff at Grand Canyon, then an EVOLTA robot took on the Le Mans 24 circuit in France, before traveling 500KM from Tokyo to Kyoto last year.
And now Panasonic announced [JP] plans to let the little guy start at the Ironman Triathlon in… → Read More
The huge variety of robots is a thing to marvel at. Just a few years ago, the best they could do was roll around or walk stiffly on poorly-hinged limbs. Now we have robots that gallop, slither, and fly like a bird. This mode of transportation is totally new to me, though. The Paraswift climbs up walls by generating a suction, then gets itself safely down by jumping off and deploying a little… → Read More
We’ve covered our fair share of animal robots from Japan in the last years, but PIGORASS, developed by Yasunori Yamada from the University of Tokyo surely stands out: Yamada has developed a four-legged robot that can walk, jump, and (in a way) gallop, too.
Given that Yamada is still a master student and even advanced robots (like Honda’s Asimo, for example) are only able to move in a slow… → Read More
Are you the kind of person who would love to have an animatronic Gary Coleman on your shelf, his little pudgy face cursing like a sailor at your guests while you roller skate around your basement wearing a skin-tight rubber suit and sing reggae-infused Coldplay covers? If you said “Absolutely!” then read on. → Read More
We’ve seen some interesting developments lately in the fields of robotics and computer vision. They’re not as academic as you’d expect: enormous tech successes like the Roomba and Kinect have relied as much on clever algorithms and software development as they have on marketing and retail placement. So what’s next for our increasingly intelligent cameras, webcams, TVs, and phones?
I spoke with… → Read More
The Roomba just got new competition from Japan: Toshiba has announced [JP] a new cleaning robot today, the so-called Smarbo (which is probably short for “Smart Robot”). Just like its US counterpart, the Toshiba robot is primarily intended for use in households.
Toshiba built quite a few features into the robot, for example two CPUs (details unknown), a camera, and a set of 38 sensors (gyro… → Read More
Japan-based tech startup ITK has brought us one step closer to the Robocalypse. Roboticists around the world are working on manufacturing “sensitive” hands for robots suitable for touching humans or handling breakable objects, a problem that’s notoriously difficult to solve.
ITK is now throwing their hat into the ring with Handroid a new model that seems to be one of the most advanced robot… → Read More
An anonymous blogger known only as S.H. has been posting detailed daily descriptions of the robot-based disaster response effort at Fukushima. The blog included technical details and personal anecdotes, but nothing sensitive to national security. In early July, however, the blog was discontinued and later deleted altogether. The videos S.H. had uploaded to YouTube were made private. The origin of… → Read More
Researchers at a Czech company, Neovision, have invented a duct-cleaning robot called Jetty. This machine is joystick controlled and has a 1024×768 pixel camera. It receives power and signal over a Ethernet-over-Cat5 cable, limiting its movement to about 35 meters right now, but it can clean and inspect kitchen, industrial, and office ducts with relative ease.
The robot uses dry ice to clean… → Read More
You’re probably familiar with telepresence robot or two. We even had one rolling around the TechCrunch office for a while. They generally have fairly simple navigation interfaces: forward, back, turn left, turn right, and some controls for the camera and speaker. The trouble is that these controls are generally accessed by traditional means: keyboard, mouse, or handheld controller. And a major… → Read More
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