Boston Dynamics Cheetah Can Run Faster than ME!

Posted by admin on March 9, 2012
Posted in: Locomotion, Scary, Technology. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

Boston Dynamics funded by DARPA’s Maximum Mobility and Manipulation program have released videos of their new robot “Cheetah” which can gallop at 18 miles per hour (30 kph)! This sets the land speed record for legged robots.

Notice how the robot flexes its back while running just like living quadrupeds. Compare this with the video below of a living Cheetah…

While still a far cry from the 70 mph top speed of a living Cheetah, this robot lives up to the punch line of that old joke: I don’t have to run faster than the bear, I just have to run faster than you!

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Quadcopter Swarm Plays James Bond Theme

Posted by admin on March 2, 2012
Posted in: Flying Robots, Music, Swarm Robotics, Video. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

Engineers at Penn’s School of Engineering and Applied Science have programmed a swarm of quadcopters, also known as quadrotors, to collectively play the James Bond Theme using real musical instruments.

The quadcopters make a dramatic entrance with smoke and lights, and then proceed to perform. The musical instruments include the keyboard, drums, maracas and a cymbal. A guitar built from a couch frame is also played by the quadcopters flying over the guitar strings and dragging wires across them. The quadcopters play the key board by hovering over various landing pads each of which is attached to the keyboard keys.

Watch the fun here:

Read more via Flying robots perform James Bond theme by playing instruments at Metro

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Meet Nao from Aldebaran Robotics

Posted by admin on February 24, 2012
Posted in: Humanoid, Technology. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

Meet Nao from Aldebaran Robotics!

From the Aldebaran Robotics website:

NAO is a programmable, 57-cm tall humanoid robot with the following key components:

Body with 25 degrees of freedom (DOF) whose key elements are electric motors and actuators

Sensor network, including 2 cameras, 4 microphones, sonar rangefinder, 2 IR emitters and receivers, 1 inertial board, 9 tactile sensors, and 8 pressure sensors

Various communication devices, including voice synthesizer, LED lights, and 2 high-fidelity speakers

Intel ATOM 1.6 GHz CPU (located in the head) that runs a Linux kernel and supports Aldebaran’s proprietary middleware (NAOqi)
Second CPU (located in the torso)

27.6-watt-hour battery that provides NAO with 1.5 or more hours of autonomy, depending on usage

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Giant Dinosaur Robots!

Posted by admin on February 24, 2012
Posted in: Locomotion, Robot Attack, Scary. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

Wanna make a robot?
Why not make it as big and scary as possible?

The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology in Japan has developed some amazing dinosaur robots that can actually walk around and trample small children (and adults!) underfoot!

Who ever said you needed real dinosaurs to bring on all the trouble of Jurassic Park?
Bring it on! WestWorld Prehistoric Style!

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Old Glory Robot Insurance

Posted by admin on February 22, 2012
Posted in: Humor, Robot Attack, Robotic Takeover, Scary. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

Do you have robot insurance?

Image of robot attack

Robot Attack!

Consider Old Glory Robot Insurance, because when they grab you with their metal claws, you can’t break free. Because they are made of metal, and robots are strong.

Seriously, robots are everywhere and they eat old people’s medicine for food!
Watch it here!

Another Robot Attack!

Another Robot Attack!

For when the metal ones decide to come for you!
AND THEY WILL!

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Robonaut Comes Alive on the ISS

Posted by admin on February 22, 2012
Posted in: Androids, Space, Telepresence. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment
Image for Robonaut 2

Robonaut 2

NASA’s Robonaut 2 (robotic astronaut), which is called R2 for short, was delivered to the International Space Station (ISS) in early 2011. Last week, R2 came to life and greeted Commander Dan Burbank with the first “man-robot” handshake in space.

First Robonaut-Astronaut Handshake

First Robonaut-Astronaut Handshake

R2 can controlled by telepresence either from Earth or from the ISS. R2 runs on 38 PowerPC processors and has over 350 sensors which makes it extremely dextrous and able to sense its surroundings.

Here is a video:

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Universal Jamming Grippers Throw

Posted by admin on February 22, 2012
Posted in: Technology. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

DUCK!
Researchers at the University of Chicago, Cornell University and iRobot who developed the Universal Jamming Gripper have recently taught their robot to throw things!

Here is a video of the robot in action!

The Universal Jamming Grippers consists of a balloon filled with sand or coffee grounds. When slightly inflated it can wrap itself around an object. Then when the air is removed the balloon tightens its grip and holds tight.

Universal Jamming Grippers in Action

Universal Jamming Grippers in Action Picking up a Glass of Water

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