Posted by: in Rebots
Not that we haven’t seen cooking robots before, but there’s just something distinctly awesome about one that whips up a sandwich. Particularly one that kvetches first, and then gives in and makes a sandwich. Bre Pettis’ Sudo robot isn’t exactly sophisticated — anything more than a simple grilled cheese is asking a bit much — but even that should be plenty for the average college student. Check the read link to see it in action, and don’t be surprised to see Subway pick this up and tweak it for use with multiple toppings and condiments.
[Via Digg]
Filed under: Robots
Sudo robot begrudgingly makes sandwiches on command originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 Feb 2009 20:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted by: in Rebots
Mapping robots have been tooling around the earth for quite some time, but a new development in their tech seems to be leading them in the direction of far more accurate results. In general, these mapping bots scan the territory they are in, but often have trouble recognizing a location they’ve previously seen because of incidental changes, such as the addition of a car here and there. The research team, working in Oxford, England, has worked out a way to get the robot to “ignore” such negligible variables, by having it assign identifiers, in the form of words, as it trucks along the terrain. The robot can assign up to a thousand words every two seconds to a location as it moves, with related words linked together as a “bag of words” so that if it revisits a location and sees a bicycle seat and a bicycle wheel, it identifies this bag of word as one item, preventing the bot from attaching too much significance to several missing items. The robot is currently set to map a 1,000 km piece of land in Oxford, which would apparently be the largest stretch ever by a bot. Check the video after the break (warning: it autoplays!)
Continue reading Mapping robots equipped with visual vocab filters for more accurate mapping
Filed under: Robots
Mapping robots equipped with visual vocab filters for more accurate mapping originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Feb 2009 15:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted by: in Rebots
One of the big problems facing
VR is the issue of mobility — how do you allow users unrestricted movement in virtual reality, while keeping them relatively static in real reality?
Omni-directional treadmills have been tried in the past, and now researchers at the University of Tsukuba in Japan have developed something called CirculaFloor. The system uses four robotic tiles that constantly shift position, ensuring that there’s always a tile in the direction you’re headed. Additionally, the entire assembly moves slowly backwards, giving one the impression of movement while they’re actually standing relatively still. The tiles also incorporate lifts, for simulating staircases and the like. While this research is promising, there’s still plenty of work to be done — for instance, the tiles still move awful slowly, and while they seem sturdy enough for a leisurely stroll, a Left 4 Dead implementation isn’t apt to happen any time soon. Video after the break.
[Via Tech Digest]
Continue reading CirculaFloor robot floor tiles keep you moving in virtual reality
Filed under: Robots
CirculaFloor robot floor tiles keep you moving in virtual reality originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Feb 2009 14:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted by: in Technology
When closed, it looks just like your standard eraser, but take the cap off and it’s a functional USB flash drive. Unfortunately, the case will eventually be worn off after heavy usage. Pricing and availability have not yet been announced.
Since everyone started using that fancy ‘delete key’ the lowly eraser just isn’t in as much demand as it used to be. But the surefire way to make any product more useful these days is to somehow integrate it with a USB flash drive. And that’s exactly what Studioroom906 has done with their Eraser USB Memories Stick.
[via OhGizmo]
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Here at Engadget HQ, we’re having a heated debate on which aspect of this finding is more fascinating. The fact that a Rolly can conduct an entire choir of musical AIBOs, or the fact that we finally understand the purpose of Sony’s questionably useful jellybean. Have a look at the video above and toss your vote in below.
[Via MAKE]
Filed under: Robots
Video: Rolly conducts choir of AIBOs, crowd goes wild originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Feb 2009 13:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Posted by: in Technology
Believe it or not, “photographer Eirik Solheim managed to encapsulate the passage of an entire year into a 40 second HD clip using photos complied from his Canon 400D.” Video after the break.
Solheim snapped images out his window at regular intervals all through 2008 and recorded background sounds using a Canon S2 IS and a Canon HF10 camcorder.
[via Gizmodo]
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Posted by: in Technology
For those who were out this weekend, and missed the contest update. Please enter by clicking here and telling us whether or not you’ll be upgrading to Windows 7, and why. There’s two more days to enter (11:59pm, December 31st), so get your entries in!
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In addition to the Modulo pakage, the 2009 Japanese Honda Insight will come in “a base DX trim along with an up-level LX edition and a sportier EX model with such tasty bits as a paddle-shifted CVT automatic transmission and navigation system with 7-inch screen.” Click here for first picture in gallery.
With just 88 horses underhood along with an additional 14 from the hybrid’s electric motor, don’t anticipate the Insight to be a tire scorching performer, as its true calling with be in delivering the ideal fuel economy possible.
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More than just a standard piece of cardboard, this Planetary Gear business card “will definitely get noticed - making you appear more creative and hardworking than you probably are.” Video after the break.
Allowed, making one of these cards using the basic instructions provided by Thingverse is going to be a bit tricky, so don’t go handing these out to just anyone.
[via Gizmodo]
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Posted by: in Rebots
NEDO, an administrative institute in Japan, has been working on what it calls the “Project for Strategic Development of Advanced Robotics Elemental Technologies” since 2006. The project has now entered its second phase, and boasts some pretty impressive looking bots.
Murata Machinery’s robotic delivery system (pictured above) which is designed to help in places like hospitals, delivering medications late at night so that nurses and aids don’t have to spend a lot of time on such tasks. The company plans to test it and monitor the bot in use at hospitals in order to verify its effectiveness. We don’t know about you, but the idea of this guy visiting us late at night when we’re feeling low in a hospital is either really awesome or terrifically creepy. Either way, we fully anticipate this guy to have a starring role in
The Phantom of the Opera any day now. Hit the read link to check out the other participants in the project.
Filed under: Robots
NEDO’s Advanced Robotics project enters second phase, boasts completely sweet bots originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Feb 2009 21:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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