telepresence

It's end-of-term time, which means brainy college students throughout the land are busily quaffing coffee and eschewing sleep to get their final projects sewn up.

That means too, of course, that many of these compelling projects are being put on display for the first time.

We got an e-mail from Golan Levin, a professor of new-media arts at Carnegie Mellon University, about student work in his advanced class this spring: "Special Topics in Interactive Art and Computational Design." Levin has put together a Web page of videos, and the projects display an admirable diversity of interests and approaches (and in some cases a mischievous sense of humor).

They range from Kinect-powered 3D soundscapes to virtual houseflies to sexy long-distance physical-stimulation devices (digital foreplay, anyone?).… Read more

Without machines, Zachary Thomason wouldn't live very long. The boy has been on a ventilator for all of his 12 years because he suffers from a rare muscle disorder that makes him extremely weak.

Until now, X-linked myotubular myopathy has prevented him from going to school regularly. But since the Paragould School District in Arkansas purchased a $5,000 VGo telepresence robot, chances are he'll become an avatar-style student soon.

Zach likes to play PlayStation, so he can remote-control the VGo, which is basically a Webcam on wheels. At 4 feet tall, it's designed to project the user's presence into a remote location with two-way audio and video, allowing for richer interaction than a phone call or stationary Webcam. … Read more

How many times have you given your significant other a little touch of some kind just to show you care? Maybe you slip your hand into a back pocket as you're walking down the street. Or perhaps you give your beloved's thigh a little squeeze under the table during a dinner out.

You probably couldn't count the number of times you've done this, right? This shows how important nonverbal connections are. It's one thing to say "I love you," it's another to take someone by the hand.

Marco Triverio, an interaction designer at IDEO, is trying to bring a version of this physical affection to text messaging.

… Read more

We've found the perfect accessory for your next cell phone rave/love-in.

Introducing "Hugvie," the latest creation from Japanese roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro -- the Osaka University professor behind the giant-fetus-like Telenoid R1.

The Hugvie is a colorful cushion shaped a bit like a pudgy stick figure (or the old AOL Instant Messenger logo). When you slip your cell phone into a pocket on the Hugvie, the cushion vibrates in sympathy with your caller's voice, creating a physical sensation of his or her alluring tones.… Read more

A computer monitor and keyboard are so yesteryear.

At Microsoft's annual TechForum expo earlier this week, the company showed off several amazing concept products that will have you thinking far into the future. Luckily, we have some great pictures and videos of some of these devices, which deliver a computer experience unlike anything commercially available today.

Buckle up and click on our gallery below to see innovations including a 3D augmented-reality desktop, software that tracks the history of the world, a mirror with holograms, and much more. … Read more

Could soldiers of the future fight battles in robot bodies controlled from afar? DARPA apparently thinks so, and the agency wants to create an army of surrogate fighting droids.

The U.S. military's research wing apparently is planning surrogates like in the film "Avatar" but with robots instead of giant Na'vi. It has a $7 million program code-named "Avatar" in its 2013 budget, according to Wired.

The robots would reduce risk to human fighters, just as thousands of aerial drones are already keeping pilots out of harm's way. … Read more

Telepresence robotics applications continue to get curiouser and curiouser. For instance, how about grooming your cat via a humanoid robot avatar?

That's what Tokyo-based software engineer Taylor Veltrop did with a Nao robot from Aldebaran Robotics.

Veltrop devised an interesting control apparatus for Nao, a popular research robot known for its RoboCup soccer skills.

He wanted to manipulate Nao from a distance, so a treadmill and Kinect were used to navigate the bot, while a head-mounted display controlled Nao's head while showing its camera feeds. Veltrop could thus see through Nao's eyes.

A Wii remote and the Kinect were used to control Nao's arms, including the task of using a brush to groom a cat. … Read more

Why don't laptops come with wheels? That way you could drive them around with your phone and use them as telepresence robots.

Here's a Kickstarter project that helps your Netbook get mobile. The Oculus Telepresence Robot kit puts a periscope on top of your computer and four wheels underneath, and you can pilot the thing with an Android phone, an iPad, an iPhone, an iPod Touch, or anything with a Web browser. … Read more

Inmates at a prison in South Korea will probably think twice about trying to escape after robots join guard duty on the cell block.

Beginning next March, three guard robots will be on alert for dangerous behavior at the prison in Pohang, according to a Yonhap News report.

The 1 billion won ($864,000) project is being organized by Korea's Ministry of Knowledge Economy. The robots will mainly patrol at night and serve as telepresence droids for remote human guards.

The 5-foot-tall robot, which sports four wheels and the ability to speak, is under development by the Asian Forum … Read more