bots

FitBot robot mannequin gets bodacious

Va-va voom! The FitBot just got busty.

The shape-shifting robot mannequin, previously only available with a male physique, now comes in female form too. Score one for robot gender equality.

The robot is part of a virtual fitting room service for online retailers created by Estonian start-up Fits.me. Customers shopping for clothes at a participating site enter their measurements online (height, chest, arm length, torso, and so on), then see photos of a real-life mannequin shaped just like them (only headless) "trying on" items in various sizes and styles.

To be clear, shoppers are not watching the robot try on clothes in real time. When a retailer signs up for the service, Fits.me snaps pictures of the bot trying on the garb in the shop's inventory and stores those photos in an online database that shoppers access later. (Watch the vid below for a safe-for-work demonstration of the naked lady FitBot trying on clothing.)

The FitBot aims to tackle online fashion retail's biggest hurdles--the lack of a fitting room and resulting hassle of having to return ill-fitting clothes. Instead of just eyeballing clothes online and guessing which size would work best, shoppers can get a more accurate sense of whether a garment will look fab or get them nominated for "What Not to Wear." … Read more

The 404 803: Where we're picking up some Funyuns, man (podcast)

Wilson mysteriously disappears on this beautiful Wednesday, but Natali's pulling a twofer this week and filling in to help us with today's rundown. To her delight, a new augmented reality app is bringing future tech from the Harry Potter series alive, a PhillieBot will chuck the first patch at tonight's game, and a new iPhone case protects more than just the device inside.

The 404 Digest for Episode 803

Robot to throw first pitch at today's Phillies game How did that RFID chip end up in my suitcase? On a related note, Natali brings this delightful Jamaican tale to our attention. The JustinCase prototype fights for safe sex.

Thanks to Attariq for drawing this picture of The 404!

Episode 803 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

TurtleBot great for driving food around the house

We've seen cool hacks with the iRobot Create and Kinect before. Now, Willow Garage has a robot kit with both of them that can act as a waiter around your home.

TurtleBot is made up of a Create and a Kinect and run by ROS, the open-source robot operating software from Willow Garage, which is known for its PR2 and telepresence robots. … Read more

Crave 39: Don't think, just AT-AT (podcast)

On the anniversary of Russia's triumphant manned space flight, Donald and Eric scheme to put America back on top by building a life-size, fully functioning Imperial AT-AT. Less ambitious projects are also covered, including a Lego Ghostbusters car, a 360 video capture lens for the iPhone, and a digital film roll to give analog cameras new life.

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Crave 38: BarBot 2011 (podcast)

In this week's episode of Crave, Eric and Donald break out of the podcast studio and follow the trail of vodka and servos to BarBot 2011, an expo of cocktail robotics. Based on Vienna's annual Roboexotica festival (a government-funded exercise in motor-controlled hedonism that runs four days), San Francisco's BarBot is equal parts science fair and nerd cocktail party. Highlights included the White Russian Hippie Maker, the Drink Making Unit 2.0, iLush 2, and the gravity-defying Cosmobot 2.0.

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Robots help sick kids go to school

Children too sick to go to school are still getting an education--thanks to robots in the classroom that transmit lessons back to the student.

Stepan Supin, 12, of Moscow has been battling leukemia for two years, and his immune system is so weak he can't leave home. However, telepresence technology allows him to go to school via remote-controlled robot.

The R.BOT 100 was developed by Moscow's 3Detection Labs several years ago, and it's been helping Stepan study history, geography, and languages since September.

Priced at roughly $3,000, the R.BOT 100 moves around on a wheeled base and has a display, Web cam, microphone, speakers, and an Internet link so Stepan can interact with his classmates and teacher.

"I can change the robot's speed, to go slower or faster. I can move his head to look left or right. I really feel as if I am in the classroom," Stepan told Australia's Herald Sun.

In Texas, Lyndon Baty also goes to school through a robot surrogate. He suffers from polycystic kidney disease and has a severely impaired immune system, which confines him to home.

Lyndon attends class with the Vgo telepresence robot, which was released last year by Vgo Communications. With two-way video, audio, and a 10-hour battery, Vgo lets Lyndon roam around the halls of Knox City High School and interact with other students (see the video below).

"I never thought when I was sick that I would ever have any interaction, much less this kind. It is just like I am there in the classroom," Lyndon said. … Read more

TankBot: The iPhone-controlled tank robot

This is TankBot from DeskPets, a fairly inexpensive (sub-$20, they say), treaded, remote-controlled toy robot that you can control with an iPhone or an iPod Touch, or even an iPad.

While using iDevices as a remote is nothing new--indeed, Apple has an app simply called "Remote" for controlling the Apple TV--the TankBot is unique in that it doesn't use Bluetooth or Wi-Fi as an interface but rather a dongle that plugs into the headphone port of the iWhatever.

Once attached, an app is downloaded. The device then uses its built-in accelerometer as a steering mechanism, allowing … Read more

CES: Grab a robotic massage from the WheeMe

LAS VEGAS--After a long, hard day at CES, there's nothing like a good massage, even if it is performed by a small robot.

Stopping at the booth for an Israeli company called DreamBots, I got a hands-on, or rather backs-on, demo of its WheeMe portable massage robot.

Fitting in the palm of your hand, the tiny massager works its magic around your back by digging in with four studded wheels, or fingerettes. The WheeMe is able to navigate your body without falling off through a series of sensors that tells it when to stop and when to shift into … Read more

LG's Hom-Bot robo-vac to challenge Roomba?

LAS VEGAS--LG Electronics is showing off its Smart Hom-Bot robot vacuum this week at CES 2011, part of its Thinq smart home appliance lineup.

With iRobot introducing an upgraded series of its dominant Roomba vac-bots at CES, the onus was on the Korean electronics giant to distinguish its product.

The Smart Hom-Bot, weighing about 7.7 pounds and standing 3.5 inches tall, can clean hardwood floors and lightweight carpets. Like Roomba, it also has edge-detect sensors so it doesn't plunge over drop-offs.

But unlike Roomba, it cleans by mapping out the room with a ultrasonic and infrared sensors … Read more

Fortinet: Job outlook improving for cybercrooks

Cybercriminals are likely to find more jobs next year, one of five top trends forecast by security vendor Fortinet.

In an ironic twist in the job market, more positions will open up for developers who can write customized malware packers, people who can break CAPTCHA codes, and distributors who can spread malicious code, according to Fortinet.

And though cybercrooks have typically deployed their own botnets themselves, Fortinet believes this job will increasingly be farmed out to middlemen, citing the Alureon and Hiloti botnets as two examples of malware distributed this way. Money mules responsible for wiring funds and cashing checks … Read more