robotics

Boss can now get in your face remotely

This is either a great meeting tool or a dream come true for suspicious bosses who want to keep tabs on workers in remote locations. Or both.

The "Giraffe Video-Conferencing Robot" from HeadThere is basically a mobile video-conferencing system that can roam around the office floor like a surrogate supervisor. "Because people near the robot can see and hear the user, they interact with him as if he were truly present. In a sense, the robot acts as a stand-in for the user," the company says. Creeped out yet?

The 5-foot-8 Giraffe, which can be controlled … Read more

Spy bot or alarm clock?

At first glance, we thought this was just another version of the "Clocky" runaway alarm clock, in a different color. But then we noticed the small camera that seems precariously perched on top.

It's not the amateurish design of the "Spy-Cye" that bothers us; it's the price--$695. That's because mobile spy bots are rapidly approaching commodity status. Target's toy department even sells one for kids.

It's true that the Spy-Cye can be controlled on the PC, as Red Ferret notes, but that's not unique either. Besides, counter-surveillance technologies are … Read more

Robot bloggers on way--Crave frets

Crave constantly begs for more resources, like any self-respecting blog, but a robot helper isn't exactly what we had in mind.

NEC's "PaPeRo" is designed to automatically assemble multimedia features for blogs, finding relevant material online based on conversations you have with it. (We're not kidding.) Just talk to the bot, Fareastgizmos says, and it will analyze the one-way discussion and find related photos, graphics, music and other accompaniments to post along with a video recording of the conversation.

Now we don't think that bloggers are in imminent danger of being replaced by a … Read more

Robot laser ball boogies on its own

Gadgets that light up to musical rhythms are everywhere, but they're generally stationary. That's where the "Robotic Laser Ball" has them beat. This disco bot actually hits the dance floor on its own and "gyrates violently and flashes lights in time to your music," according to Red Ferret, for 50 seconds at a time. But keep an eye on it--the ball measures only about 4 inches in diameter, so it could get stepped on.

Borg birds fly right--and left

Alfred Hitchcock must be kicking himself. Scientists from the Robot Engineering Technology Research Centre at Shandong University in China have installed a computer chip into a pigeon's brain, allowing the bird to be remote controlled.

The chip is connected to the brain with hair-thin electrodes implanted in key brain locations. Scientists then use a computer to order the bird to fly right or left and up or down.

The research is "military and intelligence" related, paralleling similar work by scientists with "Swiss Army homing pigeons" and sharks by the US Navy.

The Chinese scientists have … Read more

This bot even does the dishes

We used to joke that Japan was hurtling toward a human-free society, but now we're starting to worry that it's true. The island nation, already concerned about its rapidly declining population (of humans), has recently debuted bots that can clean buildings, plow snow, detect smoke and even police grounds while others escort hospital patients and take their temperatures.

But now robots are entering the ultimate inner sanctum: the kitchen. BornRich says a team of more than 40 Japanese researchers spent four years creating a domestic bot that can, among other things, wash dishes. (Maybe it's not such … Read more

This week in imminent doom at the hands of cyborg animals

What the hell is going on these days? Seriously.

All of a sudden, scientists have created living remote-control pigeons, monkeys that can control huge robotic arms using only their brains, and cats that are getting pimped-out bionic eyeballs. And then there's that gaming helmet that can read your mind. It's awesome, but it's also creepier than 70 clown Draculas.

Here is what I'm talking about, yo.

Real-life pigeon cyborgs: Simply by placing a bunch of electrodes and red wires in a pigeon's brain, scientists at the Robot Research Center at the Shandong University of Science … Read more

$60,000 to view the heavens

One of the more popular gadgets on the market these days is the home planetarium, and Crave has responded with items ranging from the handheld version to egg-shaped aliens. But all these pale in comparison to the Meade RCX400 with its robotic Max Mount--a combined 500 pounds of star-gazing equipment.

As any amateur Galileo will tell you, it's nearly impossible to get a decent image of the heavens because of exposure issues and planet rotation. The solution, according to OhGizmo, is a robotic mount like this one that can track objects in the sky while they're moving.… Read more

The 'most advanced' robo-boat

Here it is: "The newest and most advanced" robo-boat in the world. It sure looks the part.

Unveiled this month at IDEX 2007 in Abu Dhabi, the Marine Robotics Vessels International (MRVI) Interceptor is a fourth-generation unmanned surface vessel. Project partner SeaRobotics provided the command, control, navigation and data-acquisition system, which allows both remote control by radio and autonomous operation. In autonomous mode, an onboard computer will steer the rig on a pre-determined course to complete its programmed mission. Onboard sensors allow the craft to change course to avoid collisions.

Applications range from anti-piracy patrol to oil rig … Read more