Plastic Pals

Xbot and NAIS1 by Nuzoo Robotics

Robotbling — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 05:10:10 +0000

Here’s a few videos dating back several years of miniature humanoid robots I had never seen before. These two robots, Xbot and NAIS1, were developed by Nuzoo Robotics in Italy. It’s a design and engineering company that uses robotics to enhance products and services. According to their website, they’re both entertainment robots. The yellow NAIS1 stands 43 cm tall, weighs 3.1 kg, and has a total of 31 degrees of freedom. Both of these sort of reminded me of the Morph humanoids. Check it out:

Video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

This next video shows Xbot, which is an earlier robot. It was equipped with a micro camera (and a rather silly pointer laser) and had 17 degrees of freedom.

Video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Although these videos were posted in 2008, it’s unclear when they were actually completed (the video of the Macarena suggests it was quite a bit earlier). The company has also developed telepresence robots for use in hospitals.

[Source: Nuzoo Robotics (IT)] via [Nuzoo @ YouTube]

Video: DARwIn-OP gets some snow shoes

Robotbling — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 16:54:02 +0000

A cute project from the University of Manitoba’s Autonomous Agents Laboratory:

Click here to view the embedded video.

[source: Chris I-B @ YouTube]

RoboBuilder’s RQ-TITAN rocks out on the dancefloor

Robotbling — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 11:06:41 +0000

RoboBuilder’s new TeenSize robot designed for RoboCup, RQ-TITAN, does a dance in this new video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[source: RBMFile @ YouTube]

Status Update: The Future of Plastic Pals

Robotbling — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 11:00:52 +0000

You may have noticed that the number of posts has dropped dramatically in the last few months, and if you’ve been following my updates on Facebook and Twitter than you already know why. I’ve become a contributor to Gizmag, and starting today I will also be contributing to the IEEE Spectrum. These are two great publications with a much larger readership than I was able to build over the years here at Plastic Pals, and I am proud to write for them. Robot news coverage from many mainstream outlets is still far from satisfactory, and I hope that my contributions at these two sites will help raise the bar.

Gizmag is a very popular site that covers not just robots but all sorts of interesting developments from around the world with a focus on science and technology. IEEE’s Automaton blog is – simply put – one of (if not) the most respected online sources of robotics news – you probably already visit it regularly! After writing about robots all by my lonesome over the years, it’s nice to be part of two great teams.

However, this does not mean that I will be closing down Plastic Pals. The robot database, which covers more than 500 robots, took me a long time to research and write – and it would be a shame to delete it from the internet. Moving forward, however, I cannot write multiple articles about a robot across multiple sites. That’s why I’m planning on updating the robot database with links to my articles on Gizmag and IEEE Spectrum. Soon you’ll find robots in the database that have been color-coded to signify the link takes you to another site (orange for Gizmag and green for IEEE Spectrum).

So what kind of posts will get written for Plastic Pals moving forward? Well, to be honest there won’t be that many. There are still quite a few older projects I would like to add to the site, but these will only be written as my free time allows. That said, I have recently acquired an RQ-HUNO hobby robot kit from RoboBuilder, and plan to get into 3D printing in the next few months, and my projects – both robot and 3D print related – will be showcased on this site. I’m not targeting a specific number of posts, but hopefully I will have time to do at least one major post a month. You can also keep up to date with my latest writings by following me on Facebook and Twitter.

I hope you’ll follow my future articles on Gizmag and IEEE Spectrum. Plastic Pals will be doing a give-away where you’ll have the chance to win a figure based on AIST’s HRP-4C humanoid – so you’ll want to watch for that on my Facebook and Twitter. This isn’t the end, but I want to thank you all for reading and supporting Plastic Pals over the years.

• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Robotbling — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 06:01:03 +0000

Peter Jackson’s film adaptation of The Hobbit has been in theaters for a month, and I’ve already seen it twice. I figured this movie would be something most people would go see, but there have been a spate of negative reviews, and I noticed that – to my utter amazement and disgust – a dumb comedy called A Haunted House nearly doubled The Hobbit’s box office take over the weekend. Granted, these are two very different films aimed at very different audiences, but I imagine there’s some Tolkien fans who are still sitting on the fence. I didn’t see the 48 frames per second version, but I did see it in Imax 3D, and that’s the version I’ll be reviewing.

I should point out that I’ve been a fan of Tolkien since I was about eight years old, when I first saw the animated film version of The Hobbit. It wasn’t long before I read the book, and a little while later I read the much longer and more intimidating The Lord of the Rings. But it was The Hobbit that introduced me to the hobbits, dwarves, elves, and wizards of Middle Earth. I quickly became obsessed with that world and its characters. There were no toys in any stores readily available, but I found some anyway – unpainted miniatures made for the pen and paper role-playing games – which I diligently collected with what little allowance I had. I suppose you could say I was something of a diehard fan, and while my interest has waned over the years, I anticipated a proper live action adaptation of the book.

When it was announced that Jackson would be dividing the story into three films the news didn’t bode well, but now I’m quite happy he didn’t try to cram the whole story into one film. The first part, An Unexpected Journey, runs for almost three hours but (aside from one or two scenes) feels like it goes by all too soon. There seems to be some consensus that the 48 frames per second version of the film is a bit off-putting, but the regular 3D version is – to my eyes, at least – quite successful.

As in The Lord of the Rings, the costumes, make-up, sets, props, and CGI are all incredibly well done and faithfully recreate the world and characters. As an artist myself, I tend to revel in the details, and being able to see all of it in 3D adds to the experience. When, for example, Bilbo excuses himself from an uncomfortable meeting with Gandalf and peeks through Bag End’s circular windows to be sure the old wizard is gone, the 3D effect makes the scene that much more effective.

And Jackson’s adaptation isn’t just a rote retelling of the book, but fleshes out the story with scenes based on material found in the appendix of The Lord of the Rings. I wasn’t entirely happy with the changes made to The Lord of the Rings, but here the extra material is interwoven into the plot quite successfully. When Tolkien first wrote The Hobbit, he didn’t have the entire picture in his head – so all of this extra material from the appendix helps create a more cohesive whole. For example, readers of the book will no doubt recall the warg attack on the party, which causes them to climb into trees. This scene felt like a random attack in the book, but is given context through the inclusion of a character from Thorin’s past. Other scenes have been added to foreshadow the events of The Lord of the Rings, so that all of the films will better mesh together.

A part of me is not one hundred percent happy with Martin Freeman’s Bilbo (or perhaps Jackson’s interpretation of the character), and some of the key moments (like the three trolls, or riddles in the dark) felt just a little shy of hitting their mark. However, it’s immediately obvious how much love and care has gone into these films, that, given Hollywood’s track record of crapping on its source material, makes me appreciate them all the more.

I was a little leery about seeing this movie after the initial make-up tests and its lukewarm reception – I’ve honestly got to wonder what they were expecting – but I am happy to report that in my opinion it’s pretty awesome and you shouldn’t miss it while it is still on the big screen.

The Hobbit @ IMDB & Rotten Tomatoes

Christmas and end of the year robot celebrations

Robotbling — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 06:01:27 +0000

Merry Christmas from Team Robo-Erectus:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Qbo wishes you a Merry Christmas:

Click here to view the embedded video.

NAO Jingle Bell rock:

Click here to view the embedded video.

NAO wishes you a happy new year:

Click here to view the embedded video.

AiSoy Robotics wishes you a Merry Christmas:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Autonomous Christmas Lab…?

Click here to view the embedded video.

AILA teleoperated with CAPIO exoskeleton

Robotbling — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 06:10:55 +0000

Here’s a video showing AILA’s arms being teleoperated by an upper-body exoskeleton.

Video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

[source: DFKIvideo @ YouTube]

• ISAMARO Mark II

Robotbling — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 06:10:41 +0000

Robotma.com, an online store dedicated to hobby robot kits, is taking orders for a new entry-level bipedal robot called ISAMARO Mark II. The first version of the robot cost a hefty 340,000 JPY (approximately $4,200 USD), but they’ve managed to cut the cost in half (to 168,000 JPY / $2,070 USD) by swapping the Kondo-brand servos used in its 19 joints. They originally went with more powerful servos (19 kg/cm torque), which were replaced by those with a maximum torque of 13 kg/cm. The kit, which was designed for use in competitions, will ship this December.

ISAMARO MarkII Entry Set
Height: approx. 350 mm
Weight: approx. 1.9 kg
Degrees of freedom: 19
Actuator: KRS-4031HV (× 19)
Optional: wireless device
Battery: Lithium-polymer
Control board: RCB-4HV

Video (ISAMARO Mk. I):

Click here to view the embedded video.

[source: ISAMARO (JP) & Robotma (JP)] via [My Navi News (JP)]

HUBO dances, prepares for DARPA Challenge

Robotbling — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 06:10:08 +0000

Here’s a couple of videos of KAIST’s HUBO 2 dancing, first a smooth original creation followed by one based on PSY’s Gangnam Style.

Video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Video (Gangnam Style):

Click here to view the embedded video.

And finally, here’s a video showing HUBO practicing the all-important valve turning maneuver for the upcoming DARPA Robotics Challenge.

Video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

HRP-4C Gets Immortalized As Action Figure

Robotbling — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 11:15:57 +0000

A figure model based on AIST’s female android is being manufactured by WAVE Corporation, a model company which previously sold kits based on Honda’s P2 and P3 humanoid robots. The 1/12 scale model kit (14 cm tall) requires assembly, but the parts are already painted and feature easy snap-fit construction. It is also fully posable, and comes with three heads for different expressions (“normal,” “surprised,” and “angry” ). The kit won’t be shipped until February of next year, but it can be pre-ordered online at stores like Ami Ami and Hobby Link Japan for around $28 USD (not including shipping).

Hopefully this kit will prove popular enough for WAVE that they’ll make more based on the other HRP series robots. I’d love to have them all! More photos follow after the break.

Media

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