这个。。。嗯。。。怎么说呢， LIACC 人工智能实验室利用了开源的音乐智能分析引擎在NXT平台上，这是一个真正试图会跳舞的机器人 ，也许你对他的舞技还有所怀疑，看一看下面的视频，然后找个词形容一下。 Read More...  View(238)  Comments(1)

你肯定见过用LEGO制做的小车，而且可以用NXT控制，但是下面这一台恐怕更高级一些：

• 冰雹式子弹发射系统，速度极快；
• 履带设计，可经过坎坷路面；
• 方便的装弹设计，及时补充弹药；
• 使用最新的黑款NXT；
• 配有小型传感器和一个摄像头；
• 可以无线控制或自动攻击；

炮弹的威力很强，而且可以四杆炮弹同时开火，COOL！

在上周举行的第81届奥斯卡颁奖典礼上，WALL-E获得动画片最佳长片奖（Best Animated Feature Film）。这是WALL-E获得的最有份量的一个荣誉了，虽然国内并不引进。也算是众望所归，因为它在艺术人文科技与环境方面的内涵，击败了功夫熊猫、马达加斯加II、丛林大反攻等作品，由珍妮弗·安尼斯顿宣布并为导演安德鲁斯坦顿颁奖。本次WALL-E共有包括最佳动画片等七项提名，虽外六项均未获奖，包括主题歌Down to Earth。Pixar工作室还为颁奖制做了一个小短片。
无论如何，WALL-E是一个经典的电影，塑造了一个经典的机器人形像，最后来欣赏这首Down to Earth: Read More...  View(230)  Comments(1)

RSSC全称是Robotics Society of Southern California(加州南部的机器人俱乐部)，最近举行了迷你机器人的相扑比赛，规则很简单，所有参赛机器人都在一个30英寸的平台上互相推搡，最后留在平台上的就是冠军。最终一个NXT机器人留在了台上。

看来美国的人工还是贵，宁可用机器人作业。这台名为RG3的机器人就是高尔夫球场的种草机器人，它的全称是Robot Green Mower3，刚刚在2009高尔夫产业展上亮相过，造价高达29,000美刀。

红外钱+超声波进行定位（没有GPS？），最高运行速度每小时三点四英里，采用三个可充电铅酸电池，冲电后可以连续工作三个小时。开发团队正在加入更多的功能比如清理沙土、喷洒杀虫剂等。

无线手机操作机器人将成为机器人初学者世界的主流，随着手机的普及、功能的增加、代码的开源，以及初级机器人部件的廉价，都在推动着其向前发展。 Google Android是运行在手机上的开源操作系统， Forknife是一个机器人解决方案，下面的视频使用了HTC G1 phone手机做为控制器，操作自己的Forknife小弟挥舞着刀叉冲向蛋糕，并给予致命的一击，结果…… 机器人根据手机的平衡来左右转前进后退。第二个视频是一个模拟的飞艇，通过螺旋桨给予动力。 Read More...  View(154)  Comments(1)

在英国布里斯托尔机器人实验室（Bristol Robotics Lab），福格茨先生向我们介绍了BERTI RT-1型机器人，它可以通过绑在人手上的传感器来判断人的手势，并可以自己判断输赢。 BERTI RT-1机器人的躯干有36个自由度，手部有9个，更详细的资料请参考官网。 它在出剪刀时感觉有点“弹簧手”，不知道能不能用“分歧终端机”来解决：） 视频放送： Read More...  View(273)  Comments(1)

近些天发现了黑款的NXT，给人新奇的感觉，莫不是类似于手机的限量版？编号 10287: Intelligent NXT Brick (Black)。 也有人猜测是为了减少反光，增加一些传感器的敏感度，等。但是169美元的价格却是高了点，不知固件是否有所更新。 它的参数可以参考编号 8527的配置，建议在国外购买。 Read More...  View(244)  Comments(0)

Nexi is a MDS or Mobile, Dexterous and Social robot. She was created by MIT, Xitome and UMASS Amherst. The most amazing aspect of Nexi is her expressive face. She can show a variety of emotions such as angry, bored, confused and happy. From the Xitome website... Read More...  View(324)  Comments(0)

Cassie Bowman of NASA writes, "NASA is inviting students in grades K-12 to help name the rover for the Mars Science Laboratory mission. K-12 students can write a short essay suggesting a name, and may even win a trip to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to meet the engineers who built it. The winner will also have the chance to sign his or her name on the rover prior to its launch. Students 13 and younger must submit a mail-in form with a parent/guardian signature. Students 14-18 years old may submit by mail or online. The contest ends January 25, 2009." If you'd like to read more about the new Mars robot itself, you can find all the details at JPL's Mars Science Laboratory and MSL Science Corner websites. Let the naming begin. And good luck with that Rube Goldberg landing scheme - they must have had people working overtime to come with the most complex possible way of landing a Mars rover! Read More...  View(225)  Comments(0)

Doug Emes of the DPRG writes, "I saw the G-Robots G-Dog review mentioned on the Austin Robot Group's email list. This looks like a pretty cool robotic dog tabletop platform." The review by the folks at the Hacked Gadget blog includes lots of photos and video of the G-Dog in action. The G-Dog kit is small quadruped robot that uses 9 RS304MD servos and a built-in microcontroller. The kit also appears to include a remote-control unit and some type of Windows-based software for creating autonomous behaviours. At present G-Dog is only available in Japan but AudioCubes imports the G-Robot humanoid so they might be the place to watch for a US release of the G-Dog.

SimplySim has released an application that allows you to control either a simulated LEGO® NXT Tribot in a rich 3D environment or a real Tribot. It includes several sensors and a "claw". Some sample services are provided to demonstrate how to control the Tribot. You can also write your own services to run in this enviroment and control the Tribot. Read More...  View(385)  Comments(0)

Ever wonder what motivates those crazy RoboGames combat robot builders to put in all the long hours, money, blood, sweat, and tears? Check out the video below for some insight into the team responsible for Beer Bash - a top RoboGames competitor. There is even a cameo appearance by none other than Dr. Robot! Read More...  View(228)  Comments(0)

The single-disc edition WALL-E DVD was the bestselling DVD of 2008 on Amazon.com, the Seattle, Washington-based online retailer announced today in a news release revealing its "Best of 2008" lists, put out to highlight the year's most popular products sold on the site.It's one success after another for WALL-E: The movie recently broke the $500 million mark with its total lifetime box office gross. (See Box Office Mojo for the stats.) Read More...  View(289)  Comments(0)

Japan’s Ministry of Economy,  Trade  and Industry (METI) has proclaimed  i-Sobot the Robot of the year for 2008.Over at Make, they are claiming that the manufacturer TOMY is discontinuing making them!  Oh noes!    Can anyone confirm this?While we were hoping to get one for Christmas, we may pick one up after they holidays, before they are gone forever.i-Sobot can be programmed to dance, play drums and air guitar among other things.  It iscurrently in the Guinness as the world’s smallest mass produced robot.You can currently by one from the Maker Shed for $149.95. Read More...  View(387)  Comments(0)

This is probably the most expensive teddy bear ever built.The folks at MIT’s Personal Rbotics group have created a huggable robot with over 1500 sensors, mostly under it’s skin.  It also has web cameras for eyes, microphones for ears and a speaker for a mouth.The Hugggable was originally based on the idea of companian animals, but has taken the idea much further, including a web component that allows one to interact with others through the bear via the internet. Read More...  View(326)  Comments(1)

There are quite a few robots that will play back a song from your mp3 collection. Some, like the Miuro (video) or Sony's Rolly (video), will dance to the tunes. Others, like David Hanson's and David Byrne's humanoid Julio will perform (video). But few robots actually make music themselves. The latest episode of Robots reports on three: Haile, a wooden robot drummer, and Shimon, a Marimba player, both built by Gil Weinberg at Georgia Tech. And the flutist robot shown above, which goes back to the Waseda Talker robots, built by Atsuo Takanishi at Waseda. Tune in for some robot music! Read More...  View(316)  Comments(1)

Perfect for that holiday party is the table robot! Recently unveiled at ICRT Japan is the robot table.The dictionary.com translator says the following fun facts:Carrying the beverage which the table type robot of 2 wheel inverted pendulum inserted in the glass, you attracted the attention of the attendance person.Using an inverted pendulum, this two wheeled balancing table can carry drinks or food to customers. Kind of like a robotic waiter, but without any of the attitude. See the table in action after the break. Read More...  View(321)  Comments(4)

It might not look like much, but this little... er, big guy is a robot recently developed and employed by Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd and Sumitomo Corporation in Osaka City, Japan to clean their floors. Now we've seen plenty of service robots that love to clean, some even professionally, but this one, operated by Reibi, is especially full-featured. Based on a robot developed in Tokyo in 2001, the updated version has laser sensors for detecting and avoiding obstacles. It's also been outfitted with light transmission devices which allow it to communicate with the elevators (also modified), so that it can travel between floors all on its own. Read More...  View(339)  Comments(0)

TIME magazine published today their annual 'Top 10 Everything' list for 2008 and WALL-E is placed in the No. 1 spot in the 'Top 10 Movies' section.Influential TIME critic Richard Corliss writes, in part, that WALL-E is one of very few "great science-fiction love stories" and a 'futurist adventure' that "evoke[s] the splendor of the movie past." A lot of compliments for Andrew Stanton in his role as director as well.Expect more end-of-the-year recognition for WALL-E in the next few days. Read More...  View(344)  Comments(3)