Building A Database For The Robots

European scientists have taken it upon themselves to create a network of databases that future robots will use to  to share information about the world... our world... their world? According to Fastcompany.com "They will, if all goes as planned, use the network to store and retrieve information about objects, locations (including maps), and instructions about completing activities. Robots will be both the contributors and the editors of the repository."

The EU-funded RoboEarth project will ensure that each robot's experiences are saved and made available to the others to search and expand upon in a communal learning experience similar to what we humans know as the internet. May I just say that I love robots!

Robots Are Our Friends

I stuck my iRobot I <3 Robots magnet up in my workstation today and my coworker, Dustin, sent me the following:

Thanks Dustin, I think I like robots even more now :)

I believe credit goes to http://www.albinoblacksheep.com

A Look At Robotics

The Globe and Mail | Technology section is running a 5 part piece on robots with excerpts from the book Sex, Bombs and Burgers, by technology journalist Peter Nowak. It's worth a peek if you are as smitten with robotics as I am. Part 2 published today, looking forward to the rest of the week!

Geeky Humor From The Onion

The Onion pokes a little fun at our future with this ONN video segment.

I wonder who else was on the ticket with President Executron? Is he a Democrat or a Republican?

Study Says Robot Equals Dog In Comforting Elderly

In a study conducted by Saint Louis University and published in the March issue of the Journal of The American Medical Directors Association, researchers found that a trained therapy dog named Sparky and a Sony AIBO had nearly equal success in decreasing loneliness of nursing home residents. "AIBO is charismatic if you start to interact with him," said the study's author, Dr. William Banks, a professor of geriatric medicine at Saint Louis University. "He's an engaging sort of guy." I just wonder what happens when AIBO's batteries run down? Wired has the story here!

What Where They Thinking?

I'd say don't try this at home, but then again chances are that you don't have a robotic arm at home... but what the heck where these guys thinking?

Asimo demo video shows robots working together

Here's an interesting look at the new Asimo working together to complete tasks and avoiding collisions with humans, they still look a little awkward and deliberate but impressive none the less.

3 driverless vehicles survive challenge, winner to be announced today

Stanford's robotic VW Passat ("Junior"), Virginia Tech's modified Ford Escape Hybrid ("VictorTango"), and Carnegie Mellon's autonomous Chevrolet Tahoe ("Boss") all completed their tasks within the allowed time and DARPA will announce the winner of the Urban Challenge sometime today. Up for grabs is a $2 Million first prize and $1 Million second prize purse.

Watching the DARPA Urban Challenge

Not sure how much time is left but you might have a couple of hours to take in some of the DARPAweb cast Urban Challenge . You'd think that it would be terribly boring but in fact it's oddly exciting, particularly when you consider that there is no driver, no remote control, these machines are driving themselves! The commentators have alluded to some near misses and "contact" but overall it seems as though there is a great deal of success. As I am watching there are 6 vehicles still in the running. It's interesting to see just how well they drive...

Sony's Rolly, what is it... what's next?

c|net's Crave blog is as puzzled about this video for the Sony Rolly as everyone else is... what the heck is it?

Botjunkie for all your robot news

If you've been following this blog, you will no doubt be aware of my infatuation with all things robotic. I now have a new site to feed my addiction, BotJunkie is a blog about robots brought to you by the same folks that produce the ohgizmo gadget blog. I think my favorite is the "Flame Throwing Jumping Spider Robot of Doom" but the theoretical forest fire fighting robot beetles are cool too... hmm wonder who would win in a fight?

Thanks to Cali Lewis at Geekbrief for this link.

"A robot in every home by 2013"

That is the ambition of South Korea according to this very informative and interesting article appearing in today's Globe and Mail. The article is a look into the current state of robotics and the trend, of today's robot manufacturers and researchers, towards building devices that will aid an aging population. From self driving cars to companions for the elderly and robotic care givers, the possibilities are mounting and the technology is ready. It appears as though we humans are struggling more with the thought of robots caring for us than we are with actually creating the devices. Of course it seems like the lawyers are at the forefront of the debate... be careful little roomba!

Teddy bear medic being developed by US military

Another robot story... The Battlefield Extraction Assist Robot (BEAR) is a machine being developed by the US military to extract a wounded soldier from the battlefield to a place where it is safer for them to receive treatment. BEAR is designed to travel over rough terrain and it's teddy bear face is meant to put the wounded soldier at ease (I've already weighed in on my belief about human looking robots being creepy, teddy bears...not so much!). The machine is remotely controlled and depending on the terrain it runs on tracks or tires. The six foot saviour can also tackle stairs and is narrow enough to fit through doorways. The BBC has more details here.

More beer pouring robots

Tokyo is my kind of town...

Robot dogs have their own problems fitting in

According to research conducted at the Eötvös University (Hungary), dogs have the same issues with robot dogs that people have with robots that look like humans... see my last post. The questions being asked by researchers are "what is the influence on the dog's reactions of movement, smell, presence or absence of eyes, sounds, etc.". Looks like the eyes are an issue for the dogs too! Could also be that the AIBO is trying to steal his lunch!

Human like robot - CB2

By now you may have already seen the news articles about CB2 the Japanese robot that was developed to mimic a child's movements between ages 1 and 3. The machine has 56 actuators that replace muscles and allow it to move in an immature yet human like fashion. While I have never worked in robotics, I've studied artificial intelligence and have developed Internet based chat robots which are often represented by avatars. One thing that I have noticed in my work, is that the more human looking the avatar the creepier it looks, and it's usually because of the eyes! Animated, cartoon like characters always seem to be more accepted than the photo-realistic ones. While CB2 was developed for the purpose of studying the movements of a child, I'm not sure why the researchers felt the need to give it such human like appearance. I love robotics and am considering a Roomba, though I think I'll wait until the new year when iRobot is said to be launching 3 new devices, I just hope they don't make the things look too human like! It's just unnatural looking no matter how hard they try, besides I want to know who is man and who is machine...