Robotics

March 22, 2007 Meet OFRO+detect, the first autonomous reconnaissance robot that detects not only potential attackers but also nuclear and chemical warfare agents. The unmanned ground vehicle (AUGV) is has a built-in Multi-IMS (ion mobility spectrometer) and can detect all current tactical gases as well as nuclear hazards. Offie was specifically designed under an international project for camp protection and border security. It can completely assume responsibility for protection of a defined area against unauthorized intruders. Integrated within its swivelling 360 degree sensor head, are an LCD and a thermal imaging camera, enabling it to detect intruders up to 100 m away in any conditions, terrain or weather and issue an alarm to the command post. During its autonomous patrols, the robot transmits noises, video or thermal images, and sensor data via a military WLAN to mission control, providing a real-time picture of the situation. Alarms are issued automatically as soon as objects penetrate the protection zone.  Read More

February 22, 2007 Robots have begun their inevitable march into our environment and a noteworthy incursion of recent times is the IV800 developed by floor care innovator Intellibot Robotics. Introduced last March, Intellibot’s IV800 is designed for large carpeted or hard surface hallways in convention centers, hotels, hospitals, office buildings and other facilities that get heavy traffic and must frequently be cleaned to a high standard. Using onboard computers and ultrasonic sonar sensors, the robotic vacuum requires only about 25 minutes of operator attention per eight-hour shift, reducing labor costs by up to 85 percent while increasing cleaning quality and consistency. This frees the operator to do other, higher value cleaning tasks.  Read More

February 19, 2007 The 2005 DARPA Grand Challenge marked a milestone in artificial intelligence when five autonomous vehicles finished the course and Stanford Racing Team’s Stanley went down in history as the winner of the first race for autonomous vehicles. Centuries from now, the win will be equally significant as winning the first auto race from Paris to Rouen in 1894. Indeed, a century from now, there’s every chance that cars will all be autonomous, as computers make less mistakes than human beings. The robots in the 2007 Urban Challenge, however, will need all of Stanley’s capabilities plus a whole lot more as this time they need to handle real traffic. “In the last Grand Challenge, it didn’t really matter whether an obstacle was a rock or a bush because either way you’d just drive around it,” says Stanford Team Leader Sebastian Thrun. “The current challenge is to move from just sensing the environment to understanding the environment.” Thrun is the Director of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Lab and Associate Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University. When the bookmakers frame the odds for the Urban Challenge, Thrun’s charge will be favourite. On Saturday, Thrun introduced Stanford Racing Team’s new challenger to the world. Junior is a new generation of autonomous vehicle built to accomplish missions in a simulated city environment, which includes the traffic of the other robots and traffic laws. This means that on race day, November 3, Junior not only will have to avoid collisions, but he will have to master concepts that befuddle many humans, such as right of way. Junior began life as a 2006 Volkswagen Passat wagon.  Read More

February 8, 2007 That good-for-nothing son of yours who wasted all those hours playing mindless video games might have been building some valuable skill sets after all. IRobot’s newly announced iRobot PackBot 510 with EOD Kit is a second-generation explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) robot that will begin shipping in April and it uses a game-style hand controller. The PackBot 510 is 30 percent faster than its predecessor, drags larger objects, lifts twice the weight and has a grip that is three times stronger. To date, iRobot has delivered more than 800 PackBot robots which are mainly used in Iraq and Afghanistan. The robot’s new hand controller is modeled after video game controllers, making PackBot 510 easier to use, and resulting in less training time and more rapid operations in the field. In addition, the advanced track technology significantly increases the robot’s performance on rough terrain.  Read More

January 30, 2007 Robotics in general and consumer robotics in particular seem to be making massive headway, and a development certain to draw a lot of attention in the next month is a wireless concept robot created by industrial robotics manufacturer KUKA Robotics Corporation. The new robot will be shown for the first time at ATX West Expo in Anaheim, February 13-15, 2007. The company will be showcasing an application using a KR16 robot and KRC 2 Controller being controlled by individuals utilizing a Wii controller & Bluetooth technology (video here). This concept cell was designed to show the next step in the trickle down of robotic technology to consumers from the industrial robot market.  Read More

January 10, 2007 iRobot has unveiled iRobot Create, an affordable, programmable robot designed for aspiring roboticists. Create is based on the core technology of iRobot Roomba, the vacuuming robot that is cleaning millions of homes worldwide, and is compatible with Roomba’s rechargeable batteries, remote control and other accessories. Create comes pre-assembled, so developers can design new robots without having to build a mobile robot from scratch. Pricing starts at US$130, enabling developers to begin designing new robot applications out of the box. This new platform provides access to robot sensors and actuators via an open interface. Create also features standard connections for electronics and threaded mounting holes that allow users to secure their inventions to the robot, streamlining the integration of third-party electronics such as sensors, cameras, arms and wireless connections.  Read More

January 4, 2007 The personal robotics industry may still be in its infancy, but it is being predicted that it will rival the automotive industry in size two decades from now – by that time, robots will be far more advanced than those we know today and an inkling of just what might be in store comes from the University of Washington where researchers have demonstrated that it is possible to control the movement of a humanoid robot with signals from a human brain (see videos - AVI- QT - WMV ). Being able to command a robot via thought alone obviously has massive ramifications for the development of robotic servants, labourers and mobility devices for the handicapped and aged population. With a few decades of intense research, we may well have robotic servants that cater to our every wish – quite literally!  Read More

December 15, 2006 The world of personal robotics is drawing closer, with some estimates of the personal robotics industry putting it abreast with the world automotive industry two decades from now. Honda has already established itself as the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer and has branched into a dozen different recreational and business markets as diverse as jet aeroplanes, jet skis, and industrial engines. Its biggest market may be yet to come, because it has been working diligently for 20 years in the development of a bipedal humanoid service robot named Asimo and if it works half as well as the rest of the company's products, it'll be one of the pioneers into the home when robotic servants reach mass commercialisation. Asimo is already a well known brand but when Honda begins airing 90 second commercials in the UK later this week, where Asimo becomes the ideal fully-owned, never-makes-a-mistake brand spokesperson, we figure history is being made. Asimo embodies the Honda attitude towards technology – warm, approachable, human, optimistic and always moving forward – as the Honda spokesperson, he will become the first publicly known robot on a global scale, and he’ll evolve publicly across all languages. Honda's new warmtechnology web site goes live today, and there are also five short films available at www.honda.co.uk. The series of webcasts introduce Asimo, and show how its warm approach has brought science and technology to a broad audience across the world.  Read More

December 15, 2006 Victoria is the most widely supported 3D figure on the planet, which kinda makes her a beauty queen. So it’s big news in the women’s magazines when a big star gets a makeover, and that’s just what has happened to via her latest release, Victoria 4.0. This new release of Victoria, based on live human models, is closing the gap between real life and models typically seen in 3D environments like Second Life, The Sims, and Halo. Since her first release in 1999, hundreds of thousands of unique users worldwide have downloaded a copy of Victoria making her the most heavily downloaded 3D figure ever. Victoria has been widely used by digital artists worldwide and has graced the covers of magazines, newspapers, and television across the globe.  Read More