All posts from Plastic Pals

If you happen to be visiting Tokyo any time soon, you may want to stop over at the National Science Museum, conveniently located between the Tokyo Imperial Palace and the Budokan arena.  For 600 JPY adults can explore the NEDO (The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization) Future Scope exhibit, which is home to several famous Japanese robots.  You can play with Paro, AIST’s therapeutic robot seal pup, and see the following.

AIST / Kawada Industries’ Parasaurolophus
One of two robotic dinosaurs built for the edutainment industry, which sits inside a cage at the exhibit’s entrance.  The robot has 26 degrees of freedom, allowing it to walk independently and move its head and mouth.  It’s approximately 3.5m (11’5″) in length and weighs 80kg (176 lbs).

AIST’s HRP-1S (Honda’s P3)
Honda gave AIST one of their P3s (ASIMO prototype from 1997) to conduct research.  It actually uses the same control software as the above dinosaur.  Afterward, AIST developed their own bipedal robots which led to the creation of their most popular type, the HRP-2 Promet.  More detailed information can be found here.

AIST / Kawada Industries’ HRP-2 Promet
A popular research platform still in use at several Japanese universities, the HRP-2 Promet (2003) features a unique anime-inspired design by mechanical illustrator Yutaka Izubuchi (famous for his work on Patlabor and creator of RahXephon).  He is also the designer of the armor worn in the Kerberos saga, which was ripped off by the KillZone video game series.  More info.

Kokoro’s Actroid
This realistic female android was intended to be a receptionist, so naturally it sits in a booth and provides information about the exhibit.  You can ask it questions and it will respond thanks to its speech recognition, and it even reacts if you get fresh with it.

NEC’s PaPeRo
The famous communication robot that NEC has been developing for some 11 years now, though this isn’t the latest version being rented as part of NEC’s new outreach program.  It’s the older “Child Care” model, so it has a bit of a different shape and color scheme, and has holes for the speakers on its chest.  Seeing as how it has already been surpassed with a newer model, this may be a rare opportunity to see one in the wild.  More info.

TMSUK’s Mujiro
This outdoor security robot was unveiled in 2005 and appeared, like many of the robots here, at the Aichi Expo of that year.  Its blue partner (Ligurio) is not present.  It can travel at a speed of 7km/h, is 150cm (5′) tall, and weighs 130kg (286 lbs).  It features an external shell that protects its retractable arms much like a cloak.  More info.

ALSOK / Sohgo Security’s Guard Robo i
ALSOK’s prototype surveillance / guard robot which also appeared at the Aichi Expo.  They’ve developed around 7 models, all but one of which are for security purposes (the odd one out is for guidance and reception duties).
While most of these robots are a few years old by now (at least), it would still be a treat and a rare opportunity to see them up close in person while the exhibit lasts.  If only air fare to Japan wasn’t so expensive… Photos shamelessly stolen from RoboTimes of course (see source link).
[source: RoboTimes (JP)]

Hubert Gattringer at the Johannes Kepler University of Linz developed this bipedal robot in collaboration with SCHUNK and dSPACE between 2006 and 2007.  The robot is said to be able to walk at a rate of 0.5km/h and climb stairs thanks to its human-like degrees of freedom in its legs (ankle x2, knee x1, hip x3).
It stands 180cm (5’9″) tall and weighs 40kg (88 lbs), and is actuated by 14 PowerCubes (modular, compact harmonic drive gears) developed by SCHUNK.  Specially designed force-torque sensors based on strain gauges in its ankles allow it to determine the ZMP (zero moment point) in order to maintain its stability.  Additionally, it had a stereo camera set-up in its head for sensing depth.
It made three public appearances, beginning with Automatic in 2006 and ending with Motek in 2007, however video footage is difficult to obtain.  An early CAD rendering of the robot and another photo follow after the break.

[source: Institute for Robotics @ JKU Linz (DE)]

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Image credit:
JKU | SCHUNK | dSPACE

MechaTracks (www.mechatrax.com), the Japanese company that brought the world the RoboCatcher, has unveiled yet another novel combination of relatively simple hobby robot technology with the arcade amusement scene. Rather than creating another capsule toy game, this time they’ve developed a video game that requires players to control a small bipedal robot to battle a computer opponent destroying the city.
You control your robot with two joysticks, which provide tank-like controls for turning.  In order to score a hit, the player’s robot must be commanded to pick up “ammunition” and drop it into one of three openings corresponding to three cannons on the video screen. With proper timing, you can hit the enemy robot when it lines up with the loaded cannon. The game consists of three missions, each with four levels of difficulty ranging from easy (for kids) to hard (for maniacs).  My only complaint is that the on-screen graphics appear to be flash-based, which could be quite a bit better with a proper 3D engine.
MechaTracks is currently accepting pre-orders for the unit, which I imagine won’t have any trouble standing out at most venues.  Given the economic downturn, MechaTracks will offer new content from time to time to renew public interest without operators having to replace the hardware.
Video:
Click here to view the embedded video.
[source: MechaTracks press release (JP)] via [Node (JP)]

Honda and the Ars Electronica Futurelab are collaborating on a human-robot interaction study this week in Linz, Austria (September 2nd ~ 8th).  Although they say their goal is to determine how robots ought to interact with people in the future, I think this may be just an excuse to let the public have some one-on-one fun with ASIMO.  In any case, these sorts of studies should help steer Honda’s engineers in the right direction when designing the next version of the world’s most famous humanoid robot.

“This is an exciting collaboration for us with Ars Electronica Futurelab, which has a long history of investigating human-machine interaction and design. It is a significant milestone in our development of ASIMO and an important piece of human-robot interaction research to examine the diverse levels of robot acceptance and interaction around the world. We’ve already held research in Japan and in time we will conduct similar research in different cultures and different parts of the world.” said Satoshi Shigemi, Large Project Leader of ASIMO development, Honda R&D Co., Ltd..
He added: “The aim of this research is to better understand what the ideal interaction and communication between people and humanoid robots ought to be in the future. People need to be able to comfortably communicate with the robot so that it can react properly to their commands and carry out their wishes when assistance is needed.”

[source: Honda] & [Ars Electronica]

The Aomori Museum of Art (hosted 7/10 ~ 8/29), the Shizuoka Prefectural Museum (hosting 9/18 ~ 11/7), and the Shimane Art Museum (hosting 11/20 ~ 2011.1/10), collaborated to put together a robot-themed art show.  The “ROBOTS and ARTs:  Visual Images in the 20th Century Japan” exhibit includes robot-themed sculptures, plastic model kits, tin toys, one-off robot figurines, movie and game paraphernalia, and a selection of real robots as well.

In 1924, a translated version of R.U.R (Rossum’s Universal Robots) was performed at the Tsukiji Little Theater in Tokyo, and a robot named “Gakutensoku” was exhibited at the 1928 Imperial Throne Ascension Memorial Exposition in Kyoto. Following the war, the robot became an integral part of popular culture. Robots were not only a motif used in works of entertainment like manga and anime, but were developed in serious literature that dealt with themes of humanism and at times, disestablishmentarianism. The concept of robots had an enormous effect on researchers, designers, and artists in various present-day fields. This exhibit aims to shed light on the mutual connection of science, technology, and art, as well as the physical form of human beings, by examining the robot, as a major motif born in the 20th century.

An original anime dvd was produced specifically for this event (directed by Romanov Higa), and a companion guide was also printed.  The set was 3,675 JPY ($44 USD), but only 150 copies were made (and sold out quickly).  Unfortunately the museum has not shared the video online, but you can see some character model sheets here.

The exhibition catalog (2,625 JPY [$30 USD]) contains photos and details of the exhibits and articles about the history of robots in popular culture post-WWII (Japanese only) and a papercraft robot.

A detailed figurine of the hovering robotic bike featured in the animated short was also created.  Cute, huh?  Maybe someone should try to build one for real (with wheels, of course).

Real robots, including Murata Manufacturing’s bicycling robot Murata Boy, and ROBO-GARAGE’s NEON (a nod to Astro Boy, middle) and Manoi PF01 (background) were exhibited.

On July 24th Mr. Shudo Akira, an artist  hailing from Hokkaido known for creating metallic sculptures (see another exhibit here), turned the museum into a robot factory with the help of some volunteers.  Participants who signed up got to help build a robot statue out of steel plates.  They carefully hit the prefabricated plates with mallets to create a smooth finish, then used sand paper to create subtle patterns on the surface.

The proud participants gather around as Mr. Shudo proceeded to weld the parts together one after another, and the robot gradually took shape.

Mr. Shudo stands next to his finished creation, who’s steely gaze is slightly reminiscent of a samurai helmet.  The finishing touches, including the internal lamps, were installed and by 9 o’clock in the evening the project was completed.  The post robot was exhibited in the museum’s lobby for the rest of the show.

A statue of Temjin, one of the robot fighters from SEGA’s Virtual On arcade video game series, with two of the game’s designers.  Some more photos can be found on the Virtual On XBOX 360 blog (JP).

Right foreground: Posy and (left) Palette (Flower Robotics), far background: the tendon-driven robot Kenta (Tokyo University JSK Lab).  Flower Robotics not only exhibited robots, but also opened their Flower Shop at the Museum to offer their robot rentals and business products.

Artist Kenji Yanobe exhibited one of his works (view more examples here).

Artist Hiroshi Araki is known for his mechanical artwork.  He exhibited his “King of audio and the two Goodman Speakers” (1993).  He has also produced life-sized statues of Astro Boy and other robot-like creations (see his portfolio here).

“Dr. Robot” Aizawa Zirou’s retro robots also made the trip (more here).
Video (30 sec commercial):
Click here to view the embedded video.
Lots of cool artwork and the inclusion of real robots makes this one of the coolest gallery showings I’ve come across.  Thankfully the museum’s website has shared all of the above photographs for those of us who can’t see the exhibit in person (see source link below).
[source: Robot-Art official site (JP)]

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Image credit:
Aomori Museum of Art: Robot-Art official site (JP)

The following Japanese news report showcases some of the household robots being developed in Japan. First up is Toshiba’s ApriPoco, which learns to control home appliances such as your television. After the learning process is completed, you can simply issue verbal commands and ApriPoco will perform the desired option.  Great for people who have trouble with their collection of remote controls.  Hopefully Toshiba is still working on this cute little bot.  Next up we see motorized furniture that moves on demand, which should be useful to people who can’t lift or move them on their own. And finally a quick tour of Tokyo University’s IRT Lab, and some of their household robots and robotic wheelchair.
Video:
Click here to view the embedded video.
[source: Nippon News Network (JP)]

You may remember when Plastic Pals broke the story on DARPA’s ARM project back in February 2010, and now we have more details thanks to Hizook.   DARPA has selected the following to work on it: Carnegie Mellon University, HRL Laboratories, iRobot, NASA-Jet Propulsion Laboratory, SRI International and University of Southern California.  Although the robot certainly looks friendly enough, specifics from the original project documentation suggest otherwise:

It should be able to hold an inert grenade with one hand, and pull the pin with the other hand without the need for human control.  The software system must enable the robot to perform the Challenge Tasks following a high-level script with no operator intervention. For example, the operator would issue a command such as “Throw Ball.” That command would in turn decompose into a sequence of lower-level tasks, such as “find ball,” “grasp ball,” “re-grasp ball, cock arm, and throw.”

Video:
Click here to view the embedded video.
The robot’s not ready to arm and throw grenades just yet, but it won’t be long before the 4 year, multimillion dollar project has been completed.  Along the way, we can look forward to seeing the robot pick up and write with a pen, use pliers, unzip a duffle bag, drill a hole using a power tool, insert a key and unlock a door, and assemble an object from a kit of parts.  On the bright side, at least the manipulation code may become available to researchers working on less militaristic projects.
Although given the relative delicacy of some of the challenge tasks, I’m somewhat surprised they decided to go with Barrett Whole Arm Manipulators and Barrett three-fingered hands, which are decidedly large and cumbersome.  To get an idea of just how big these suckers really are, check out this video of Iowa State’s humanoid robot surrounded by civilians, which uses a similar configuration.
For sensors, it has a color camera, SwissRanger depth camera, stereo camera, and microphone.  There’s a contest to give the new robot a name, which you can enter with your submission here.  No reward is specified (outside of naming a robot that may lob grenades and kill or maim people in the future, if that’s your thing).  Some screengrabs from the video and a few CAD renderings follow after the break.
[source: TheArmRobot (official site)] via [Hizook]

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Image credit:
DARPA | SRI International

Dongbu Corporation, a real estate developer and community planner in South Korea, has developed a robotic security camera called Centry.   Unlike traditional surveillance cameras, this one not only records everything it sees, but tracks movement using infrared sensors and will issue verbal warnings when it registers activity.  A second warning is given while the robot simultaneously connects to the management center. Recently the product was entered into the GOOD DESIGN EXPO 2010 in the hopes of winning a coveted Good Design Award.
The “robot” was designed to look like a traditional Korean imp, with details like a small horn on the top of its round head.  Rather than making it look threatening, the designers wanted Centry to give a friendly impression and stand out as part of its crime prevention features.  It will be sold to buyers of Dongbu’s residential properties as an additional option for around $9,500 USD (ouch!).  I imagine that includes a lifetime subscription to their security services – at least, for that price I would hope so.
[source: Dongbu Corp.] via [GOOD DESIGN EXPO 2010] via [Pink Tentacle]

In a press release from August 24th, NEC outlined how its communication robot PaPeRo was used to assist patients suffering from dementia at the National Rehabilitation Center for the Disabled since October of 2009.  The robot was used as a kind of “interactive information support system”, providing information through dialog and encouraging independent living.  Dementia affects one’s memory and attention, so the robot has been programmed to use its speech recognition and speech synthesis capabilities to provide interactive features in four ways:

Initiating a dialog/alert (calling to the person by their name)
Memory support (example speech: “Looks like someone I know.”)
New development communication (example speech: “Why don’t you go to the door?”)
End of conversation (example speech: “It was nice meeting you.”)

The robot would remind patients to use the bathroom before going out, to check in with the front desk receptionist, when to take their medications, and encourage daily activity.  PaPeRo was designed with a variety of sensors including cameras with image recognition technology, which allows it to be used as a monitoring system for children and pets.  Its robust communication capabilities allow people to interface with information in a comfortable manner even if they don’t have any experience with computers.
The press release concludes by saying that NEC will continue to develop cool communication features, for children through to seniors, in order to offer easy access to information for everyone.
[source: NEC press release (JP)] via [Node (JP)]

Andonoblog has posted some excellent videos to YouTube showcasing all the robot-on-robot action from ROBO-ONE 18th, including footage of Takeshi Maeda’s latest robot (OmniShibatan, in the center of Maeda-san’s photo above).  I guess this year there was a Matsuri (festival) theme, due to the unique technical challenge demonstrations.  I’ve picked out some of the highlights for you to enjoy.
Video (OmniShibatan):
Click here to view the embedded video.
Video (Humorous box “Robot” concedes defeat):
Click here to view the embedded video.
Video (Frosty Design’s robot back-flip):
Click here to view the embedded video.
Video (Kinopy plays the drum at 1m:27s):
Click here to view the embedded video.
Video (Tokotokomaru fan dance):
Click here to view the embedded video.
[source: Andonoblog @ YouTube]

Phison Electronics, a Taiwanese company, demonstrated a new pet robot at the Tokyo Toy Show last month called U.bo (U = designed for You, bo = ball shape).  U.bo is an alien spore from a distant planet that lives inside a 6-legged space craft.  It can walk forwards and backwards, turn left and right, make sounds, and display a variety of animated icons and emoticon-like faces through its 11×11 LED array. Similar to a Tamagotchi, U.bo needs to be fed from time to time, and will call out to its owner when it gets hungry.  A magnetic cookie accessory must be tilted towards the robot’s mouth to feed it.  It will also poop, pee, fart, and burp.  After it has done its business (which includes showing a large poop icon) the owner must shake the robot to clean it up.  Owners who neglect their U.bo will find their new pet lacks energy.
The product comes with interactive software which can be installed on PCs.  Different mouse buttons are used to interact with a virtual U.bo, and users can balance its energy and “love power” by feeding it.  A mobile phone can be used as a remote control using BlueTooth.  Touch sensors in its “bum” and back can be used to pet it, which makes it happy.  If U.bo is being naughty you can also spank its bum, which causes it to cry and run away.  Shaking the robot will also cause it to get dizzy, and it will get upset if left wrong side up.  These sorts of interactions are recorded into memory and may affect its future personality.  When two U.bos are placed in close proximity, they can interact together by dancing, singing, and “kissing”.
The pet robot measures 10cm in length and 8.5cm high, and weighs 210g.  It has 2 DC motors for moving its legs, and will last around 14 hours on 2 AA batteries.  In addition to its LED face, it has a pair of LEDs in its cheek for blushing and another LED in its “tail”.   An accelerometer is used to detect shake and tilt.  Many more photos can be found here, and you can watch more videos at the official YouTube channel.
Video (Tokyo Toy Show):
Click here to view the embedded video.
Video (Group dancing to Ricky Martin):
Click here to view the embedded video.
[source: U.bo Magic Land (EN)] via [Mycom Journal (JP)]

SPICA and ZiN are a pair of bipedal robots built by 11 students from Gifu National College of Technology’s Robot Lab for the ABU Robocon 2009 (Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union’s  Robot Contest).  The team decided to take a different approach to bipedal movement for each robot.
ZiN, the first robot, has a design reminiscent of wind-up walking toys that uses a single motor to actuate both legs.  Named after the brightest star in the constellation Virgo, SPICA raises its arm and emits light from its hand, in a stance reminiscent of disco dancing.  It has a total of 15 motors (2 legs x6, 1 arm x3).  The disco influence came from the challenge, which in this case required one robot to capture a small disco ball and transfer it to another robot.  Although the robots weren’t able to advance to the final leg of the competition, they were certainly the most amazing robots to appear at Robocon 2009.
Video (ZiN):
Click here to view the embedded video.

Video (or watch it from an alternate angle):
Click here to view the embedded video.
[source: Gifu NCT SPICA homepage (JP)] via [Gifu Robot Lab Blog (JP)]
& [Power Academy (JP)]

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Image credit:
Gifu NCT