Robots

“The Amazing Robots of Israel”, a Live Video Feed

There is something rather neat taking place at my synagogue tonight, and Judie and I thought it would be fun to share it with you all. Dr. Amir Shapiro, the Director of the Robotics Lab of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, is joining us. Dr. Amir develops robots that benefit humans and improve the safety and security of not only Israel, but the world. He’ll be speaking for a while, and then he will be demonstrating some of his robots. That’s right, he’s bringing robots with him!! We’ll be streaming it over Ustream, and we invite you to watch. Assuming…

Gear Bits

Outta This World: GM/NASA Develop Robotic Glove

Five years ago, researchers and scientists from General Motors and NASA began collaborating on a project called Robonaut 2 (R2 for short) that led to launching the first human-like robot into space in 2011 that is now a permanent resident in the International Space Station. Now the two are jointly developing a robotic glove inspired by the unprecedented level of hand dexterity on R2 and they call it the Human Grasp Assist, a.k.a. K-glove, a.k.a. Robo-Glove. The first prototype of the glove was completed in March, 2011 with a second-gen model arriving just three months after that. The current Robo-Glove…

Reviews

The KeepOn Interactive Robot Review

Based on its famous “cousin” Keepon® Pro, The KeepOn® interactive robot is priced under $50 and features a dance and touch mode.

News

Chatbots Prove Robots Want intro to Philosophy, Not War

Engadget caught this bizarre and amazing video from some Cornell researchers, who pitted a Chatbot in a conversation with itself. Apparently, all Chatbot wants is to study philosophy! Don’t believe me? Watch the video below, and then check out my commentary showing how the Chatbot(s) just want to talk Plato. Let’s see…the Chatbot(s) start with social contract theory. They exchange pleasantries and indicate an attempt to set rules of engagement so no one gets stabbed in their sleep (do Chatbot(s) sleep?). Then they move on to personal identity theory; what are they? What is a robot? If one Chatbot is…

News

The WowWee Roboscooper Wants Wall-E’s Job

Show me a person who could watch the Pixar movie Wall-E without getting a little bit misty, and I’ll show you a person with a heart of stone. The premise was that Earth, long inhabited by wasteful humans was eventually rendered unusable, and there was a mass exodus to a fleet of spaceships provided for by the Buy N Large corporation, which the company that had sold the products which helped contribute to all of the waste on Earth in the first place. Are you with me? So Buy N Large tells the Earthlings that they will only be on the…

News

I Knew Automation Was A Problem In Many Fields But In Mine???

from USAToday There is no question that automation has had an impact on numerous industries and has been responsible for some significant job-loss or, at least, job-shifting. For example factories now need less people on the line but can output more product at an ever-increasing pace. Yes, the impact is everywhere but this is one place where I never expected to see an issue… CrunchGear has a post up about a wedding officiated by… a robot. That’s right, the couple didn’t need a priest, or a justice of the peace to tie the knot. Instead the wedding was witnessed by…

News

Zibits Minature Robots Will Keep You Entertained

Just what’s needed to brighten up a dreary cubicle and provide entertainment when your warden supervisor isn’t looking — Zibits, a new series of miniature remote controlled robots that are about 2″ tall, move in “several directions including a full 360º rotation”, and that are equipped with “robotic lights and sounds”. Zibits will show up at Toys ‘R Us in mid-March for less than $10. Zibits Miniature Robots

Reviews

MyDeskFriend Pingo Review

I have a confession to make. I like penguins. Part of this is I am a Linux user and Tux, the Linux mascot, is a penguin. The other part is they are so darn cute. That’s why I decided to take a look when Arimaz offered to send a sample of MyDeskFriend AKA Pingo. Part Tamagotchi, part Facebook app, part Tux Droid and all cute. That about sums up this tiny robot that fits in your hand. MyDeskFriend comes with a little USB docking station, Pingo the Penguin and a little rubber visor that Pingo wears.

News

Firefighter Robot might save lives one day

Hoya Robot, A South Korean company, is developing a robot that one day might just help save the lives of both victims and firefighters. The Firefighter’s Assistant Robot can enter burning building and size up the scene as well as check for victims who may be trapped inside. The unit can operate for up to 30 minutes and withstand temperatures of up to 320 degrees F. Weighing in at only 3 pounds the robot is water resistant and it can survive falls of up to 6 feet. It’s small enough that it can fit in the palm of your hand….

News

Tux Droid: a Nabaztag for Linux Geeks

Kysoh.com has released the new Tux Droid 2.0. Tux Droid is essentially a Open Source Nabaztag that looks like Tux the Penguin (Tux was originally designed as the Linux mascot by Larry Ewing). The Tux Droid is wirelessly connected to your computer via its cute fish shaped dongle, which has a striking resemblance to Tux himself. What does Tux do? He’ll do a little dance whenever you get an E-mail, Twitter message or a Facebook messag; he also has a text-to-speech engine, and by interacting with Tux Droid, you can also complete certain tasks on your computer. If you aren’t…

Reviews

The WowWee Alive Lion Cub Review

When I was a child, I absolutely loved stuffed animals; I had such a massive collection residing on my bed that they threatened to push me off should I stretch out or roll over in the middle of the night. One of my fondest wishes at that time was that some of my favorite stuffed animals could be more life-like and animated. Granted, this was in the 70s, and the closest things we had to robotic toys back then were those obnoxious stuffed dogs that came with a wired battery pack so that they could walk a few steps, bark,…

Reviews

Setting Up and Using the Roomba 560

Today I unboxed and set up my recently received iRobot Roomba 560 evaluation unit. I figured it might be fun for those of you who are curious to see what’s involved…and then we could send it on a test run together. Consider this part one of its review, because I will be posting initial impressions tonight and final impressions after having used it for a good bit longer. I like the promise written on the box, “cleans routinely so you don’t have to.” Yes, please! This model is supposed to be able to clean four complete rooms, it can be…

Reviews

The Ugobe Pleo Robotic Dinosaur Review

When I was a kid, my parents bought me my first robot. Except this was in the early 70s, so it wasn’t a real robot – it was a fuzzy effigy, a mechanized kitten thing. The kitten was tethered by co-joined wires to a long battery box which also served as a remote control. It could walk forward…stop…walk forward…stop; it might have even meowed, too – but I honestly don’t remember. Anyway you get the idea; the kitten wasn’t very exciting, and it certainly didn’t replicate the fun of owning a real cat. In other words, the kitten reacted but…

Reviews

Unboxing the Litter-Robot

If you own a cat, then you know that there is one part of pet ownership that can suck the joy out of the experience. No, I am not talking about hearing your cat hacking up hairballs in the middle of the night while she is sleeping on the bed next to you (not that Avah ever has or ever would do that, mind you); I am talking about cleaning out the litter box.

Reviews

Johnny Lightning’s V_Bot Review

At the same time that Gear Diary was approached to review the Johnny Lightning Battle Wheels, we were also invited to review the V_Bot. What is the V_Bot? Well, here is a clipping from the email describing it: “V_Bot, the new high-tech hero, transforms from a sleek street vehicle into a giant robot loaded with action moves. This revolutionary RC toy captures kids’ imaginations with a giant robot that they can control, transform and drive. V_Bot even has a plug-in for an MP3 player.” Yep, you read that clipping right! V_Bot is a robot that can really transform into an…

Reviews

Johnny Lightning’s Battle Wheels Review

When Gear Diary was approached to review the new Johnny Lightning Battle Wheels, I was going pass on reviewing them. I never really was interested in robotic combat. However, Judie convinced me to accept and do the review. And, I actually had fun, thanks Judie!

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