As a publicity stunt to demonstrate the durability of Evolta batteries, Panasonic's mascot robot is hiking the historic 500-kilometer (300-mi) Tōkaidō Road from Tokyo to Kyoto. Evolta World Challenge III: Kyoto or bust! -- Photos via Sankei News The Evolta humanoid, whose new design is meant to resemble an ancient highway traveler pulling a two-wheeled […]
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HRP-4: Athletic robot worker
16 Sep 2010
Kawada Industries and Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) have updated their 10-year-old line of HRP humanoid robots with an athletic machine they hope to develop into a menial worker. HRP-4: Menial worker of the future? The blue and white humanoid -- named HRP-4 -- stands 1.51 meters (5 ft) tall […]
Telenoid R1 minimalist humanoid robot
02 Aug 2010
Researchers from Osaka University have teamed up with the Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute (ATR) to develop a minimalist humanoid robot that recreates the physical presence of a remote user. Named "Telenoid R1," the teleoperated communication robot measures 80 centimeters (31 in) tall and weighs 5 kilograms (11 lbs). The portable machine features a soft silicone […]
Maido-kun humanoid robot to the moon in 2015
28 Apr 2010
In an ambitious new project unveiled on April 27, an Osaka-area business group has vowed to put a humanoid robot on the moon by 2015. The business group, known as SOHLA (Space Oriented Higashiosaka Leading Association), made headlines in January 2009 after their Maido-1 lightning observation microsatellite was launched into orbit. Their new project is […]
Video: Hanako Showa dental patient robot
26 Mar 2010
+ Video Doctors from the Showa University School of Dentistry have teamed up with Kyushu-based robot developer tmsuk to create a robotic dental patient. The female humanoid, named Hanako Showa, is designed to act as a training tool for dental students. In addition to wincing in pain when a dentist-in-training makes a mistake, the robot […]
Illustrations of future robots (1969)
28 Jan 2010
"Robot Age," a series of illustrations published by Shōnen Sunday magazine in 1969, offers a glimpse into a utopian future populated by sophisticated robots. Robot workers [View full image] In the coming Robot Age, assembly lines will be manned by tireless robot workers. Once the robots start building newer and better versions of themselves, the […]
Diego-san humanoid robot baby
18 Jan 2010
Researchers from the Machine Perception Laboratory at the University of California, San Diego have teamed up with Japanese robotics firm Kokoro Co., Ltd. to create a sophisticated humanoid robot modeled after a 1-year-old child. The baby robot -- named "Diego-san" -- is designed to help researchers study how infants develop motor skills during the first […]
Robot doppelgangers for sale
14 Dec 2009
Department store operator Sogo & Seibu has announced plans to sell two humanoid robots custom-built to look like the people who purchase them. Roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro already got his The mechanical doppelgangers are available for a limited time as part of a special New Year's promotional sale at Sogo, Seibu, and Robinson’s department stores. They […]
Video: Marine creature robots by kyg-lab
09 Dec 2009
Masamichi Hayashi, president of marine education establishment kyg-lab, has hand-crafted over 100 robotic marine creatures from recycled items such as plastic bottles, food containers, styrofoam, raincoats, and windshield wiper motors. A self-taught roboticist, Hayashi relies on his formal experience as a marine scientist to endow his machines with realistic movements, and he uses them in […]