Archives: ‘Sci/Tech’ Category

Robot employed as sex club tout

16 Apr 2007

Robot employed as sex club tout --- Robots can get away with things that humans cannot. In the Minami area of Osaka, for example, a humanoid robot dressed in a "sailor suit" high school uniform now works the street as a tout for an adult information center that navigates potential customers to local sex clubs. Humans in Osaka are prohibited by law from engaging in such nefarious activity.

Since 2005, Osaka law has banned sex club touts from soliciting business on the street. The law also applies to the staff of adult information centers, which guide customers to local establishments such as love hotels, fashion-health massage parlors, cabaret clubs and image clubs. There are 175 of these adult information centers in Osaka prefecture -- more than in any other prefecture in Japan.

But despite the law change, touts have remained on the streets, albeit with slight changes in behavior. Instead of relying on their voice to solicit customers, the touts began to work the streets in silence, using gestures and holding up bright yellow "Ask me!" (Ore ni kike!) signs. Some businesses also made "Ask me!" jackets for their staff. In this way, solicitors have been able to skirt the law by letting potential customers do the approaching.

However, at the end of last month, Osaka law enforcement ordered all sex industry touts to stop carrying signs.

The response this time? Hire a robot to carry the sign. At least, that's what one adult information center has done. The human-sized robo-tout, who used to direct traffic around construction sites, underwent a 500,000 yen ($4,000) upgrade for its new job, which is to attract the attention of passersby by periodically raising and lowering a banner that reads "Ask me!"

The droid's employer foresees no run-ins with the law. "It's a robot, so no problem," says a spokesperson for the information center.

[Source: Asahi 1, Asahi 2]

New cement conducts electricity like metal

11 Apr 2007

Electro-conductive cement ---

A team of researchers led by professor Hideo Hosono of the Tokyo Institute of Technology has developed a new type of alumina cement that conducts electricity like metal by altering the crystal structure at the nano level.

Ordinary alumina cement made from a lime-alumina compound (C12A7) has a crystal structure consisting of asymmetric cages, making it a poor conductor of electricity. But by sealing the alumina cement compound along with titanium inside a glass tube and heating it to 1,100 degrees Celsius, the researchers were able to create a homogenized, symmetrical cage structure that conducts electricity like metal.

Results indicate the cement's electrical conductivity is on par with that of manganese at room temperature. Moreover, like other metals, the cement's conductivity increases as its temperature decreases.

The researchers say that forming the cement into thin membranes would make it nearly transparent, making it an ideal substitute material for rare metals such as indium, which is used in plasma and liquid-crystal displays. In addition to being cheaper than rare metals, the cement would make an environmentally-friendly alternative because its ingredients are more readily available.

The Tokyo Institute of Technology worked with researchers from Osaka Prefecture University, the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN), and the Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (SPring-8) to develop the cement. The results are published in the April 11 edition of Nano Letters.

[Sources: Nikkei Net, Mainichi, SPring-8 press release]

Printing with DNA

05 Apr 2007

DNA --- Tokyo-based Ko-sin Printing has developed a printing process that allows authors to add a more personal touch to their printed works by using ink that includes their DNA.

Once DNA is extracted from a human (or animal) hair or nail sample provided by the author, it is blended with a special ink and used in the printing process. Ko-sin has already put the technology to use in some self-published autobiographies whose title pages are printed with ink that includes the author's DNA. Mixing DNA in with the ink does not alter the appearance of the page, the company says.

Ko-sin also claims it is possible to extract genetic information from materials printed using this process. When the company sent a sample page to a DNA laboratory, the lab technicians were able to isolate and extract the DNA from the page.

The patent-pending printing process was invented by Ko-sin's president, Mr. Yoshida, who drew upon his years of experience researching and developing ink. Ko-sin hopes the process will appeal to autobiographers who want to add value to their work by including their DNA, or to people who wish to insert the DNA of beloved pets into printed materials. The company is now investigating other potential applications.

[Source: GIGAZINE]

Android shows off people-lifting skills

29 Mar 2007

Android lifts 60-kg dummy out of bed ---

In a public demonstration held in Tokyo on March 28, a human-sized android showed off its weightlifting skills by successfully picking up a 30-kilogram (66-pound) package from a desk and lifting a 66-kilogram (145-pound) humanoid doll out of bed.

University of Tokyo professor Yasuo Kuniyoshi and his team of engineers developed the 155-centimeter (61-inch) tall, 70-kilogram (154-pound) robot last year. A recent software upgrade allows the robot to move more like a human by constantly adjusting the power of its arm movements based on data received from 1800 tactile sensors embedded in its artificial skin.

It is this system of sensor-based control -- and not large motors -- that gives the robot its strength. "Large motors are not safe for use in household robots," explains Kuniyoshi. "Only a small amount of power is applied at each of this robot's joints, but it can successfully move heavy objects by using the tactile sensors to regulate how it lifts and carries things."

The droid demonstrated different maneuvers for different situations. To lift the 30-kilogram package, the robot used one arm to slowly slide it to the edge of the desktop, where it grabbed the package with its other arm to pick it up. To remove the 66-kilogram dummy from bed, the android slid its arms under the body, lifted it slightly and backed away.

Kuniyoshi says this robot's ability to lift such heavy objects with ease is unusual, and he hopes further improvements will earn the robot a job in nursing care or in the moving industry.

[Sources: Nikkei Net, Mainichi]

Video: Mt. Fuji avalanche

27 Mar 2007

Oosawa Kuzure --- Fuji Sabo Works, an organization established by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MLIT) to fight erosion on Mt. Fuji, has released video of a powerful slush avalanche that occurred on Fuji's western side at 8:09 AM on March 25.

Slush avalanches happen when cold, dry snow suddenly becomes saturated with water. About 90 millimeters (3.5 inches) of rain had fallen before the avalanche occurred.

The avalanche took place in an area on Mt. Fuji called the Osawa Collapse (Osawa Kuzure), a 2.1-kilometer (1.3-mile) long gully that begins near the summit and runs down the western side. The gully is up to 500 meters (1,640 feet) wide and 150 meters (490 feet) deep in some places, and according to this Fuji Sabo Works project outline (PDF), a total of 75 million cubic meters (2.6 billion cubic feet) -- equivalent to 60 Tokyo Domes -- of soil has been displaced. An estimated 150,000 cubic meters (5.3 million cubic feet) of soil washes out through the Osawa Collapse each year.

Check out video of the avalanche on Youtube (with smashing soundtrack by Caspar Brotzmann) or on the Fuji Sabo Works website (no audio).

[Via Slashdot Japan]

Seaweed as biofuel

23 Mar 2007

Sargasso seaweed as biofuel --- On March 22, a group of Japanese scientists released details of an ambitious proposal calling for the large-scale production of bioethanol made from cultivated seaweed.

Researchers from Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, Mitsubishi Research Institute, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and several other private-sector firms envision a 10,000 square kilometer (3,860 square mile) seaweed farm at Yamatotai, a shallow fishing area in the middle of the Sea of Japan. They claim a farm of this scale could produce about 20 million kiloliters (5.3 billion gallons) of bioethanol per year, which is equivalent to one-third the 60 million kiloliters (16 billion gallons) of gasoline that Japan consumes each year.

Seaweed has long been discussed as a potential source of bioethanol, which is typically made from crops such as sugar cane and corn, but the idea has never been brought to fruition. According to the proposal, giant nets used in nori and wakame seaweed cultivation would be laid out to cultivate sargasso seaweed (hondawara), which grows rapidly. Floating bioreactors -- special facilities that use enzymes to break the seaweed down into sugars -- would prepare the seaweed for conversion into ethanol, which would also be done at sea. Tankers would then transport the ethanol to land.

The main components of seaweed are fucoidan and alginic acid. While an enzyme for breaking down fucoidan has already been discovered, the scientists are looking for an enzyme that breaks down alginic acid. They are also looking at the possibility of using genetic modification technology.

The group is also conducting research on how to develop the production plants and attract investment. Other participants in the project include NEC Toshiba Space Systems, Mitsubishi Electric, IHI, Sumitomo Electric Industries, Shimizu Corporation, Toa Corporation, Kanto Natural Gas Development Co., Ltd., and the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC).

The researchers claim that in addition to serving as a source of fuel, the seaweed would help clean up the Sea of Japan. According to Professor Masahiro Notoya from Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, the seaweed would work to remove some of the excess nutrient salts that flow into the sea from the surrounding land masses.

Professor Notoya will formally present the proposal at the International Seaweed Symposium, which is set to begin on March 26 in Kobe, Japan.

[Source: Fuji Sankei]

Bionic hand with can-crushing grip

22 Mar 2007

Bionic hand crushes CC Lemon can --- A team of researchers from the Tokyo Institute of Technology (TIT) claim to have developed the world's first electromechanical prosthetic hand with a grip strong enough to crush an empty beverage can.

This bionic hand weighs a little more than 300 grams and has a grip strength of around 15 kg (33 lbs), which is about half that of the average adult male. The hand also features four quick, nimble fingers that take as little as 1 second to flex and extend. When used in combination with the hand's opposable thumb, each finger can deftly pinch and pick up small objects of various shapes.

Researchers have long considered it a great challenge to design an electric prosthetic hand with a strong grip. Toru Omata, a graduate school professor at TIT, explains that until now, electromechanical hands have relied solely on motors for their grip. The secret to this bionic hand's strong grip, he explains, is the system of pulleyed cables that run through the fingers and attach at the fingertips.

One day in the future, the proud owner of this bionic hand will be able to crush cans at will. For that to happen, though, the researchers need to outfit the hand with a system of myoelectric control technology, which would allow the user to control the hand by flexing other muscles.

(Watch video of the hand crushing a CC Lemon can.)

[Source: Japan News Network]

Mospeng-kun: tissue-dispensing robot

16 Mar 2007

Mospeng-kun, tissue-dispensing robot --- Mospeng-kun is a tissue-dispensing robot created by InterRobot Inc., a robot development and rental company based in western Japan.

When the friendly Mospeng-kun detects a person nearby, it utters a high-pitched onegai shimasu and offers up a pack of tissues. When the tissues are taken from the robot's hand, it thanks the customer with an arigato gozaimashita and grabs another tissue pack from the cartridge for the next person.

InterRobot's rental fees start at 100,000 yen ($835) for 5 days, which is quite a bit more than the going rate for a human tissue distributor. But Mospeng-kun looks to be a cheerful worker, constantly maintaining a smile on its face monitor. In addition, according to the company website, Mospeng-kun is capable of gathering information about the people it encounters on the job. Unfortunately, though, the robot really needs to learn to work faster before it is ready for the sidewalks of Shibuya. Watch the video.

NTT’s eye-tracking system monitors pupil size, blinking

15 Mar 2007

Eye-tracking system recognizes viewer interest --- The NTT Group has unveiled technology that analyzes the interest level of TV viewers and web surfers by monitoring their eye movement, pupil size and blinking.

Improving on conventional eye-tracking systems that provide an understanding of where viewers cast their gaze, this new computer-operated system features cameras that monitor and analyze unconscious physiological reactions to interesting viewing material -- namely, enlarged pupils and changes in the rate of blinking.

The technology, which became commercially available on March 14, was developed by NTT Learning Systems (NTTLS) and the Visual Interactive Sensitivity Research Institute (VIS), both of which are involved in visual content creation. NTTLS says the technology can be used in conjunction with driver safety training videos, and negotiations with a major automaker are now underway.

NTTLS claims the system appeals to a wide range of potential users, including those involved in TV commercial advertising and web content creation. Television audience ratings alone do not provide producers a clear picture of the level of interest in commercials, and web traffic stats do not show which parts of a web page visitors find interesting. With this system, however, producers can get a more accurate understanding of what the audience is looking at and how interesting they find it.

Judging from the large size (and presumably high cost) of the device that sits between the viewer and the monitor, though, the system is clearly designed for use in the laboratory. But it's just a matter of time before this is standard computer monitor/TV screen equipment and producers keep one eye on the real-time audience pupil data while they develop and deliver content.

[Source: Asahi]

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