Video ~ Pink Tentacle (9)

Tag: ‘Video’

Video: Extreme custom cars

15 Sep 2009

A few of Japan's more outlandish custom rides were featured on a recent episode of Sokon Tokoro.

The vehicles appearing in this video are:

- A rather ordinary-looking BMW E66 whose trunk is decked with Buddhist sutras written in 30,000 Swarovski crystals (the owner, a Buddhist priest, also owns the next vehicle).

- A Toyota Celsior UCF20 with gullwings, scissor doors and a split hood, which took 12 years to build and cost 10 million yen ($110,000). The interior includes 24 monitors, including several mounted in the headrests behind the passengers' heads (you can watch them with the eyes in the back of your head, according to the priest).

- Batman van, a rolling tribute to the superhero that cost 25 million yen ($280,000), took 13 years to complete, and earned the owner a divorce.

- Rocket launcher van, a 1981 Daihatsu Hijet outfitted with a cheap launcher for an 8-meter (26-ft) water rocket (the owner is an eggplant farmer).

- Replica of the "Pointer," the famous battle vehicle used by the Earth Defense Force in the Ultra Seven TV series that aired on Japanese TV in the late 1960s.

- Fan-flapping Hitachi ASTACO machine, which the Tokyo Fire Department Hyper Rescue Team uses to clear debris from disaster sites.

+ Video

The rides featured in this video are:

- Host George Tokoro's Subaru R1 disguised as a Ferrari.

- A 1994 Cadillac limo lowrider with plush pink interior and 11-color paint job that took a year to complete and cost 10 million yen ($110,000).

- "Tank" dragster powered by a 25,000-horsepower US military jet engine that spews a powerful, camera-melting flame. The dragster, which can reach speeds of 400 kph (250 mph), took 4 years to build and cost 40 million yen ($450,000).

- T-REX super three-wheeler with a 1352cc Kawasaki ZZR1400 engine that can reach speeds of 230 kph (140 mph).

[Via: Watashi to Tokyo]

3 Comments

‘Taizo’ robot leads exercises for the elderly

11 Sep 2009

On Thursday -- shortly before the Japanese government released new statistics showing the nation's centenarian population has reached an all-time high of more than 40,000 -- researchers from the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) unveiled a new humanoid robot designed to lead the elderly in physical exercises.

Taizou exercise instructor robot --
Taizo (built by AIST, General Robotix and Ibaraki Prefectural Health Plaza)

Dressed in a velvety space suit and sporting a goofy grin, the 70-centimeter (28-in) tall robot, named "Taizo" (a play on the word "taisou," which means "calisthenics"), has a friendly appearance designed to motivate elderly people to engage in more physical exercise.

+ Video

With 26 joints in its body, the 7-kilogram (15-lb) mechanical exercise instructor can smoothly demonstrate around 30 different moves for others to imitate. Although Taizo does most of its exercises while sitting in a special chair, it can also stand up to perform some activities.

Taizou exercise instructor robot --

Taizo can operate for about two hours on a single charge, and it has very basic language skills -- enough to understand simple spoken commands and lead a group in exercise.

The developers plan to start selling (and renting) the robots next year for around 800,000 yen (approx. $8,000) each.

[Sources: Sankei, Robot Watch, AIST]

2 Comments

‘Lucky Dragon’ fire-breathing boat in Osaka

07 Sep 2009

Post-apocalyptic artist Yanobe Kenji has constructed an animatronic fire-breathing dragon boat for the ongoing Aqua Metropolis festival in Osaka.

+ Video

Named "Lucky Dragon," the 15-meter (49-ft) long aluminum cruise boat is outfitted with a 7-meter (23-ft) tall mechanical dragon that moves its neck and wings, spits fire and water, and flashes glowing red eyes. The boat is scheduled to entertain onlookers with periodic fire-breathing performances in the local waterways (Okawa river and Dotonbori canal) until October 12.

Lucky Dragon, Yanobe Kenji --
Lucky Dragon spits fire at Suminoe shipyard, September 5

The vessel is named after the infamous Lucky Dragon No.5 (Daigo Fukuryu Maru), a Japanese fishing boat that was exposed to fallout from a US nuclear weapons test on Bikini Atoll in 1954. Yanobe, a native Osakan, hopes Lucky Dragon will encourage people to think about peace while sparking the local economy.

[Source: Mainichi]

5 Comments

RIBA robot nurse bear

27 Aug 2009

Meet RIBA, a robot nurse that resembles a friendly bear.

RIBA, Robot for Interactive Body Assistance --

RIBA -- short for "Robot for Interactive Body Assistance" -- was developed by researchers at Japan's Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) and Tokai Rubber Industries, Ltd. (TRI). Designed primarily to assist nurses by lifting patients in and out of their beds and wheelchairs (as well as on and off the toilet), the 180-kilogram (400-lb) robot can safely pick up and carry people weighing as much as 61 kilograms (135 lbs).

+ Video

The cheery-looking machine has long, multi-jointed arms embedded with an array of tactile sensors that help it optimize the lifting and carrying of humans. For safety purposes, RIBA's entire body is covered in a soft skin molded from an advanced lightweight urethane foam developed by TRI. The soft skin is designed to ensure the comfort of patients while they are being carried. In addition, the arm joints yield slightly under pressure -- much like human arms do -- further increasing the level of comfort and safety.

The robotic bear can also recognize faces and voices, as well as respond to spoken commands. Using visual and audio data from its surroundings, RIBA can identify co-workers, determine the position of those nearby, and respond flexibly to changes in the immediate environment. The motors operate silently, and a set of omni-directional wheels allow the robot to navigate tight spaces inside hospitals and nursing facilities.

RIBA, Robot for Interactive Body Assistance --

Japan, which faces an impending shortage of nurses as the population grows older, is looking at ways to offset the inevitable challenges that medical institutions will encounter in the coming years. Technology is regarded by some as the solution to this problem, and a considerable amount of government and private research is being devoted to developing robots capable of working in the healthcare field.

RIBA is an upgraded version of RIKEN's RI-MAN, a robot nurse assistant developed in 2006 that was only able to lift dolls weighing 18.5 kilograms (40 lbs). In addition to better strength and perception, RIBA's improved information processing technology allows it to crunch data at least 15 times faster than RI-MAN. This allows RIBA to move faster and with more confidence than its predecessor.

RIBA, Robot for Interactive Body Assistance --

RIBA's creators say they chose the friendly teddy bear appearance to put patients at ease. Attempting to make the robot look human would only frighten people, they claimed in their press release.

RIKEN and TRI plan to put RIBA to work in hospitals within the next five years.

[Source: RIKEN (JP) // Added Sep 1: English press release]

28 Comments

Video: Anatomy of WAHHA GO GO

26 Aug 2009

Maywa Denki president Nobumichi Tosa has created a video detailing the inner workings of the manually-operated WAHHA GO GO laughing machine.

+ Video

According to the video, WAHHA GO GO is activated by spinning the torso-mounted metal disk (an optional crank arm can be used for greater speed). The disk's rotational energy is transferred to the machine's left and right arms via a gear assembly in the lower back. As the arms rotate, the accordion-like lungs expand upward, drawing in air that is then exhaled through the machine's artificial vocal cords.

Another set of gear wheels in the spine transfers some of the spinning disk's rotational energy to the head assembly, which includes a pair of tiny arms that stretch and relax WAHHA GO GO's artificial vocal cords (thus regulating the pitch), as well as an arm connected to a valve that controls the flow of air from the lungs. This arm also opens and closes the mouth, which alters the so-called "formant characteristics" (resonant frequency) of the laugh, producing the "wa" and "ha" sounds.

By incorporating a series of mechanisms that work together to control the pitch, resonant frequency, and amount of air supplied to the artificial vocal cords, WAHHA GO GO is able to produce an uncanny human-like laugh.

[Link: YouTube]

2 Comments

Phasma insectoid robot (w/ video)

24 Aug 2009

+ Video

Phasma, a six-legged remote-controlled robot by takram design engineering, is built to run rapidly and dynamically like an insect.