One of the traditions of the Olympics is the torch relay, in which people carry the flame from Olympia, Greece to the location of the Games. In 2018, the Olympic Games will be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, and the torch relay is currently underwa...
25 robot teams competed in the DARPA robot challenge over the past two days. The best robots from around to world have competing in simulated disaster-response situations to win the $2 million...
HUBO has come so far from mastering the basics of mobility. The latest from KAIST is HUBO 2, a robot with flexible limbs that allow it to bend down and even do push-ups. The HUBO 2's hands are another big improvement, now allowing the humanoid to open car doors, operate a gear shift and hold up to 7 kg. KAIST used "individually actuated" fingers that adapt to the shape of whatever HUBO 2 is holding, a la Honda's new ASIMO. The robot can walk 2 km on a charge, and it looks like it's a little less of a slow poke now, too: KAIST increased its running speed to 4 kph from 3 kph. Check out the source link and video below to see the HUBO 2 in action -- if you're impressed, it can be yours for a cool $400,000.
The Drexel University Music & Entertainment Technology Laboratory recently took four HUBO robots and turned them into The Beatles. Minus Yoko of course. These HUBOs operate autonomously, with their movements directed by student-developed software.
This software allows them to perform the gestures necessary to produce the appropriate notes and beats of the musical score. There is no trickery here. Every sound in the video was performed by the robots. This band is playing live, and they don’t do studio albums at this point.
The Drexel College of Engineering has seven of these robots, so maybe they can add a Stu Sutcliffe or Pete Best robot to the band too. These robots cost between $300,000 and $400,000 each. Sure, that’s expensive for a robot band, but cheap for a Beatle. I’m looking forward to their Sgt. Pepper album myself.
One of the traditions of the Olympics is the torch relay, in which people carry the flame from Olympia, Greece to the location of the Games. In 2018, the Olympic Games will be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, and the torch relay is currently underwa...
