SlashGear for iPad and iPhone
RSS Feed

‘Robot’ Stories

Qbo robot dons ASUS 3D sensor crown for intelligent autonomy

, Mar 15th 2012 Discuss [0]

Open-source robot project Qbo has gained a new set of sensors, in the shape of a custom ASUS Xtion tiara that allows the 'bot to 3D map his environment, autonomously navigate and - most importantly - avoid obstacles. While Qbo already has twin HD webcam eyes and four ultrasonic sensors (two up front and two on the back), adding in the Xtion Pro Live sensor bar augments the robot's awareness of its environment, layering 3D on top of the 2D mapping it was already capable of recording. Read The Full Story

iRobot Scooba 390 cleaning ‘bot gets serious

, Mar 15th 2012 Discuss [0]

Grubby floors beware; iRobot has introduced a new floor washing 'bot, the Scooba 390, a full-size version of the Scooba 230 that demands less prep work by its human owners. Where the 230 could wash your tile, linoleum or hardwood floor but first insisted that you manually brush it, the Scooba 390 includes a rotating brush to scoop up any obvious dirt before it gets down to more intensive cleaning. Read The Full Story

iRobot and TI team up to work on our inevitable downfall

, Mar 12th 2012 Discuss [2]

We’re not quite at the point where Cylons are going to murder us all in our sleep, but we’re moving in that direction rather quickly. iRobot and Texas Instruments have announced a partnership that will see OMAP chips working their way into future iRobot products. Read The Full Story

DARPA’s Cheetah quadruped robot breaks speed record

, Mar 6th 2012 Discuss [3]

DARPA has released a video showing its Cheetah quadruped robot running at speeds up to 18mph, which shatters the previous record of 13.1mph set by MIT's Planar Biped robot in 1989. The Cheetah is developed by Boston Dynamics, who won the contract just over a year ago. The company is also responsible for the AlphaDog or LS3 pack mule robot and the Atlas humanoid robot. Read The Full Story

Robonaut shakes hands with ISS commander for the first time

, Feb 16th 2012 Discuss [0]

Our robotic pal Robonaut has finally been completely put together up on the ISS. Robonaut has been in orbit for a long time now, but he spent most of that time packed up in his fancy container. The astronauts on the ISS have finally unpacked Robonaut and connected his legs and arms. Robonaut and the ISS commander were able to shake hands for the first time yesterday. Read The Full Story

Ecobot-III Food-Consuming Robot project inventors receive PR boost

, Feb 8th 2012 Discuss [0]

Over in the Bristol Robotics Laboratory there's a robot that's capable of not only running on organic matter it consumes, but of pooping out the waste as well. This robot has been created in the never-ending quest to create a robot that's able to sustain itself, of course, and may well be the next step to a human poo-powered robo-maid if they don't gain a conscience before they learn to clean our houses. As it stands now, the "Ecobot-III" can consume masses of its own food and water from its environment, including human feces if you let it, and "craps" out what it can't use into its own litter tray.. Read The Full Story

DARPA begins testing LS3 robot pack mule

, Feb 8th 2012 Discuss [6]

DARPA has begun real world testing of a quadruped robot that can traverse all sorts of terrain and act as a pack mule for soldiers. This semi-autonomous robot is called Legged Squad Support System (LS3) and is developed from Boston Dynamic's Big Dog and Alpha Dog robots. The agency has released the first field test video of the LS3 navigating an outdoor terrain. Read The Full Story

DARPA Crowdsourced UAVForce robots begin to fly

, Feb 7th 2012 Discuss [0]

There's a project going on at the moment with DARPA in which teams are asked to create their own unmanned aerial vehicles, and it's time for proof-of-flight time in the field. The first robot in this group of groups that's being tipped as the leader at the moment is the GremLion UAV from the National University of Singapore. This little monster is a four-wheeled machine with a pod that opens up and deploys propellers that allow it to lift straight up off the ground and land precisely as it jumps. Read The Full Story

Nano Quadrotor robot swarm video is mesmerizing, terrifying

, Feb 1st 2012 Discuss [13]

If you fear the rise of intelligent, collaborative robots swarming together and gathering human prey for the battery tanks, look away now: the Nano Quadrotors have taken to the skies and they're terrifyingly adept. The handiwork of researchers in the GRASP Lab at the University of Pennsylvania, the latest-gen Quadrotors can not only handle being tossed, inverted or generally batted around without crashing, but fly in formation. Read The Full Story

Danger, Will Robinson! B9 Robot voice Dick Tufeld dies

, Jan 27th 2012 Discuss [2]

"Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!" Sad news this week as it's confirmed that the second-half of the famous B9 Robot from classic sci-fi series Lost In Space, voice actor Dick Tufeld, died at the weekend. Known for providing the distinctive authoritative voice of the B9 as it helped the Robinson family - and the dastardly Dr. Zachary Smith - as they explore deep space. Read The Full Story

Dancing Bieber-bot a six-figure spectacle

, Jan 18th 2012 Discuss [0]

Pop fop Justin Bieber's show-stopping CES 2012 appearance is believed to have cost toy manufacturer Tosy a six-figure sum, according to insiders, meaning the firm will have to sell plenty of $200 robots just to cover the singer's fee. Exact details of the Tosy deal have not been revealed, but Bieber apparently pocketed more than $100k for the brief appearance alongside the mRobo Ultra Robot, The Daily was told. Read The Full Story

U.S. Navy making Android, iOS app-controlled RoboCopter drones

, Jan 13th 2012 Discuss [0]

The military, as we've come to expect, is continuing to tinker with developing drones that can be controlled by Android and iOS apps. This time, the U.S. Navy is announcing a new $98 million project that will develop unmanned helicopters for the Marines. But unlike other drones, these will be completely autonomous meaning they will not need human operators for take off and landing. Read The Full Story
Pages: Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Next