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First Walking, Then Skating, Now - Skate Boarding Robots (Video link)

Getting a robot to walk is usually a major challenge, even for many of the experts. Designing one that could also roller skate was really a stretch, but some how the folks at Systec Akazawa in Japan managed to get their Plen robot to do exactly that. Now they've been able to train Plen to actually skateboard, even down to popping a small wheelie.

We have to admit that when we first saw the Plen robot last year we weren't all that impressed. The cosmetic design is good, even down-right cute. But at the time we thought that Plen was just another, run-of-the-mill humanoid robot that was somewhat overpriced.

We still feel that Plen's 250,000 yen (about US$2,200) may be too high to gain much momentum in the marketplace. At that price, you could by a couple of KHR-2HVs or Robonova's and still have a little bit of change left over to buy some options or just an additional battery pack. All that being said, Plen's performance ability is really outstanding and extremely impressive when you see him in person.

The robot only stands 23 cm (9 inches) tall and weighs in at 700 grams (1.54 pounds), so it's definitely a light weight by anyone's book. It does have 18 degrees of freedom and comes equipped with a 3 axis accelerometer that obviously helps his balance terrifically.

In order to show off the robot's capabilities in the best light, the company recently put it through its paces walking, roller skating, and surprisingly enough - skateboarding. They captured the whole series on video, and have uploaded it to the video section of the new Plen robot website. [via robot-fan.net]

Related links:

Plen Skateboarding, Roller Skating, and Walking. 

The Official Plen Website (Japanese)

Posted by Lem on June 21, 2006 | Permalink | Email this post

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Listed below are links to weblogs that reference First Walking, Then Skating, Now - Skate Boarding Robots (Video link):

» Skaterobot - video from smidigt.se
Roboten Plen, från det japanska företaget Systec Akazawa, är endast 23 cm hög och 700 gram tung, men skejta kan han (inbäddad quicktime). Via Robot Dreams. ... [Read More]

Tracked on Jun 22, 2006 6:19:43 PM

» Skating robot - video from Cocogrillo
The Plen robot, from the Japanese company Systec Akazawa, is only 23 cm (9 inches) tall and weigh 700 grams (1.54 pounds), but he sure knows how to skate (embedded quicktime). Via Robot Dreams. ... [Read More]

Tracked on Jun 22, 2006 6:25:34 PM

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Comments:

Pleo does rock, doesn't he? (Umm, it?)

Reminds me of my dream for a tricycle for the Robosapiens. I'm sure it must be possible to make one that'd allow them to go faster than they can walk.

Posted by: Carl | Jun 22, 2006 6:49:07 AM

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