ROBOTS DREAMS

Captain Kangaroo Had a Dancing Bear Too! (Video)

Just when we were thinking that 'paxshikai' had run out of creative hack, mods, and stunts for his i-SOBOT robot, he surprised us again with his latest creation - a Robot Bear (video below).

One of the nice things about his approach is that most i-SOBOT owners should be able to recreate it, or something similar, with minimum taxidermy skills and a quick trip to the local crafts or dollar store. Of course, access to the IR sensor so that the robot can receive commands from the remote control is a concern. Perhaps a small access hole strategically cut in the shoulder might do the trick.

Who knows, perhaps we'll soon see dozens of little robot creatures of different types playing air guitar. Barbie doesn't have the right body proportions for this particular hack, but there must be lots of dolls and stuffed animals out there that would work. Be sure and let us know what you come up with, and point us to a video showing it in action if possible.

Disney Trots Wall-E Robot Out for a Sneak Peek (Video)

Thanks to a very timely heads-up from our good friend and fellow robot fanatic David Buckley, we were vectored to a 'sneak peek' video (see  below) featuring the Wall-E robot that Disney has scheduled to go on sale later this summer following the commercial movie release.

Although the video is extremely dark and the volume is pretty low, you can still tell a lot about the robot and its unique remote control. At the projected USD$189 price point we're sure that a lot of robot and Disney/Pixar fans are going to find Wall-E scooting around the base of their Christmas this coming December.

Weird New Robot Lifeform Springs From Guru's Junkbox (Video)

It's hard enough to build a robot from a commercial kit. It's even harder to design and build one from components based on your own concept. But it takes a real robotics and creative guru to dip their hand into their junk box, pull out a few old, worn parts, and hack them together to give birth to a cute, almost lifelike, robotic creature that performs better than a lot of robots on the market.

I-Wei (aka CrabFu) had a little bit of spare time on his hands (did we mention he's looking for a job?), and a pile of old parts from his robotics, steam punk, and R/C plane/helicopter hobbies. So, rather than sit around and mope, he started playing around with different robot designs based on worn R/C helicopter swash mechanisms.

The result of his labors, named the "Swashbot", is truly amazing to watch. And, in true CrabFu style, he openly shares all the background in the video below.

More Monster Mash and Robot Interviews (Video)

Following up on our previous post featuring Matt Denton and the iC Hexapod Robot, we've included more interviews and creations from the Monster Mash event in the video clip below.

Enjoy!

Matt Denton on the iC Hexapod Robot Design (Video)

In the video below from the recent Film24's Monster Mash event in London, Matt Denton explains a bit about the design of his surprisingly realistic iC Hexapod Robot, and a couple of attendees talk about how awestruck they are by Matt's creation.

Ramp-up To RoboGames 2008

It's hard to believe, but the premier robot event of the year, RoboGames 2008, is less than two months away. With close to a thousand robots, hundreds of teams from all over the world, and the opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the top competitive robot builders the planet has to offer, you can bet we'll be there with bells on.

We haven't nailed down our exact travel schedule yet, but plan on spending a week to 10 days in the San Francisco area, either arriving a little before RoboGames, or staying for several days after the action. We're definitely interested in meeting, and possibly interviewing, people or companies in the area that happen to be as hooked on robotics as we are - so drop us a line.

To help all of us get in the spirit, we hacked together the short little RoboGames promo video clip below. Enjoy!

Japanese Robot Seal Migrates to the US

We've been following Paro, the Japanese baby seal companion robot, for the past couple years, and have even had a couple opportunities to interact with the cuddly little creature. While we've never felt compelled to run out and buy one (at least not out of our own wallet), we do understand the attraction.

Now, after a successful 5+ year track record here in Japan, the Paro robot is about to go on sale in the US. Sales will be handled through a new joint venture company established by the Intelligent System Company in Japan and Walter Weisel, the former head of the Robotic Industries Association of the United States. Pricing is expected to be approximately USD$5,000 per robot.

The "Summer of Love" Redux - Robot Style!

It was 1967, San Francisco, and suddenly 100,000 young people flocked to the Haight Ashbury district creating an unbelievably powerful mix of music, freedom, creative expression, and new political thinking. It was Ground Zero for the hippie revolution, and the world will never be the same.

This summer, echoes of that unforgettable "Summer of Love" will rebound through the streets of San Francisco as robot enthusiasts from all over the globe gather to participate in three landmark events. The "Robot Summer of Love" gets off to a roaring start with the Combots Cup III event on May 3-4. Just one week later, on May 10th, and totally in keeping with the hippie "Make love, not war", the ROBOEXOTICA USA event comes to San Francisco. Then, mid-June, the worlds largest (and most exciting) robot competition - RoboGames 2008  is going to rock the walls, and probably the San Francisco Bay itself, with hundred of robots fighting it out in over 70 different events.

Segway RMP Robot Platform (Video)

Make Magazine posted a really intriguing video (see below) of the Segway RMP robot mobility platform that was taken today at the Robot Business 2008 event.

Capable of transporting a 400 pound payload, the robot platform can move in any direction, and can change directions instantaneously. The pricing could be as high as $50k.

Obviously, we want to learn more, a lot more....

French Company Ready to Seek and Destroy the Leghorn Robot (Video)

The French robot guru's over at POB Technologies think they might have exactly the right robotics technology to track down, and defeat Leghorn, the ROBO-ONE champion rooster robot.

POB has developed some really interesting kits and peripherals that facilitate adding vision, object recognition, and other features to robot platforms. Their real claim-to-fame is the simplicity and ease of use provided by their products. At the same time, they've managed to keep the prices low enough to be affordable by a lot of robot experimenters and workshop wizards. And, they always love a good challenge....

Japanese Network Set to Debut Robot Drama

Fuji TV, one of the top television networks in Japan, is set to debut a new series next week tittled "Zettai Kareshi!", which loosely translates as "He's My Boyfriend, Absolutely!"

The basic premise centers around Riko, a young single, and very cute, woman who works as temp staff for a candy company. Riko is selected as a beta tester for a new robot to be released by Kronos Heaven. As it turns out, the robot is intended to be the perfect boyfriend, with all the characteristics that women love, and none of the short comings. However, the new robot was designed by a male engineer, so you can bet that lots of comedy and miscommunication will ensue....

The show is billed as a 'Drama', but the definition of drama here is much looser than in the US. This particular program is likely to be more of a 'situation comedy' - perhaps a robot version of 'Mork & Mindy'.

HPI Set to Unleash G-Dog Robot

Using the same basic robot parts, servos, and design strategy made popular by their G-Robot humanoid robot, HPI has announced the upcoming release of the G-Dog - a four footed canine robot. The G-Dog robot will feature 9 degrees of freedom (DOF) using Futaba RS304MD servos and the RPU-11 controller. Initial shipments are forecast for July of this year. The robot pricing has not been released yet. 

Wakamaru Robot Gets A Part-time Job

Other than the fact that it's bright yellow, and cute, we have no idea why Nikon selected the Mitsubishi Wakamaru robot to do market promotions for their new D-60 digital camera. Whatever the reason, it's got to cost them a pretty penny. At the moment, there's a booth setup at the main entrance to Yodobashi Camera right next to Akihabara station. You wait in line (there were only two people waiting at 7:00 pm this evening, it isn't Disneyland), then get your photo snapped with the robot.

Before you ask, yes that really is a 'black heart' in the photo. It doesn't have a negative meaning in Japanese, and was probably picked just to match the Nihon color scheme. We're sure that they would be shocked to find out the meaning of 'black heart' in English. Neat robot, and neat camera, though we're not convinced that this particular marketing promotion will payoff for Nikon. In any case, it captured enough of our attention that we stopped to take the photo above, and to blog about it.

Under $20 Humanoid Robot Kit (Video)

Okay, we admit it. We're absolute suckers for anything robotic. That's why we never keep money in our wallets when we go to trade shows. If we had any spending cash it would literally burn a hole in our pocket. So, late last year, when we attended the IREX show (International Robot Exhibition) with almost no money on us, we thought we were totally safe from temptation.

But, Gakken, the well known manufacturer of popular Japanese educational kits, must have seen us coming. They were showing off their latest creation, the Co-Robot (see video below), a humanoid robot kit that lists at 2,171 yen. That meant that it would be available on the open market here for under USD$20.

Needless to say, we walked out of the trade show with our wallet a little lighter, and a new Co-Robot box tucked neatly under our arm.

Unfortunately, due to our work and personal commitments, the Co-Robot box went on the shelf for a while. Then, earlier today, when we were trying to select a project to post about, the Co-Robot seemed a natural choice.

Toyota Partner Robot Demonstrations (Video)

Toyota is going to be showcasing their trumpet playing partner robot starting this coming Thursday at Toyota Universal Design Showcase (2nd floor) located in the MEGA WEB facility in Tokyo.

Admission is free to the public. Demonstrations will be held at 13:00, 15:00, 16:00, and 17:15, on Thursday March 20th, and each Saturday and Sunday from now through April 6 th.

For those that aren't already familiar with the Toyota robot trumpet player, we've included a short video preview below.
 

Tin Robots - Cheap Toys or Valuable Collectibles?

When we were kids, long ago and far away, we had quite a few small metal robot toys that were made it Japan. They were a lot of fun to play with, and no doubt contributed to our lifelong fascination and addiction to things robotic. But, at some point, probably during one of our moves, the tin robot toys were misplaced, donated to the local Goodwill, or just trashed.

Boy, are we crying now! A similar Japanese toy robot from the same era, the "Machine Man Robot" produced by Masudaya Toys, is currently on auction on eBay and the most recent bid is a whooping $31,100 US dollars! Of course, it's in almost mint condition and has been in storage for over 47 years, while our old robot friends were played with constantly until something broke. Still, we don't want to even hazard a guess about the value of those rare robot collectibles we so casually tossed away... !8-(

 

Flying Robot Trend Gains Momentum

Of course we love robots, and anything almost remotely robotic for that matter. And, from time to time, we have enjoyed RC cars, planes, and even helicopters. But, for some unknown reason, a lot of companies, like Kyosho, have decided recently to release new products that mash together robots and helicopters.

The most recent entry in this puzzling trend is the flying Doraemon "TakeCopter" from Epoch, a remote controlled toy implementation of Doraemon's bamboo copter. The new robot carries an age recommendation of 15 and up, which is typical for the highly conservative Japanese toy market. The same product in the US would most likely end up with a "10 and above" recommendation.

A bit pricey at 7,329 yen (roughly USD $65), the robot flies for 2 to 3 minutes and takes approximately 20 to 30 minutes to fully recharge. This is definitely an indoor-only product due to it's light weight construction and IR based remote control that wouldn't work in sunlight. It's scheduled to go on sale in Japan this Saturday, February 23rd.

Robot Noodles - Part 2 (Video)

It has to be one of the most amazing 'transformer' robots we have ever seen. Most evenings just before 10:00 pm, when the local people are getting hungry for some noodles or need a meal to balance out some of their drinking, a small truck pulls into an open space just in front of a down town department store.

The driver gets out, moves a few bicycles out of the way, positions the truck in his favorite spot, then begins the truck's transformation.

In less than 10 minutes, magic happens. Awnings automatically extend, table tops fold down from the truck body, gas burners fire up, and a diskwasher robot postions noodle bowls at the ready.

The driver dons his chef apron and hat, steps into the center of his resturant/truck, and offers a big, happy, smile as his first customer of the evening sits down and orders his meal.

More "Over The Top" Automata - Cabaret Mechanical Theatre (Video)

Every once in a while we run across an article or video of a robot related event that just blows us away. It's one of those, "WOW" moments when you want to just run out, catch a taxi to the airport, and fly to whatever corner of the globe that's depicted in the video.

The video (see below) we saw tonight of last summer's Cabaret Mechanical Theatre exhibition in London fits that description to a "T". We are really sorry we missed being able to attend in person, and can hardly wait for it to visit Japan someday, hopefully in the not too distant future.

19th Century Automata Rival Today's Android Creations (Video)

There's a lot of the "WOW" factor in today's androids. We're amazed and totally impressed by the lifelike robotic creations like Ishiguro's doppelganger or David Hanson's realistic robot clones.

But, from time to time we like to remind ourselves that the roots of their work and accomplishments go back for centuries. Man's desire, passion, to create automated life forms in our own image isn't anything new.

For example, in France during the last half of the 19th century some surprising automata - lifelike mechanical devices - were created. In many ways some of them rival the best that modern science has been able to come up with. Thankfully, those magical robotic creations are being lovely restored and shared with the world by Michael and Maria Start.

Me Tarzan, You Jane, Him i-SOBOT (Video)

Well, Paxshikai, the i-SOBOT wizard, has done it again.

Over the past two months we've seen i-SOBOT robots lifting boxes, slam dunking hoops, bringing beverages, and even shooting a bullseye with a bow and arrow.

Now, get ready for an i-SOBOT robot that swings through the jungle, just like Tarzan!

More Robots Take to the Air! (Video)

Right on the heels of the Kyosho flying robot the AirBots (video below), designed by Wiz Co. Ltd., are about to start commercial shipments on November 23rd. here in Japan.

The robots, which are already listed on the Amazon Japan website, are cheap enough at 2,830 yen that many robot enthusiasts will buy two just to stage an impromptu aerial battle. Confidentially, that's what we did - one black and one blue.

WowWee Robot Wars (Video)

Ever wonder what would happen if a strange alien robot suddenly landed on Earth? Where would they land? And what would they do? Who would protect us? Another robot? And who would protect us from that robot?

Apparently 'days77' down in Australia wondered. And, they didn't just idly day dream about it. They actually put in a tremendous amount of work and creativity, and came up with a very well done 9+ minute video. Definitely worth watching, and sharing with friends that like robots.

JPL NASA All Terrain Space Robot Video Online

JPL NASA released a great 3 minute video (link below) overview of the ATHLETE robot showing an actual half sized working model in action. The robot's main objective is to serve as a mobile platform on the moon or other planets enabling the movement of large laboratory or equipment modules supporting remote exploration.

Really Bad Robot Movies Return

A good part of our youth was misspent in darkened movie theaters watching really bad science fiction B-movies. Perhaps, in some small way, that's how our obsession with robots first got started screening movies like "Robot Monster (1953)". Now, thanks to the Bmovies.com website, you can have the same wonderful (dreadful?) experience we enjoyed so much.

 

Accessing Technology Content Globally via Internet TV

Living in Japan we tend to miss out on a lot of the neat US technology programs, and when they do happen to show up over here it's normally about two years after the original Stateside broadcast. Luckily the internet and video sharing technology is fixing that problem.

We just signed up with Miro, the free open source internet TV and video player. Did we mention that it's free? Frankly, we were totally astounded by the wealth of video content. Some of it's fairly shallow, but a lot of it is really worth watching, like the Wired Science programs, and the video presentations from the annual TED conferences. A typical example is this episode of Strange Science featuring COG, the advanced robot from MIT.

 

Autobot Halloween Pumpkin!

Mark wrote in to share photo of his great Autobot Pumpkin:

   "Happy Hallobots, thought you would like my pumpkin."

WonderKit Releases New Low Cost 9 DOF Humanoid Robot Kit

We haven't seen it in person yet, but from the online information it appears that the WonderKit folks at Kyohritsu have come out with an interesting low-end humanoid robot kit named PetitRobo X.

The new robot has 9 servo motors and takes from 4 to 8 hours to assemble, based on the builders experience level. And, like all the WonderKit products, the price is rock bottom at 29,988 yen (roughly USD$262) at stores in Akihabara.

Of course we plan on picking one up during our next trip into Tokyo's electronic playground.

 

Ready for Halloween?

Using their robot skills and a few robot servos and parts, Joe Strout and his son Kevin converted their house into a giant monster with moving eyes for Halloween last year! And, like all good robot builders, they documented how they did it with a detailed writeup, photos, and even a video (see below).

Kondo's Secret Response to the Kyosho Robo Hopper

A couple days ago we posted about Kyosho's new Robo Hopper flying robot helicopter. That immediately caught the attention of I-Wei at Crab-Fu. Not only is he a devoted steam punk robot creator, and a KHR-2HV fanatic, it turns out that he also loves flying RC helicopters. 

Here's what he wrote in response to our post:

"Kyosho robots takes to the sky eh? pffffffft old news! and I thought you were suppose to be IN on the latest in the robotics world.... I'm surprised that you didn't know about Kondo's GENEX-Heli!"

Well, we had to admit that we must have been sleeping because we hadn't heard about Kondo's new robot helicopter until we got a look at the photo that he sent us as proof.

New Kyosho Robots Take To The Sky (Video)

Not content with the commanding position held by it's two top-of-the-line humanoid robots, the MANOI AT01 and PF01, Kyosho is about to roll out a brand new robot that can actually fly.

Actually, to be more accurate and to set proper expectations, the new Robo Hopper flying robot is closer to a mini helicopter that happens to have a robot shape. Still, a 'robot' is a robot, even when it's a model of a robot. And, this one looks like it will be a lot of fun to play with.

Robo Hopper (see video below) is scheduled to hit store shelves in Japan this December (2007). The remote control uses 4 AA batteries and the robot plugs into the remote to recharge. A 15 minute charging cycle provides up to 5 minutes of play time. Up to 25 Robo Hoppers can be separately controlled at the same time using the 2.4 gigahertz remote system.

Caution: "Tachikoma May Appear Smaller in your Rear View Mirror"

There must be quite a few 'Ghost in the Shell' fans reading Robots Dreams because we received a number of emails asking if we had seen the new Tachikoma robot from Bandai, and what did we think of it. Obviously a short post is in order.

First, we should point out that the Bandai PR photo above is, unintentionally, a bit misleading. The laptop in the background is there purely to indicate that the Tachikoma is a USB peripheral device, and doesn't have any direct relationship to the robots size.

Giving Your Robosapien Some Eyes, and a Brain (Video)

We're currently doing an evaluation of some POB Technologies products, and are trying to decide which particular project would be best to demonstrate their power and capability. We have lots of different robotic platforms, some wheeled, some with tracks, and quite a number of humanoids, so the best project would involve one, or more, of our existing robots. And it should be something of practical use - something that can be applied to autonomous operation, tracking, or even just a simple fun project as long as it's not trivial or meaningless.

In going through the specs, manuals, downloads, and forums on the POB site, we ran across fairly detailed documentation showing a mash-up that uses the POB-EYE and related modules to give an original Robosapien robot vision and the ability to track objects.

Where's The Robot? (Video)

Typically when we think about a robot we automatically assume that it is self contained to some extent. It has some means of locomotion - wheels, legs, or tracks, a source of power, some sensors, and a brain to control it all. But what about robots where the intelligence isn't 'on-board'? Are they still 'robots'? If the answer is no, then how would you classify them?

Suppose that the 'brain' - the control intelligence, and the sensors reside somewhere else? A good example might be the tiny Citizen Eco-Be soccer playing robots. We had the opportunity to watch them up close, take a look at their internal design, and chat with some of the developers at CEATEC 2007 here at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan last week.

ROBO-ONE: The Next Challenge Theme? (Video)

Every major ROBO-ONE competition has a special challenge theme. In the past we've seen themes like having your robot jump rope, perform useful tasks, and most recently the 'play catch' theme for ROBO-ONE 12.

Since there are less than six months left until ROBO-ONE 13 takes place in Tokyo next March, several overseas humanoid builders that plan on attending have asked what the challenge theme will be. Everyone needs considerable time to prepare, especially those that have never had the opportunity to compete before. But, like everyone else, we're anxiously awaiting some announcement from the ROBO-ONE committee.

Rather than just sit on our hands and wait patiently, we decided to throw a suggestion into the ring for consideration. And, we enlisted the help of one of our handy, and instantly recognizable, robot friends to give a little demonstration for the camera.

CEATEC Japan 2007

DSC04660
Originally uploaded by Tempusmaster.

We spent most of Thursday at CEATEC 2007 checking out the latest technology from microscopic components up to huge consumer and commercial displays, and took hundreds of photos, as usual.

Some of the new products were totally awesome, especially the new ultra-thin OLED screens. The colors are vivid - almost too vivid and overwhelming, and ultra-thin means exactly that.

Unfortunately on the 'robot' front there wasn't much new or exciting. Murata Boy, the bicycling robot was back and is still unique enough to draw large crowds. And, there were a few exhibits that used robots as an attention getting gimmick. We'll have to wait for the biannual IREX show here at the end of next month to see what's really cutting edge for robotics.

Matt Denton's Awesomely Realistic Spider Bot (Video)

It's a "kinetic work of art", but the moves are surprisingly realistic, as you can see in the video clip from Matt below.

Blaser Tag: Robot Laser Tag Game System (Video)

Our friends at HotProceed have been busy creating lots of new accessories for Kondo RCB-3 based robots like the KHR-1HV, KHR-2HV and Manoi AT01. First they introduced the TEC-1, an interface board that makes it possible to control your robot using a PS2 gamepad. Then they topped that with the TEC-3, adding analog joystick control.

But, what they showed us during a break in the ROBO-ONE 12 action in Takamatsu last weekend was totally over the top. They've created a super robot laser tag game system, named "Blaser" that's an absolute blast to play.

Christmas Robots Under the Tree and Robots on the Tree

We expect to see lots of robots wrapped as presents under the tree come Christmas morning, but Hallmark and Mattel have taken it one step further and created a "Rock'em Sock'em Robots" keepsake that looks like it comes equipped to actually hang on the tree!

Thanks Eloise for the tip!

Pleo Release Date Pushed Back Due to Battery Issues

UGOBE announced a few minutes ago that shipments of the long awaited Pleo robotic  dinosaur have been pushed back due to a change in their battery strategy. Originally the robot was to carry a single battery pack on board, and would go to its 'food bowl' to recharge when necessary. Now, because of problems that were uncovered during the "pre-production testing", UGOBE is switching gears to implement multiple rechargable battery packs - presumably that the owner/parent will have to change manually. Here's an excerpt from their email:

"During pre-production testing, the UGOBE? team encountered some significant problems with Pleo's battery life. We solved these problems in a way that I think you will appreciate: all Pleos, including First Hatch Pleos, are now designed to have an easily removable battery and an external charger for the battery. That means that with multiple batteries and chargers, you can keep Pleo going for hours on end. However, implementing this design change will delay production. We are working hard to make sure everyone who has ordered a Pleo will receive one by the holidays."

Zeno Website Goes Live - Sort Of...

Zenos' World, the official website for the new Zeno hybrid robot from Hanson Robotics has gone live. At this point (22:00 JST on Sep 8th)  the home page is up and running, though most of the links and special content is non-functional. Many of the images and columns overlap, which is unfortunate since it hides some important information - like the 'News Flash' that's hidden by Zeno himself-

"Zeno is going to Los Angeles for Wired Magazine’s NextFest and he’s sure to be the hit of the show! Come see him in action September 13 through 16 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. He’ll be looking for you!"

We're sure they'll work out the website bugs fairly quickly. Hopefully they can sort out Zenos bugs as well when the time comes. At the moment he looks more like a robot assembled out of Hanson and Takahashi's spare parts bins. The doll like head must be much more impressive when you see it in person, but the body, especially the hands and legs, are not what we have come to expect from Takahashi's studio. Here's hoping it improves a lot with age.

They are currently predicting that Zeno will hit store shelves sometime in 2009. That might be pretty aggressive given the fact that Takahashi's original MANOI design, now renamed the PF01, took close to two years to come to market even after its 18 month design cycle was finished, and UGOBE's PLEO robotic dinosaur is following the same path.

Gogic Racer - Gogic Five Turns into a Transformer Robot (Video)

A couple days ago we ran across, and posted about, a sign on the SK-Pang website that looked like they were busy designing some sort of transformer robot.

And, it turns out that our guess was right on target. We've managed to obtain a short video (see below) showing their new add-on kit for the popular Gogic Five robot that converts it into a Transformer robot that not only can walk, and drive around on wheels, but can also turn somersaults!

Incredibly Cool Robot Gift Idea

This started off as one of those 'small world' stories, and then quickly took on world-wide dimensions. We happened to be surfing the Trossen Robotics blog looking for some information on a new product we were interested in, and totally by chance happened to notice a really cool drawing of a drive-in restaurant waitress - like the heartthrobs that used to bring our orders to the car at the local A&W root beer place. Only this particular waitress was obviously a robot!

It turns out that one of the Trossen crew noticed some really cool robot drawings over on the Suicide Bots website, loved them, and commissioned the artist to create the robot waitress for the Trossen website. The artistic genius behind all of this is a fellow by the name of Ben Rollman who runs the Robot Portraits website.

Currently he's doing specially created, robot themed, drawings via his website. You just give Ben a rough idea, or concept, perhaps email him a photo or link to a photo, then turn him loose to work his magic. Of course, we had to order a drawing - two actually - as you can see below. 

RoboQuad Becomes RoboSpy with RoboDance and Skype (Video)

At first glance, the robot on the right looks like a standard RoboQuad from WowWee, that you could find at toy and specialty stores almost anywhere.

But, on closer inspection you might notice that this particular RoboQuad is equipped with a video camera mounted on the top of its head, and has been transformed into a really unique, remote controlled, spy bot.

Robert Oschler, the publisher of RobotsRule.com and developer of the popular RoboDance software application, has really outdone himself this time. He's equipped his RoboQuad with a video camera, Skype video conferencing ability, and can control the robot remotely from anywhere in the world using voice commands processed through RoboDance. He explains it all, and promises some interesting follow-on information, in the video below.

Weird-72 Creator Kazuhisa Terasaki Talks About His Robot Creations (Video)

 
Long term readers of Robots Dreams may recall Weird-7, a wooden robot designed by Kazuhisa Terasaki. The robot was able to achieve surprising performance given the fact that it used really cheap servos and a controller board. One of Terasaki's favorite tricks is to have Weird-7 laying down, literally as flat as a board, and then have it pop up and come to life.

Weird-7 turned out to be quite popular in Japan, and eventually Terasaki was talked into marketing the product as a kit. The Weird-7 kit sells for just under 30,000 yen (roughly $260 US), and can still be found at Tsukumo Robot Kingdom in Akihabara as well as quite a few other robot retailers.

But, Terasaki wasn't satisfied, so he went on to create Weird-72, a bigger, better, more humanoid robot version of Weird-7 - only this time his robot could actually jump rope. We caught up with Terasaki, and Weird-72,  in Mountain View, California during our trip to the Anybots facility in June. 

Dancing Penguin Robot Shows Some Cool Moves (Video)

Humanoido, one of our online robot friends and fellow fanatics, wrote in to tell us about the software he developed to convert the 4" tall,  two servo (yes - just two servos) biped Penguin robot from Parallax into an amazing dancing dervish-  

"Penguin is a tiny new robot, which is a greatly scaled down version of the Parallax Toddler robot. You may think there's not a lot of things you can do with just two servo motors. Face it, even getting a biped to walk smooth is a real challenge But for the past 3 months I've been in the lab writing software. This has led to some very interesting things, like dancing and skating. Some of the dance moves are rather fantastic, wouldn't you say?

Penguin goes beyond his two servo motors. The code has virtual motors. These exist only in software. But they give the robot capability to move in new ways. Let me know what you think of this dancing. It's modeled after little Mumbles Penguin on the Happy Feet movie."

So, take a look at the Penguin in action below, then tell us, and Humanoido, whether Michael Jackson, or Mumbles, has anything to worry about.

Pleo - What's Behind, and What's Inside the Dinosaur Robot (Video)

There's no doubt about it. Pleo, the robotic dinosaur from UGOBE, is an amazing creation. It's movements, actions, and reactions, are surprisingly realistic and lifelike - when it has its skin on.

It's August already, and the ramp-up for the holiday buying season is already well underway. Manufacturers are racing to get their products into the supply chain so that they can fill the shelves at WalMart, Target, and all the other major retailers as customers begin their annual Christmas buying spree. For most manufacturers, especially those in the toy end of the market, the holidays are a do or die proposition. That appears to be especially true for Pleo.

To prime the pump and get the 'Pleo Buzz' going, UGOBE has been sending out a series of newsletters and posting new videos (see below) about Pleo online every two weeks. Their latest newsletter was titled "Sneak Peek into Pleo" and provided an interesting look behind the UGOBE curtain.

Steam Powered Robots in Your Future?

We've been harassing I-Wei at CrabFu Steamworks pretty regularly pestering him with questions about when he's going to get his act together and unveil a steam powered humanoid robot. Of course, we're just kidding and having a little fun with him. But, based on the latest news from Vanderbilt University a steam powered robot might not be as impractical as we thought.

It turns out that Michael Goldfarb, a professor at Vanderbilt, is leading a research and development project that has harnessed a miniature rocket motor to produce a consistent supply of steam to power a prosthetic arm.

"Goldfarb’s power source is about the size of a pencil and contains a special catalyst that causes hydrogen peroxide to burn. When this compound burns, it produces pure steam. The steam is used to open and close a series of valves. The valves are connected to the spring-loaded joints of the prosthesis by belts made of a special monofilament used in appliance handles and aircraft parts. A small sealed canister of hydrogen peroxide that easily fits in the upper arm can provide enough energy to power the device for 18 hours of normal."

Keepon Robot Gets Down With Spoon in Akihabara (Video)

Marek Michalowski setup the bright yellow, and extremely rhythmic, Keepon robot to perform to Spoon's "I Turn My Camera On", recorded it on video, then uploaded it to YouTube where it became an instant hit scoring close to 1.3 million views.

Now Keepon and Spoon are paired up again, only this time it's an official production (see video below), sponsored by WIRED, directed by Jeff Nichols, and with walk-on roles by many of our favorite local humanoid robots. The result is, in our very biased opinion, the best robot music video ever.

By the way, the interior scenes towards the end o