Gizmo Ave » robot

Heinz Automato57 Ketchup Robots Do Away with An-ti-ci-pa-tion

technabob — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 00:38:30 +0000

I’m not sure how I missed these ketchup-pouring robots when they first made it on the scene three years ago, but I say better late than never, right?

These Heinz Automato ‘bots are designed to do one thing and one thing only – dispense Heinz tomato ketchup (or catsup depending on where you live.) From the looks of the videos below, there’s a couple of different variants of the HeinzAutomato – one that pours from a regular-size bottle…

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

And its baby brother, who doesn’t seem to quite have the whole ketchup dispensing thing figured out quite yet…

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Clearly they’re not the tidiest robots you’ve ever seen. Seems as if they should have M-O, the fastidious little cleaning robot from Wall-E running around behind them.

[via Everlasting Blort]

Robotic MicroMouse Finishes Maze in Under 6 Seconds

technabob — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 05:06:50 +0000

Wanna see a fast robot? These tiny little robotic mice are designed to make their way through a maze, with the simple goal of finding their way to the end of the maze. Apparently, racing tiny “micromouse” robots is a regular occurence in Japan, but this is the first time I’ve witnessed the sport.

You have to watch a few runs of Khiew Tzong Yong’s half-sized micromouse to see just how fast it’s able to find its way to the end of the maze. It takes it a few tries, but eventually, the speedy mechanical rodent manages to make it from start to finish in just 5.513 seconds.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

While I’m not sure if that’s any sort of world record, it’s still mighty impressive for a weensy autonomous robo-mouse. In case you’re interested in running your own micromouse in the next race, here are the official rules.

[via Robots-Dreams]

Gesture-Driven Robot Arm: Perfect for Remote-Controlled Stranglings

technabob — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 03:01:13 +0000

There are already remote-controlled robots out there that allow an operator to control robotic arms using their own hands. Doctors are even using such technologies to perform remote surgery. But this is the first time I’ve seen a robotic arm that can be controlled simply through gestures.

Developed at the University of Tsukuba, this robot arm is connected to a computer with a pair of video cameras which can detect the hand, arm and finger movements of its master. Whatever he does, the robot follows. As you can see from the video below, it’s actually quite impressive how well it mimics the individual finger movements and grip of its operator.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

It’s even been tied to a database that’s capable of adapting itself to numerous different hands. At this point, the robot arm system still has a tiny bit of lag, and isn’t precise enough to perform medical procedures. Still, it’s a very promising step in the development of remotely controlled robot avatars – and that’s something we all want, right?

[via Diginfo TV]

Robot Girlfriend Makes Coffee From Scratch

Salman Khan — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 17:22:31 +0000

Neat programming!

ROMP: A remote-controlled paintballin’ battle-bot

Salman Khan — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 22:37:27 +0000

The ROMP, or Remotely Operated Mobile Platform, is a remote-controlled unit designed to be cheap and versatile. Designer Chris Rogers built it to be able to carry out reconnaissance, bomb investigation and remote detonation, and combat missions — and it looks like he created a great buddy to have in a paintball match as well.

Sadly both the WROMP (the armed version) pictured above and the ROMP are just prototypes, as we’d love to see the WROMP tear it up. Still, it’s so simple you could probably build it yourself with the right know-how: all you need is a remote-controlled platform, a paintball gun, and a firing mechanism.

Check out the gallery below for more of Chris Roger’s ROMP.

Thanks DVICE

Smart Crawling Robot

Salman Khan — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 01:31:43 +0000

Need a hint of spontaneity in your toy-life? Grab yourself a four-legged sensor-equipped G-Style G-7 Robot. It crawls and sometimes looks like a spider-robot. If you roll a ball around this thing it will chase it down. Its reaction is very animated since its four legs help it move in any direction possible. The rotating head gives it an alien look, when it senses something, it rotates the face towards it and then moves away or moves towards it. It can define objects and keep it in the memory, once it has done that, it can recognize the same object within 13 feet. You want to wow your guests? Then get one, it’ll cost you less than a $100 bucks.