Four of Japan’s top robot startups have decided to pool their efforts in order to meet the threat of rival South Korea overcoming Japan’s lead int he race to commercialize robot technology.
Japan, which has long led the world in robo-technology, has created machines that can clean, dance, greet, feed, monitor, relax and befriend. But for all the buzz, so-called “intelligent service robots” have been slow to penetrate the average home, which is still more likely to shell out money for the latest flat screen TV than a pricey humanoid.
The companies — Tokyo’s ZMP Inc., Nagoya’s Business Design Laboratory Co., Osaka’s Vstone Co. and Fukuoka’s Tmsuk — say that new South Korean robot legislation passed earlier this year compelled them to form the “Association for market creation of the future generation robots” to cooperate in research, development and marketing.
Apparently the South Korean government is committed to having a robot in every house by 2020, and the country’s National Assembly has passed legislation to promote development and marketing through financial support.
Sega Toys has come out with a new plastic plant robot thingy that apparently is designed for people who have no one to talk to.
The Pekoppa sits there like a regular plastic plant until you talk to it, which will cause the stem to bend, creating the impression that the plant is nodding in agreement with what you are saying to it. The effect is achieved by an IC chip in the pot that identifies rhythms of human speech. Electrical current causes the stem to bend and stretch.
Thanks to Len Cullum
Japan’s oldest “modern” robot — the 10-foot, 6-inch GakuTenSoku — has been awakened in Japan. Gone are the inflatable rubber tubes of the original 1928 android build by biologist Makoto Nishimura. The bot now tilts its head, moves his eyes, smiles, and puffs out his cheeks thanks to a $200,000, computer-controlled, pneumatic-servo makeover. While nothing compared to his modern offspring, GakuTenSoku still manages to creep us the hell out. On display at the renovated Osaka Science Museum starting July 18th.
The folks who manufacture the Little Jammer Pro, an audio system with small robots that “perform” music as it is played from special cartridges, have announced a Hibari Misora add-on.
Now how can watch as a tiny virtual Hibari Misora, backed by a full (but tiny) virtual orchestra, performs some of her old favorites from days gone by.
“A 200-strong army of beady-eyed, ball-shaped robots” is being deployed nationwide, says Pink Tentacle.
Not quite as scary as they might sound, these spherical chaps are “Pollen Robots” and are to be employed by Weathernews.jp to monitor the pollen count. And this being Japan, they have built-in Cute - the ‘eyes’ light up different colours as the level changes.
As the Asahi reports, when the Japanese cedar and cypress get that lovin’ feelin’ and go into their springtime overdrive, data on the pollen count will be sent from these robots to the site. They’ll be stationed outside the homes of a couple of hundred volunteers, all hay-fever sufferers, who will also be reporting on their symptoms.
As the Asahi gravely intones, “Pollen levels from Japanese cedar and cypress are expected to be higher than last year in many parts of the country.” Oh joy.
The U.S. researchers at Duke University in North Carolina pinned down correlated patterns between a monkey’s brain nerve signals and leg movements. The monkey was trained to walk upright on a treadmill, its brain studded with electrodes to read the signals.
The signals were fed into a humanoid robot that walked in response to the signals.
“There may come an era when you could move a remotely located robot as if it is yourself and play tennis with it,” said Mitsuo Kawato, research director of a Japan Science and Technology Agency research institute in Seika, Kyoto Prefecture.
Wouldn’t playing tennis with yourself result in endless rallies?
“Dentistry in the uncanny valley” is what Pink Tentacle calls its report on Simroid — a robotic dental patient with an eerily realistic appearance. And that’s pretty accurate. Well, a trip to the dentist can be like descending into the uncanny valley anyways, but this is worse.
Making her debut at the 2007 International Robot Exhibition in Tokyo, Simroid is actually a sister of Actroid (who has got somewhat better than when first invented a few years ago). Here is part of Pink Tentacle’s description and some video of Simroid in action along with other inhuman participants at the exhibition:
Designed primarily as a training tool for dentists, the fembot patient can follow spoken instructions, closely monitor a dentist’s performance during mock treatments, and react in a human-like way to mouth pain. Because Simroid’s realistic appearance and behavior motivate people to treat her like a human being, as opposed to an object, she helps dental trainees learn how to better communicate with patients … she has something the Actroid does not — sensitive teeth. Thanks to a mouth loaded with sensors, she knows when her dentist-in-training makes a mistake. And to express her pain, she grimaces, moves her hands and eyes, and says, “That hurts.”
Kyoto-based Takenaka Engineering is finding out that cute pays even in their field of crime prevention and disaster relief equipment.
Their Mihari Wan robot guard dog has become a minor hit in Japan, selling around 10,000 units at 12,600 a pop since 1995.
Normally sittlng quietly in the corner, Mihari Wan turns into a veritable cyber beast, emitting a 90-decibel bark as its eyes flash, whenever an intruder approaches.
Mihari Wan runs on four D-size batteries that need to be replaced only about once a year.
Recently we have been hearing about how people working for various government agencies in Japan and elsewhere have been editing Wikipedia in order to make their group look good or competing groups look bad.
Inspired by this, JAPUNDIT reader John Serdy sent along the following image that he created in order to set the record straight about just who is in charge of whom.
Now that it’s possible for all to see who exactly is editing entries on Wikipedia (courtesy of WikiScanner), there has been a number of interesting revelations, including those reported on here at Japundit last month.
It’s now been reported that the Ministry of Agriculture “has reprimanded six civil servants who spent hours at work editing articles on Wikipedia”, one of whom was revealed to have “made 260 entries to articles about Gundam”!
The group apparently made 408 entries while at work since 2003, on subjects as diverse as “Japanese movies, mistakes on billboards and local politics”, as well as giant robots.
“The Agriculture Ministry is not in charge of Gundam,” ministry official Tsutomu Shimomura told the Associated Press news agency.
Consumers will soon be able to buy their own biped robot that can perform over 200 movements, carry out a conversation and, maybe best of all, when it gets bored, it lays on its side and scratches its ass, according to Sunday Mainichi. Exceeding expectations, Takara Tomy’s i-SOBOT is already capable of being mass-produced and will be available in Japan later this month for a mere 31,290 yen.
Standing 16.5 centimeters tall, i-SOBOT weighs just 350 grams and has been recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as being the smallest mass produced robot in the world — although that record has been questioned. It’s definitely pretty small, anyway.
Upon leaving the factory, each i-SOBOT already has over 200 possible movements programmed into it, including such actions as folding its arms, standing on its head, performing a traditional Japanese bon-odori dance while jigging along on a single leg and mimicking a drunkard’s stagger. The tiny robot also reacts to voice commands, introducing itself on demand and performing solo recitals (all in Japanese, of course) of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet — acting along the way.
But the i-SOBOT also gets bored pretty easy. It not only might play air guitar if there’s any music on, but if left alone for 30 seconds or more, it starts “singing stupid songs in a deliberately whining, nasal voice.” And if left alone even longer than that it just lies down and starts scratching.
I don’t know about you, but this University of Tokyo robot (named Mowgli) makes me feel a bit uneasy. . . Everytime I look at the video clip I get an image of the thing jumping up on someone’s back and injecting something into their neck. . .
Just check this beautiful speed painting and at the same time hear Hatsune Miku. The software sold out and became the top #1 sales in amazon Japan and it cost about 150 bucks. The song you hear in the video is from Lucky Star.
Got bugs? If not, no problem, since Bandai’s newest high-tech toy is a robotic cockroach. “This little thing has six legs, a touch sensor that tells it to change directions when it hits a wall, a micro monitor that makes it vibrate like a cell phone, and a mic sensor that lets it scuttle away when you make loud noises” according to Tokyomango.
The Hex Bug will be infesting a store near you soon for only 1,995 yen each. Apparently the creators experimented with several types of bugs but finally decided that “the cockroach’s movements and speed were the most compatible with battery efficiency and design.” So even though alternate models that look like ladybugs are also available–they still move around like cockroaches.
Toyota’s new guide robot, formerly known as “DJ Robot” and working as the MC for a robot band, has officially been named “TPR-Robina,” according to a Japanese Toyota press release. Tokyomango says it can now hold a pen and sign autographs:
Photos reveal a slightly more professional look (no more scowling eyes) to go along with the droid’s improved ability to avoid obstacles and operate autonomously, while agile, jointed fingers enable TPR-Robina to grasp writing utensils and sign autographs. Further, in addition to being able to communicate using words and gestures, the 60-kg, 1.2-meter tall robot has an image recognition system that allows it to read visitors’ name tags so that it can tailor its directions accordingly.
TPR-Robina’s new job (which starts about immediately) will be working as a receptionist and guide at the Toyota Kaikan Exhibition Hall.
Kyoto-based 
Now that it’s possible for all to see who exactly is editing entries on 
