Dec 13
There’s a long running joke that kids would rather play with the cardboard box than the toy inside. And that’s especially true if that cardboard can then be transformed into an articulated 20-inch tall robot like our friend here.
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Dec 13
Chances are that, if you’re visiting this page, you’re not a human. A new study reveals that 61.5 percent of all website traffic is generated by automated bots. Hi, robot!
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Dec 12
David Rogan, CEO, Anybots with the new Anybots Q(X)
Last week I was invited to Polycom’s annual Holiday event where the Anybots Q(X) Virtual Presence was shown for the first time. We all remember Anybots cute QB robot that featured a very small display and 2 big “eyes” where the camera was hidden.
The new Q(X) is going away from the human-like shape and features a relatively austere form factor; however we can appreciate the large display that delivers a better telecommunication experience. Anybots partnered with Polycom to integrate its RealPresence Group 500 video conferencing solution in a metallic gray flat panel on wheels (see photo in the complete article, wheels are not visible).
Polycom RealPresence in the new Anybots Q(X) Virtual Presence original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 12
Robots are here to stay, or so it seems. There is a robot known as CHIMP which is human sized, and it is the result of a collaboration by Carnegie Mellon’s University’s National Robotics Engineering Center in Lawrenceville. The CHIMP robot will participate in a disaster response contest, standing tall at 5 feet and 2 inches, weighing in at 400 pounds. It will come equipped with two sets of arms and legs each, and cost over $3 million to develop.
Eric Meyhofer, someone who is part of the CHIMP robot team, shared, “When we have an event, and we can’t send in humans because it’s a bad scene, these are the things that can make a difference and keep you out of harm’s way.” Where does CHIMP come into the equation? CHIMP is meant to respond to disasters, whether natural or unnatural, and that would include a nuclear plant meltdown, or a collapse of buildings after an earthquake and tsunami. CHIMP is able to turn valves, clear debris, travel rough terrain and even grab a fire hose as and when required. Will it come out tops in the DARPA-organized contest? Only time will be able to tell, of course, so we shall just sit tight and wait.
CHIMP Robot To Compete In Disaster Response Contest original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 10
The folks over at NASA must have received inspiration from the cartoon Macross which features the Valkyrie robot, after the space agency unveiled the 6-foot long Valkyrie, which they have dubbed as a “superhero robot”. It was specially designed to compete in the DARPA Robotics Challenge, and it has been touted to be a “female” robot – which could very well end up as a prototype model to the kind of robo-astronauts down the road which will help humanity in the quest to colonize Mars.
Just how complex is the Valkyrie? It will come with 44 axes of movement and interchangeable arms, tipping the scales at 275 pounds. Do expect it to go up against the likes of the Atlas robot from Boston Dynamic. Popular culture could have played a part in the design of the Valkyrie, where it sports an Iron Man-style glowing chest ring. Nicolaus Radford of the NASA JSC Dextrous Robotics Lab shared, “We really wanted to design the appearance of this robot to be one that when you saw it (you’d say) ‘Wow. That’s awesome.” When we were designing the robot, we were thinking about the competition from day one, and we wanted a very modular system. Specifically with the arm, we can yank one bolt and one connector, and we can take the arm off. It happens in a matter of minutes.”
NASA Shows Off Valkyrie, A 6-Foot Tall Robot original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 10
Robot Boss Lacks Pointy Hair
Posted in: Today's ChiliI am quite sure that most of us in the corporate world would have read about Dilbert and his pointy haired boss who has no clue, but somehow managed to make it all the way to the top of the organization. We have seen our fair share of telepresence robots in the past which come in handy, especially when it concerns a child being able to attend a classroom while being at home. With the Double telepresence robot (which we saw in action at Macworld 2013), the boss’ face will feature on the iPad’s display, moving up and around the office.
The Double telepresence robot is different from dialing into a conference call over the phone or making use of a webcam for meetings, as it literally allows you to be physically present in the office – sorta. Of course, one might think of one’s boss as Darth Vader, who is more machine than man as explained in the Star Wars movies. Do you find it to be a rather startling and uncomfortable experience of having your boss coming near your work area on wheels? Perhaps the lack of sensitivity on the microphone would mean it cannot pick up all of the water cooler gossip that is circulating around the office.
Robot Boss Lacks Pointy Hair original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 10
Just when you thought that humans have perfected the art of being in denial, along comes this particular robot telemarketer who actually denies being a robot. TIME Washington Bureau Chief Michael Scherer received a phone call recently, with an extremely engaging voice who intended to persuade Scherer to bite on a health insurance deal, but Scherer felt that something was not quite right. When asked point blank if “she” was an actual human being or a computer-operated robot voice, “she” claimed that she was real enough, followed by some laughter. Other tests proved to be “her” undoing, however, especially when she could not understand the question, “What vegetable is found in tomato soup?”
Apart from that, when “she” was asked multiple times as to what day of the week it was, all “she” could muster up was the excuse of a bad connection. TIME reporters decided to spend the better part of the next hour to call “her” back, and the robot claimed “she” was Samantha West, with her main goal in life not to terminate John Connor, but to ask a bunch of questions concerning health coverage with hopes of closing a sale after transferring an all too eager customer to an actual person. Creepy, don’t you think so? Definitely not as helpful as the Yana and Bo robots.
Robot Telemarketer Denies Being A Robot original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 10
Let’s be honest: Most robots look pretty dumb these days. Whether it’s the little disk-shaped Roomba that cleans your floor or the jumble of rods and wires that builds your car, these machines seem—for lack of a better term—rudimentary. Not the Valkyrie.
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Dec 10
Amazon has certainly raised a fair number of eyebrows recently with its Amazon Prime Air delivery system, and it does seem as though Amazon has ruffled the feathers of its competitors somewhat. Since their announcement, we have covered news concerning UPS performing research into delivery drones, while the folks over at Deutsche Post DHL have successfully completed their first successful drone delivery yesterday, where a robotic craft as seen above managed to deliver its 3kg medicine package to the intended recipient.
Coming in a shade of yellow that is unmistakably DHL’s signature shade, the “Paketkopter” managed to make its way across the skies at a height of 50 meters across the Rhine, where it managed to carry the package from a pharmacist in Bonn to the DHL head office that was located roughly 1km away. DHL manager Ole Nordhoff shared, “We are at the beginning of the research project. It is an exciting bit of technology.” Ultimately, do you think that drones will make it big in the delivery service market segment? Why not use drones to deliver pizzas and other kinds of food, too? There is a danger of someone actually bot-napping the delivery drone in order to gain access to its contents, but I guess companies would cross that particular bridge when the time comes.
DHL Drone Delivery Test Proved To Be A Success original content from Ubergizmo. 
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Dec 10
Judging by the number of start-ups that are around these days, having an idea is nothing if you do not know how to code it into existence, or at least know of some people with the technical knowledge to do so. Why not start your kids young when it comes to coding with the help of two extremely cute robots, namely Yana and Bo? These two robots are capable teachers who can actually teach 5 year olds on how to write code.
The recently crowd-funded Play-i system will rely on various aspects of learning such as music, animation, and stories, in order to deliver the nuances of coding to those aged from 5 to 12 in order to program their robot mates, with all the fun and none of the boredom which are often associated with coding. Yana and Bo will work alongside the learning and storytelling platform, delivering interactive play with a visual programming interface that can be easily accessed via a compatible smartphone or tablet.
They are basically so simple in their teaching, that the entire coding learning experience does not require any kind of reading or writing skills, now how about that? All it needs are a few intuitive commands, allowing inquisitive kids to control Yana and Bo’s motion, regulate their sounds and lights, among others.
Yana And Bo Are Robots Who Teach Kids How To Code original content from Ubergizmo. 
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