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Asimo, still licking its wounds after being outrun by Toyota, fired back earlier this month at Carnegie Mellon, where it learned how to navigate complex, moving obstacle courses. Seriously impressive stuff in this video—just wait until things start spinning!
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Shown here is Toyota's running robot. At 7 km/h it's not going to win any wind sprints in the Olympics, but nevertheless this thing is airborne for 100ms between strides as it skirts across the floor (i.e. genuine running).
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Don't you dare finger count the months until October. This Asimo suit is a completely necessary tool in confronting life's persistent social challenges.
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Robots are officially on the battlefield—UAVs like the Predator and Reaper patrol the skies while militarized bomb-disposal robots like the Talon detonate explosives on the ground. But where are the humanoids? Roboticist and author Daniel H. Wilson makes the case for a humanoid robot army.More »
Few geeks haven't dreamt of one day taking on cyborg enhancements—me included. And today I did, thanks to two of Honda's wearable Asimo-inspired Walk Assist devices. This is how it felt. More »
It's easy to lump Asimo into a stagnant pile of clips demonstrating a short robot waving, dancing and rolling down stairs since 2004. But as these 1/8 scale dolls action figures show, he's improved.
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Honda research engineers have given Asimo the ability to understand three voices at once, thanks to an array of eight microphones that can recognize each voice individually. The recognition software, HARK, can process the commands with 70-80 percent accuracy and the microphones are placed all over Asimo's head and body for spatial recognition purposes. The current application for this technology is using Asimo as a judge for verbal Paper-Rock-Scissors, where everyone calls out their answer at once, and Asimo decides who said what, and who wins. Though a great technical feat, this feels less glamorous than the robot's stint as orchestra conductor, no? [New Scientist]
Honda has developed a gadget that they say could make walking easier for the elderly and others with weak leg muscles. The aptly named Walking Assist Device is a 6 lb. motorized belt with hip sensors that gauge how much help the wearer will need. The motor then gives the wearer an appropriate boost, lengthening his or her stride enough to make walking easier on the legs.
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