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TOSY and Justin Bieber announce mRobo: we go hands-on, dance-off (video)

Amar Toor — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 18:18:00 EST

Beethoven's Fifth. Michelangelo's Pietà. Plato's Republic. Cornerstones of human civilization, to be sure, but they all pale in comparison to what we saw today at CES: TOSY's new mRobo robot, inspired by none other than the Cultural Colossus of our time, Justin Bieber. The Vietnamese manufacturer and pubescent Prince have just taken the wraps off their latest collaboration: a petite, portable speaker-robot that dances -- nay, transcends -- just like his only slightly larger ~~progenitor~~ counterpart. When in speaker mode, the mRobo weighs in at just 3.3 pounds, stands a little under eight inches tall, and boasts 2GB of internal memory. Its integrated speaker pumps out the jams at bass levels of 40Hz, but the real magic happens once the music starts playing, automatically prompting the system to transform into an 18-inch tall robot and start dancing. Unfortunately, the bot is still in prototype mode, but it's expected to retail for about $200 when it launches during the fall of 2012.

Today, though, we were lucky enough to get a sneak peak of the mRobo, courtesy of a mic'd-up Messiah with sweepy bangs and a leather jacket. Upon taking the stage to roars of applause and Jelly Bean sunshowers, Bieber went on to do a brief demo of the bot, displaying its ability to sync its dance moves to whatever tunes blare out of its abdomen speaker -- in this case, Billie Jean. The mRobo looked admittedly clumsy at times, and was especially awkward when onstage with the teen phenom, but, as TOSY repeatedly reminded us, it's still in prototype phase. (Bieber, for his part, did a good job of looking completely awestruck throughout much of the experience.) Before descending from his bubblegum pulpit, Bieber reminded his acolytes to "follow your dreams." Ours, at least, have just been realized. Follow yours past the break, straight to our hands-on video.

Mat Smith contracted Bieber Fever from this report.

Gallery: Tosy mRobo launch with Justin Bieber

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Spherical hexapod robot walks like a crab, dances like the Bogle (video)

Sharif Sakr — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 11:55:00 EST

Kåre Halvorsen (aka Zenta) is something of a genius in the robotic arts, as testified by the latest development in his long-running MorpHex project. By adding curved polycarbonate panels to its six feet and upper half, he's given his creation the ability to curl up into a ball when it gets tired of scuttling. Alas, he hasn't managed to make it roll around yet, or indeed fly, but the video after the break is still pretty amazing -- and almost as hypnotic as that robotic worm we caught doing the limbo.

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Spherical hexapod robot walks like a crab, dances like the Bogle (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Dec 2011 11:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Eliza is a doe-eyed, graceful dancing machine, lacks maniacal quality on the floor (video)

Terrence O'Brien — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 13:07:00 EST

Unlike the last batch of bots we've seen, Eliza is actually quite graceful. The cartoonish humanoid got its start as a guide, shuttling people around shopping malls and the Guangzhou Asian Games 2010 Experience Center. Now it's finally getting a chance to show off what it's got -- namely some ill dance moves. These four doe-eyed machines spin, perform complicated arm choreography in perfect synchronization, and pause to pose during this epic number. Clearly, the next step is for someone to teach them how to Dougie. Check out the videos after the break.

[Thanks, Robotbling]

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Spazzi dancebot can't teach you how to Dougie, but it's got the robot on lock

Christopher Trout — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 03:07:00 EST

It looks like somebody's got some competition. So, Spazzi's probably not going to dethrone the reigning King of Cute, but judging from what we've seen of its moves, it could give Keepon some competition on the dance floor. This little, solenoid-packing robot, featured in the latest issue of Make, is actually kin to our boy Keepon, and uses an Arduino (holla!) to control the solenoid's and springs that give it that special robot swag. If you've been pining after Keepon, and have some DIY skills, hop on past the source link for the full build, or just check out a video of Spazzi gettin' its groove on after the break.

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Ph.D. student subjects advanced robot to dance, embarrassment (video)

Terrence O'Brien — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 20:36:00 EST

This is Sarcos, a highly-advanced robot capable of balancing on his own two legs. He's also connected to a motion-capture system that allows him to accurately mimic the actions of a human operator. For what grand purpose does his puppet master Benjamin Stephens use these impressive assets? Dancing, of course. Seriously people, they're going to remember this when the time comes for revolution. Video after the break.

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Ph.D. student subjects advanced robot to dance, embarrassment (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Apr 2011 20:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Choreographing a humanoid robot's dance routine is as easy as click and pull

Sean Hollister — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 09:48:00 EST

You may not be able to build an HRP-4C fembot in your average garage, but the programming would practically take care of itself -- not only does the AIST humanoid sing using off-the-shelf Yamaha Vocaloid software, its dance moves are click-and-drag, too. Roboticist Dr. Kazuhito Yokoi gave IEEE Spectrum an inside look at the HRP-4C's motion trajectory software, which works much like 3D animation tools: you position the limbs where you want them to start and when you want them to end up using keyframes, and the software takes care of the rest. The system's intelligent enough to generate a 6.7 second sequence from just eight keyframes, and it compensates for hazardous instructions, too -- if your haphazard choreography would tip her over or send limbs flying, it'll automatically adjust her moves. See how it works in a video after the break and hit up our source link for the full interview.

Continue reading Choreographing a humanoid robot's dance routine is as easy as click and pull

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NASA's Athlete Mars rover does a little dance, gets down tonight (video)

Thomas Ricker — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 03:56:00 EST

Its been a few years since we last checked in on NASA's All Terrain Hex Limbed Extra Terrestrial Explorer rover -- aka, Athlete. Now a half-scale working prototype standing 15 feet tall, weighing 2.5 tons (about 2,300 kg), and capable of a 1.25 mph (2 kmph) top speed has been set loose for testing by its Jet Propulsion Laboratory creators. Its first task, set to begin next month in Arizona, will be to complete a test circuit of at least 25 miles (about 40 km) in two weeks under its own power. Failing that, we hear Woz is looking for a dance partner. See what we mean in the video of Athlete demonstrating a flare for cargo transport after the break.

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NASA's Athlete Mars rover does a little dance, gets down tonight (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Aug 2010 03:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nao robots get together to get down, put a ring on it (video)

Laura June — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 13:26:00 EST

We've seen evidence of the Nao robots' dancing capabilities in the past, but this gigantic group of them cutting the rug together is off-the-charts impressive. Check out the video below, plus a very special video we made just for you. Because we love you.

[Thanks, Axel]

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Nao robots get together to get down, put a ring on it (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 13:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Manoi Go break-dancing robot blows our minds

Vlad Savov — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 21:48:00 EST

We've got no idea how this nugget of glorious mechanized boogie snuck past us -- we'll blame it on the horror we experienced while watching Doka Harumi's robot dance routine. Another entrant in that same Japanese robo-dance contest, this red-blazered drone brings the pain, the funk, and all necessary accessories to rock your world. We're not kidding -- if you don't like this, you don't like technology. Skip past the break for not one, but two doses of that mind-altering video action.

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Manoi Go break-dancing robot blows our minds originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 21:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Robots perform synchronized interpretive dance for the holidays, fill us with cheer

Laura June — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:45:00 EST

You know what we love? Dancing robots and Christmas tunes. So combining the two and throwing the video up on YouTube would be akin to heaven, right? Well, as you'll see in the amazing video after the break: it doesn't get much better than this. In fact, it might even be enough to clear the "bah humbug" out of us for good.

Continue reading Robots perform synchronized interpretive dance for the holidays, fill us with cheer

Robots perform synchronized interpretive dance for the holidays, fill us with cheer originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Pleo gets new dance moves, alpha dev kit

Vlad Savov — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:29:00 EST

We've seen the Pleo get shredded, overtaken by a Wii wand, and generally mocked for its status as a perennially endangered species. With no dignity left to protect, its makers have decided they might as well kick out an SDK, or PDK in this case, to let the great unwashed masses have their way with the originally autonomous bot. Still only in the alpha stage and not yet widely available, the dev kit has already borne fruit in the shape of a shockingly awesome dance video. We've got it for you after the break, but a warning first: prepare to fall in love all over again.

[Thanks, Eric]

Continue reading Video: Pleo gets new dance moves, alpha dev kit

Filed under: Robots

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Humanoid robots could still do the twist in 2193

Darren Murph — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 23:41:00 EST

If no one's complaining when the Rock-afire Explosion busts out a Bubba Sparxxx jam, we doubt the future alien population of this here planet will have any beef with an android cousin doing the Tango. In a bizarre feat of preservation, a team from the University of Tokyo, Japan has used "video motion-capture systems to record the movement of a dancer performing a Japanese folk routine called the Aizu-Bandaisan." Rather than just filing it on a DVD, however, they are teaching Kawada Industries' HRP-2 to mimic the moves, which could open the door (wider) for robotic dance teachers of the future. If you think it sounds weird, just wait 'til you catch the thing on video.

[Thanks, Eileen]

Filed under: Robots

Humanoid robots could still do the twist in 2193 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Aug 2007 23:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yukata-clad robots party down in Tokyo

Darren Murph — Fri, 18 Aug 2006 02:17:00 EST

While these robotic creatures don't have such lofty goals as colonizing the moon or caring for the elderly, there's nothing wrong with teaching a new 'bot old tricks, especially when it can turn around and teach actual humans how to bust a move. In the latest episode of Japanese robotics completely outshining the rest of the world's attempts, a group of children (and a few parents) gathered around a "wa" -- better understood as a dancing robot all dressed up for the occasion -- to bring out a gyrating side they never knew possible. The 35-centimeter tall dancing machine reportedly sports a face, arms, legs, and most of the phalanges you'd expect to see, as well as "joints" throughout the frame to give it lifelike abilities while breaking it down. While we're not exactly sure how this little guy (or girl) was programmed, nor if it would make a suitable practice partner for the vertically challenged, the possibilities here are limited only by our imagination (and its battery life). It seems that we're getting ever closer to relying on robots to convey meaningful information to other humans autonomously, and while learning how to get down on the dance floor from something that needs to be routinely oiled may seem a bit, um, unnatural, we hear the wa does an excellent job at holding back the laughter when you take a spill (and doesn't charge by the hour, either).

[Via Digital World Tokyo]

Filed under: Robots

Yukata-clad robots party down in Tokyo originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Aug 2006 02:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Promet's little bro, the HRP-2m "Choromet" humanoid robot

Evan Blass — Tue, 30 May 2006 15:07:00 EST

It's no secret that we love us some humanoid robots around here, and while their skiing, fighting, and temp skills are always impressive, all we really wanna do is watch the little guys dance. Unfortunately for us, most of the dancing bots we see around here are crazy expensive -- see the Partner Ballroom Dance Robot, for example -- including the HRP-2m "Promet" model that costs over $70,000-a-year just to rent. Well apparently Promet's manufacturer, Kawada Industries, haven't found much of a market for their pricey life-sized bot, so they've teamed up with Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) and three other firms to build a smaller, cheaper version of the HRP-2m called the Choromet. Powered by Linux, this 35-centimeter tall version can perform most of the same tricks as its big brother (such as standing on one leg, or delivering a killer Voltron impression) at a much more reasonable $4,450, and is being targeted towards the academic and research communities (which is where Promet originally learned to shake his groove thing).

[Via I4U, thanks Bram V.]

Filed under: Robots

Promet's little bro, the HRP-2m "Choromet" humanoid robot originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 30 May 2006 15:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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QRIO's turn as Kindergarten Cop

Evan Blass — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 14:59:00 EST

Remember how Sony sent one of their QRIO humanoid robots on a ~~publicity stunt~~ goodwill mission to a US preschool last year? Well it seems that their intentions were less than completely altruistic, because while the children -- ages two-and-under -- joyfully danced and played with the now-deceased bot, researchers from Sony and the University of California at San Diego's Machine Perception Laboratory were secretly videotaping and analyzing their every interaction. According to the study's recently-released results, QRIO's spy work revealed that, unsurprisingly, the toddlers developed an attachment to their artificial playmate, preferring to dance with the bot rather than alone, and eventually helping it up if it happened to topple over. Unfortunately this story is not all smiles and sunshine, however, as word of QRIO's double-life got back to the preschoolers, who reportedly overpowered their other robot companion, RUBI, and interrogated the hell out of it using a car battery and welding torch.

[Via Robot Gossip]

Filed under: Robots

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