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MarionetteBot is a frightening fusion of Kinect and mannequin
Japan has found new heights (depths?) of creepiness today with the United Arrow Marionettebot, a custom Kinect hack pairing Microsoft's motion-tracking camera with display mannequins.The mannequins of United Arrow's clothing store mimic the poses and movements of passersby. It's billed as a marketing effort in the video above, despite being the stuff of nightmares.
Qumarion 3D modeling mannequin coming soon for $750, still won't play with your kid (video)
Trying to get convincing, natural poses out of 3D models can be tricky, so it's a relief that two Japanese universities' joint ventures, the University of Electro-Communications' ViVienne and the University of Tsukuba's SoftEther, are close to wrapping up work on their posable mannequin. Now called Qumarion, the model formerly known as QUMA uses 32 sensors across 16 body joints to translate the humanoid statue's pose to the computer screen simply by bending limbs, much like you would the legion of action figures you had when you were eight. Neither you nor your kids will be using Qumarion to storm Fort Barbie anytime soon, but the 120 frames per second sample rate over USB does mean that poses are mirrored in your modeling tools almost instantly. You also won't have much longer to wait to buy one for your fledgling anime production: the mannequin and custom modeling software from Celsys should be bundled together sometime within the summer for a comparatively frugal $750.
Hiroshi Ishiguro's android mannequin creeps out Japanese shoppers (video)
If you didn't think mannequins were creepy enough already, maybe this will change your mind. In an attempt to lure shoppers, Japanese department store Takashimiya installed an eerily lifelike interactive robot for its Valentine's window display. The retailer called on robotics guru Hiroshi Ishiguro to provide the humanoid dummy, which can not only wink and yawn as people approach, but also display a range of emotions -- beyond boredom, indifference and oblivious content, we assume. While this was just part of the store's seasonal promotion, it might be a hint at where visual merchandise is going. Whether Ishiguro's model "model" will crossover into more professional roles like her sister, however, is unclear. Want to see that cheeky wink for yourself? Then hit up the video after the break.
Caption Contest: KIRF Facebook shop clicks 'like' on fashion
Apple isn't the only one to get some shop-based imitation flattery -- now it looks like Facebook's got its first retail homage. Yep, this clothing store in Nablus, Palestine is unlikely to be a Zuckerberg-sanctioned outlet. A giant Facebook sign hangs over several mannequins, although we're not exactly sure what angle they're trying to work here. Most of them appear to be channeling the Facebook founder's mute, inoffensive fashion stylings. That is, aside from the guy in the hot pink tee and, well, he's lacking a head. [Thanks Liviu] Mat: "Facebook likes jeans, ignores footwear." Dan: "You don't get 500 million friends without making a few terrible fashion decisions." Brad: "Meanwhile, Tom from MySpace is realizing that he's completely neglected the oft-overlooked mannequin demographic." Richard Lai: "The Bebo store was way more fun." Darren: "Third person there from the left... it's complicated." Jose: "Yes, all my friends are 'real', why?" James: "Once again, the reaction to the new Facebook wall was ambivalent." Joe Pollicino: "Added to my 'Block' list." Amar: "The Winklevii really have fallen on hard times." Josh: "People You May Know" Sean Cooper: "Where's that darn 'unlike' button." Tim: "Remember when you had to be a mannequin in a college bookstore to get in? Those were the good 'ol days." Billy: "You would think this crowd would have popped up in my news feed, sheesh." Dante: "Surprisingly, North Face fleeces were nowhere to be found." Zach Honig: "How many Credits to change the name to Google+?" Brian: "Social networking for dummies."
Fits.me imitates ladies of all shapes and sizes, tries clothes on for you (video)
Unless you're in the rather strange habit of going to stores, trying on clothes, and returning home to purchase them online, you never know how they look on you until the package arrives on your doorstep. Last year Fits.me tackled this little niggling e-commerce issue with a shape-shifting male mannequin and finally, after a year of tireless work, the fairer sex has its own FitBot -- turns out the female form is much more difficult to replicate. Again, the adjustable, human stand-in is making its debut at the British retailer Hawes & Curtis and our more womanly readers can head to the source to get a better idea of how the White Hipster Shirt would drape across their particular body type simply by moving a set of sliders. But, before you go, check out the pair of videos after the break.
The Perfect Ten: The secret lives of NPCs
It is fun, I've decided, to overthink things in life. This is especially relevant in MMOs, where we've long since taken absolutely bizarre staples as the accepted status quo. Sure, it's all polite fiction that allows developers to merge necessary game mechanics with a veneer of credibility, but many elements of MMOs simply fall apart when put under the microscope. Case in point, the NPC. Is there a figure in online games that more symbolizes the thin barrier between the server database and user playerbase than the non-player character? NPCs exist to fill the world with warm bodies so that places don't feel empty, yet they also exhibit no more life than a mannequin with a tape recorder strapped to its back. These cardboard cutouts of the MMO scene are either reanimated corpses struggling to remember basic quest-giving instructions, or else they're prisoners of a foul witch who has struck the entire land with a paralyzing spell. So even though it's 2011 and you'd think that NPCs would be showing us more signs of life than swiveling slightly when we approach, I'm happy to jump in and offer my opinion as to the secret life of these figures. What makes them tick? What do they get out of helping -- and prodding -- us into action? Why don't they ever sleep or use the bathroom? Just who are these people we encounter and dismiss every day?
Fits.me shape-shifter models the huge pectoral muscles men want, smaller ones they have (video)
While online shopping has taken over most facets of modern retail, buying clothes via the interwebs is something more of a hard sell. The Fits.me shape-shifting mannequin is here to make that a little easier -- for men, anyway. Earlier this year the company created a robotic torso comprised of flexible panels that can shift between thousands of different shapes and sizes from small to extra large. A clothing company puts a new shirt on the bot and a camera captures it cycling through a variety of body types like a T-1000 sinking into a pit of molten steel. When you enter your measurements online, the e-tailer looks up the appropriate pics and, hey presto, you can see how you'll really look in that Warwick Tailored semi-cutaway. There's a quick demo video after the break and, if you're looking for a new shirt, you can virtually try on a variety of Hawes & Curtis offerings recently added at the source link. Sorry ladies: latest word is that a mammary-equipped model isn't due for at least another few months.
EQII Game Update 43 preview shows new features and lots of pics
EQ2Players has put up another preview for EverQuest II's Game Update 43, and not only does this one have a large amount of pretty pictures, it also details some new features that we didn't see in the last preview. As well as the group looting and shiny harvesting changes, major cities will be revamped with some new travel bells and extra banking/broker/mender NPCs, and significant renovations will be made to the Ironforge Exchange in Qeynos.For the tradeskillers, new Froglok mannequins will be available to craft, and there will also be some faction items for those those with good Riliss, Bathezid and Danak factions. An example of one of these items is shown above -- the Crafted Vault Expander -- and it makes you wonder what other kind of handy crafted goods might be coming. Check out the gallery we've compiled of all the pictures featured in the GU43 preview.%Gallery-17446%
Touching was good
Remember when Nintendo sent out 1,000 mannequin hands and held a contest to see who could pose theirs in the most creative way? This was back in the dark ages of 2005, when Nintendo actually had to promote the DS. It was a very different time.Well, as can be expected, at least one of those hands has settled in the natural resting place of all forgotten game curios, knickknacks and simulacra of severed limbs: eBay. With the high bid at only $5 right now, it's a very cheap way to relive the days when Nintendo was so insanely desperate to get DS systems into your hands that they'd send you some hands. [Via GameSniped]
Armed cops burst into home to neutralize... Lara Croft mannequin?
Considering just how chaotic a police scanner can become when the crime lords decide to hit the streets, we can't fault the boys in blue for showing up at the wrong address or completely missing a shoplifter with a projector in his shorts, but this one's just absurd. Apparently, a Manchester man had his home invaded by squads of armed police after a pistol-wielding Lara Croft mannequin served as cause for concern. The officials mistook the ominous silhouette for an actual gunman, and took it upon themselves to rush in and attempt to save the day. Interestingly, the homeowner was actually arrested for "suspected firearms offense," but he's currently speaking to lawyers about "a possible claim for wrongful arrest." Man, publicly humiliating yourself and begging for a lawsuit -- now that's a full day's work.[Thanks, Dan G.]
Robotic patient aurally, visually informs you of its ailments
As if treating a mannequin that can bleed and even flat line on you wasn't stressful enough, researchers at Gifu University's Graduate School of Medicine are hoping to make your residency even harder to manage. A newfangled robotic dummy packs a potent artificial brain, as it can reportedly "respond verbally to questions about how it feels and move its body in ways that exhibit the symptoms of its ailment." The current prototype is modeled after a female who honestly looks to have had one incredibly rough day week, and while it wasn't clear if instructors could program the android to act out only a certain number of understood illnesses, we're sure the library of problems will grow with time. Currently, the bot is being trailed to see if it will indeed prove to be a valuable learning tool to eager med students, and if all goes well, it should "become part of the curriculum next year."[Via PinkTentacle]
Pregnant robots give birth!
The future is now -- sort of. We were just waiting for robots to start reproducing before we gave over the future of humanity to these beings, and while this might be a mere simulated pregnancy for med students to practice on, it seems close enough to us. The robot, named Noelle, is a life-sized blond mannequin that costs $20,000 and simulates the pertinent vital signs and exports of a pregnant woman, including blood, urine and a baby. Even the baby simulates vital signs, and can change colors from pink to blue to signify oxygen deficiency. A human controller can initiate different complications, or just sit back as the robot runs through its program of baby ejection. The bot is starting to be used med schools and maternity wards across the country, and simpler versions have even seen action in Afghanistan for training.
