pneumatics
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Ant-Roach inflatable robot can carry a family, scare the kids (video)
This 15-foot inflatable pneumatic beast is a confusing mix of child-like inflatable wonder and cold, brutal, robopocalypse-beckoning science. The Ant-Roach (half-anteater, half, er, roach) is still a concept device, with inflatable actuators on the legs doing the heavy lifting -- apparently up to 1,000 pounds. Manifolds are peppered along the beast's underbelly, with a microcontroller obeying its soft-stomping orders by wireless signal. While it battles for our inflatable robot affections, you can check it (just about) conquering shallow water right after the break. P.S. We'd be remiss if we didn't point out that the same lab has also developed an inflatable robot arm. Check it out after the break as well.
Lego arm moves slowly, rocks mightily (video)
If you've made a Lego skull you're ultimately going to need some appendages to go with it, and Polish Lego-mistrz Paul (who goes by the handle Sariel) is the man behind this fully-articulated right arm. It uses a combination of electric motors and pneumatic valves that enable it to move... slowly. In a video embedded below that's overflowing with Marilyn Manson angst (turn down those speakers, office-bound readers) you can see it shambling from side to side and rotating at the wrist as the pneumatic fingers are actuated. The range of movement is impressive, but this thing looks about as easy to operate as a dockside crane and seems slightly less precise. Still, it's an impressive feat of plastic engineering; that it was whipped up over a weekend makes it even more so.
April Fools' in DDO
The pranks continue with the last place you'd expect to see bling: Dungeons and Dragons Online. Fans of tricked-out rides can now get their smoove on in DDO with 'Pimp My Warforged'! That's right, no longer do you have to labor under the drab and dull colors of battle-hardened plate mail and boots so dusty you could write 'wash me' in them; get classy!But not only will you look good; you also get bonuses to gameplay with your pimpin' character: try out the new Skill: Pneumatics -- it lets you go up and down! Or the new enhancement Slow Your Roll, that keeps your 20-sided from tipping over onto the 1! It's all there for your reading pleasure. Just make sure you have the cash to pay for all this -- ground effects ain't cheap!
