Gifu University's Graduate School of Medicine, long fed up with subjecting the general public to the horrors of teaching hospitals (you've seen Scrubs, right?) has teamed up with the Mizuno Technical Institute in Japan to develop Keiko -- an interactive humanoid robot that mimics a number of neurological disorders, responding to the doctor's touch and even holding rudimentary conversations. The robot gives students the opportunity to observe and diagnose rare brain and nervous system illnesses in a classroom setting, where no one can get hurt -- not a bad idea, so long as this doesn't result in a generation of doctors who confuse "veins" with "wires."

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Robot builder Matt Denton apparently first built a one-off Hexapod robot for himself some time ago, but he's now taken things one big step further and is offering a kit of a similar bot to the general public through Micromagic Systems. In addition to being excessively creepy (just check out the video after the break), the MSR-101 Hexapod also looks to be relatively simple to get going straight out of the box, with it boasting a built-in HexEngine with plenty of pre-loaded settings, and built-in PS2 controller suppport, which'll let you parade your creation about without having to mess around with it too much beforehand. Of course, there's also plenty of room for more experienced robot builders to get their hands dirty, and Micromagic is more than happy to sell you a whole slew of optional add-ons for the kit. Those just looking to get started, however, can simply grab the base kit in their choice of black, red, or silver for an entirely reasonable €105, or roughly $168 -- just don't blame us if you never get a good night's sleep again.

[Thanks, David]

Update: It turns out that you do need slightly more than the base kit to get the bot up and walking -- namely, some extra servos and electronics detailed at the read link below -- so don't be too hasty with that order.

Perhaps you're looking for a way to track potential cat burglers, give your robot some spacial sense, make your UIs a little more interactive, or you simply want to keep an eye on your "compound." Panasonic has just released detailed specs for its 3D range sensor -- the first, it says, to work in direct sunlight. Exhibited at CEATEC 2008, the device emits light from several dozen LEDs to track the movements of any object in its view. The company's previous 3D range sensor didn't function well (if at all) in bright light, but the equipment now compensates for "extremely bright ambient light" by measuring it and eliminating it from the equation. Can't wait to track your loved ones' every movement? The 24 volt, USB 2.0 sensor is slated for an April 1, 2009 release.

[Via Tech-On!]