Technically Speaking

These new robots are the lastest in advancements for robotic agility. Through a complex arrangement and coordination of motors and processors these robots are able to perform their feats.

Humanoid robots capable of performing somersaults and complex martial arts moves were demonstrated at Asia’s largest electronics and computing fair in Tokyo on Saturday.

Visitors to CEATEC 2003 (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) met Morph3, a human-like robot about 30-centimetres tall developed by researchers at the Chiba Institute of Technology in Japan. It can perform back flips and karate moves thanks to 138 pressure sensors, 30 different onboard motors and 14 computer processors.

Another miniature humanoid robot on display was Fujitsu’s HOAP-2. This droid has been programmed to perform moves from the Chinese martial art taijiquan, as well as Japanese Sumo wrestling stances.

HOAP-2 is designed as an aid to robotics research and therefore runs on open source, Linux-based software. Fujitsu believes it will sell between 20 and 30 of the robots to universities and companies in 2004.

According to Sony’s labs, making an agile robot is not the challenge of today. It is making an intelligent one. The goal now is to make a robot that can learn.

I find it interesting that these martial arts robots were developed at Chiba Institute of Technology. Sonny Chiba, is a famous movie martial artist. Is there a coincidence there?

Source: NewScientist

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