Monday, February 06, 2006

Pleo Robot Dinosaur

More news of the Ugobe robots from PC magazine:
By Lance Ulanof...

Ugobe plans on releasing a new kind of sub-$200 personal "Life Forms" robot in the third quarter of this year.
Ugobe executives explained, this is a robot designed to create a roughly three-year relationship with the end users, where the robot will evolve overtime.

Though Pleo will be marketed as a toy, he'll be virtually covered and stuffed with high-technology including a soft-polymer-based skin that cover a series of pressure sensors, infrared in the head to "see' objects and avoid edges, a potentiometer in its belly, force-feedback sensors in its toes to let it know where it is in the world, one 16-bit CPU and a series of 8-bit chips, 14 servo motors and 40 sensors. Pleo's body will be articulated in the center of the torso and at the hips, knees and ankles, and his mouth, eyes and nose will also move. But Ugobe execs believe the most striking thing about Pleo will be the way he moves and respond to his environment. The robot will have "organic movement" that attempts to replicate the way living organisms move and respond to changes in the outside world and within themselves. So, for example, a "tired" Pleo will move more slowly, while an awake one will move with a noticeable amount of energy.

The goal is to have end users to see Pleos as more than just robots, but "living" companions.
Like any robot, this three-pound animatrons will a carry a nickel hydride battery that should offer 3-to-4 hours of battery life.

News from PC Magazine: Can Pleo Robot Charm the Market?

UPDATE:

Pleo webpage

"Pleo is modeled after a 1-week-old Camarasaurus sauropod, or long neck dinosaur"
Link to Ugobe press release (pdf)

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3 Comments:

Blogger jkf said...

Your site is awesome. I love that I can find robot news everyday. It's like a tasty candy break, yet informative too.

Could you offer permalinks so that I can link to some of your articles on my blog?

12:11 PM, February 10, 2006  
Blogger Prospector said...

For a permanent link you right-click on the time at the bottom of the post and choose "copy link location"

5:20 PM, February 10, 2006  
Blogger jkf said...

Brilliant. Thanks.

10:40 PM, February 11, 2006  

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