One Piece Discoveries » Robot

Robotic Fish for Sea Exploration

Jo — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 10:41:18 +0000

The world under the ocean has still many secrets that we are not aware of and MIT engineers are now ready to explore the unexplored regions under the water with their latest invention called the Robofish. The prototype looks very much like a trout and contains only 10 parts which are covered by a body made from single soft polymer. MIT engineers confessed that the inspiration for making such a device came from Robotuna which was first invented in the year 1994 but it did not succeed because the fish was too large and contained thousands of parts which could not stand the test of time and the harsh conditions under water.

Now with the invention of the so-called Robofish, MIT engineers are ready to take this device to the bottom of the ocean floor where these devices will detect the pollution levels and inspect and survey various oil and gas pipelines. The device has been designed in such a way that is mimics the movements of a real fish and since the body is more streamlined and sleek it can dive into the deeper sections of the ocean to find the information we want.

The engineers at MIT are very happy about the invention because they feel that this device will work because it has gone through some harsh conditions in the lab and the overall cost of production is very low which means that if successful they can create thousands of such devices which they can release in the bay to inspect, survey and relay information to us. In other words, this robofish acts like a watchful guard inside the sea through which we can monitor the situations happening inside the water. Currently, the research is funded by an oil exploration company named Schlumberger but MIT engineers have said that even US Navy is now interested in their robofish project.

Jyotsna Ramani

Cute Evolta Robot by Panasonic [Pictures]

M.H.M — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 17:53:29 +0000

I believe we’ve all seen how Duracell demonstrate how long its batteries last in advertisements with their bunny performing energy hungry tasks. Panasonic have decided the best advertisement is a real world test using a robot on a little three-wheel bike.

Image Credit: ChinaKevin

Evolta robot, which is powered by Panasonic’s Evolta batteries, claimed to be the world’s longest-lasting AA alkaline battery cells. The Evolta robot will challenge to cycle the racing course of the 24 hours of Le Mans in France. With that, Panasonic is attempting to set a new world record and in the process prove just how good its Evolta AA batteries really are.

Image Credit: GiggleHD

The “Evolta racing robot” is fitted with two Evolta AA batteries and is capable of hitting speeds of up to 1.3km/h. The world record attempt will see the robot guided around the Le Mans racing circuit by an infra-red beam emitted from the back of a car. The aim is to keep circling the track for 24hrs just like in the real race and in so doing setting a record for the longest distance travelled by a remote-controlled robot. The real test is for the batteries, however, with the question being will they last the full 24hrs?

Image Credit: The Cool Gadgets 2

Although this is obviously a challenge just to get publicity it does show that Panasonic is very confident about the lead they have over other battery manufacturers in this battery class. Holding a world record allows a lot of marketing opportunities and this is just the latest. I bet there are a few more planned to keep Evolta in the headlines.

Image Credit: The Cool Gadgets 3

Image Credit: ironfle

Image Credit: Gizmodo Australia

Image Credit: Get Robo

Image Credit: Panasonic

Image Credit: Geek Dot Com

Image Credit: The Cool Gadgets 1

Image Credit: Daylife

Youtube Videos

Evolta Climbing a Rod

Evolta Riding a Bike

DepthX Robot for Mission to Europa

M.H.M — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 14:24:52 +0000

It has been a NASA dream to see someday they can use a DepthX-like Robot to explore Europa, a frozen moon of Jupiter. Being a mechanical-means for deep sea exploration, DeathX has a good design for the scientists to explore a new world for human. Astrobiologists have long suspected that frozen Europa harbors liquid water – making it one of the most probable places in our solar system to support life. A robot like DepthX could eventually be launched into space aboard a probe, descends through Europa’s frozen surface in a bullet-shaped, heat-generating capsule, and be released into the frigid, mysterious waters below. The robot will be smart enough to decide where to go from there to optimize the chance of discovering new life.

How it Works?

1. Moving Towards Life
By monitoring temperature, acidity, oxygen and other gradients, DepthX sniffs for environments most likely to support life and then heads towards sites of biological interest. Along the way, it creates maps of the new world, keeping track of areas already explored and ensuring that It can get back to the capsule to “phone home”.

2. Gathering Evidence
Reaching a promising site – a hydrothermal vent, say – DepthX takes pictures and uses image-processing software to discern patterns of color and shape that indicate microbial life. “if you see yellows, oranges and greens, something is up”.

3. Identifying Aliens
Finally, DepthX takes water samples for microscopic analysis. A machine vision system will look for things that are critter-like. The samples will be dyed so that when illuminated by light, the DNA of the organisms fluoresces.

Life of ASIMO – Almost Human

M.H.M — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:26:53 +0000

Do not underestimate this white and weakling-looks of this robot. He walks, he runs, he can also kick a ball and serve you a drink. Meet ASIMO (short for Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility), the world’s first advanced humanoid robot that can move like a human. Created by Honda after 22 years of research, ASIMO stands at 1.3 meters tall, weights 54 kg and can recognize people’s faces and even interact with them, thanks to an IC (Integrated Circuit) card – rendering ASIMO a perfect help around the house or for people in need. Below are some photos of ASIMO in real life.

Asimo Enjoys the Cherry Blossoms in His Leisure Time

Asimo will Release Electric Shock when Getting Angry

Asimo Misses His Hometown

Asimo Wonders why Human Loves Him

Asimo Loves Big Doe

Together with His Brother, Asimo Looks at the Future

Sometimes Asimo will be in Space

Asimo Likes to Kick a Ball

Sometimes Asimo Wishes that He were a Gundam

Asimo is Working Hard to be Strong

Asimo Loves Being on the Beach

Asimo also Loves to be in the Water

Asimo is Guarding His Master

Asimo Teaches Tai-chi

Asimo Serves Drinks

Asimo Like Pretty Celebrity

Asimo can be a Pervert too

Asimo has Visited the Disneyland

Asimo Like to Race whenever He has an Opponent

Asimo Dances with the Kids

Ancient Robot always Haunts Asimo

Asimo Loves Soccer

Asimo Visits India

Images Resource: Flickr