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Robotics Toys

First Peek at Robosapien V2 208

Posted by CowboyNeal from the robot-parade dept.
balancedi writes "According to OnRobo, the New Robosapien looks to be a lot more fun but it had better be at a $200 price tag. While still controllable via remote he now is more autonomous. He also has more range of motion, better hands, a vision color system, and a laser tracking system."
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First Peek at Robosapien V2 More

First Peek at Robosapien V2

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  • Without them no one would know it was cool.

  • lasers!!?? (Score:5, Funny)

    by myowntrueself ( 607117 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @07:49PM (#11282625)
    "and a laser tracking system."

    Well this'll get it in trouble under the U SAP AT RIOT act! Better watch out for airliners when playing with this.

  • Well... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Blue-Footed Boobie ( 799209 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @07:50PM (#11282640)
    I, for one, welcome our new Version 2 Laser-Tracking (Now with Colorvision!) overlords!

  • All I want... (Score:5, Funny)

    by WD_40 ( 156877 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @07:50PM (#11282646) Homepage
    ... Is robots with frickin' laser beams. Is that too much to ask?

  • Last heard.... (Score:5, Funny)

    by mesach ( 191869 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @07:51PM (#11282649)
    Mumbling something about finding Sara Connor.

  • Useful? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by koreaman ( 835838 )
    Besides being a toy, is this thing actually useful at all? Can it go get your newspaper or anything like that?
    • I could definitely see a modified/hacked version of one of these making a great "greeter" in the entrance of restaurants. It'd be really cool to interact with one of these while waiting to be seated, perhaps while it suggests various items to order.

    • Re:Useful? (Score:5, Funny)

      by Walt Dismal ( 534799 ) on Friday January 07, 2005 @07:10AM (#11286147)
      Certainly it's useful. I've just programmed mine to say "Welcome to WalMart" and now it's earning $5.45 an hour while I just sit here drinking beer.

  • Damn, visual processing? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by PornMaster ( 749461 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @07:51PM (#11282660) Homepage
    Mirrordot of the FA [mirrordot.org]

    Sensory features include a vision color system that enables Robosapien V2 to recognize objects and skin tones; he can wave when he sees you and reach out to shake your hand.

    I think that's pretty f'ing amazing.
  • Oh, great. Ken's tracking system is gone.
  • is the companion robotic creatures. A couple of the dinosaur-like ones set to be aggressive could be funny to watch interact. Wonder how robosapien would control three or four aggressive roboraptors. :)

  • The robots are coming... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by PeterPiper ( 167721 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @07:55PM (#11282708) Homepage
    I give it five years before this 'toy' evolves through annual improvements into something that can fetch a cold beer from the fridge for you. A robot priced in the high end toy range that could actually do household chores, is that still a toy?

    My girlfriend is terrified of robots, a true phobia. She better get over it soon.

  • Also detailed at PC Magazine (Score:5, Informative)

    by hockeyrink ( 264208 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @07:56PM (#11282709) Homepage
    http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1748603,00.as p [pcmag.com]

    Some nice popups of the new trio of bots coming out this year. Tilden isn't at the CES show, and says that these models are early prototypes, but promises that the New York Toy Fair show will show off much better developed versions.

  • Robopet (Score:5, Interesting)

    by deemzzzz_k ( 826129 ) * on Thursday January 06, 2005 @07:58PM (#11282732)
    I'm actually much more impressed with robo-pet. The proposed price of $70 for something that can manage commands, has touch sensors, can be walked on a "laser leash" (assuming that means it'll follow a laser pointer around) and can learn like AIBO at almost 1/10th of the cost....WOW


    I sincerely doubt the new robosapien will be a success though. For $200 it's no longer in the upper range of toys - it's entering the price range of video game systems, televisions... the feature set is impressibe but most will likely never really use them.
    Unless there are practical applications - RoboSapien - get me a beer!
    • I sincerely doubt the new robosapien will be a success though. For $200 it's no longer in the upper range of toys - it's entering the price range of video game systems, televisions... the feature set is impressibe but most will likely never really use them.

      Early adopters always pay more. The price will come down after a while as they figure out what the optimal "priced-to-buy" price point is.

  • Cool (Score:2, Funny)

    by Jailbrekr ( 73837 )
    Can it throw a bone in the air when it spots a black obilisk?
  • One robot controlling others? reminds me of this short story by this obscur sci-fi writer...

    woups, sorry, got to go and catch that rabbit!
  • Why dosen't Honda sell the Asimo [honda.com]? That's the coolest freaking robot ever.

    • Re:My question is... (Score:3, Informative)

      by marcushnk ( 90744 )
      because its slow, takes _hours_ to recharge for 30 mins of use and cost friggin millions.

      But yes its exciting to see that honda are leading the world in this tech
      • I don't know, I think Sony might have an edge over Honda on this one. Their robot can get up if it falls down, it can run, it can dance, throw a ball, detect whether it's pinching a hand too hard, among other things. Check out the "Fan dance" video. It's amazing:

        http://www.plyojump.com/qrio.html

        LS
    • It's been a research project for going on 2 decades now, but is still technically a prototype. It demoes well, but I wonder how reliable it is. My understanding is that they intend for it to be a "helper" robot for the elderly, so they won't consider it ready for sale until it is rock-solidly reliable and useful.
  • Robosapien V2 comes equipped with "laser" tracking; trace a laser path on the ground and he'll follow it.

    Does this mean we will see robosapians leaping from tall buildings at passing aircraft?

  • article text (Score:2, Informative)

    by ctrudeau ( 514001 )
    Robosapien(TM) V2 - Bigger, Smarter and more fun Print E-mail

    Written by OnRobo News Desk
    Tuesday, 04 January 2005

    More about Robosapien V2What a guy! Today Wowwee Robotics division gave us a first peek at Robosapien 2. As promised by Mark Tilden, Robosapien's creator, the new version has some great new features including much more agility, improved ability to talk and interact with others, and a fun new laser tracking feature. Like it's the original Robosapien the Robosapien V2 is destined
  • I hope they didn't use robosapien as their webserver as well, cuz man, after only ~30 posts it's already gone
    • I hope they didn't use robosapien as their webserver as well, cuz man, after only ~30 posts it's already gone

      No, for that there's Roboserver, which automatically connects wirelessly with other nearby Roboservers in order to handle increased traffic loads. Unfortunately, the prototypes aren't yet Slashdot-capable.

  • Alternate submission (with more info) (Score:5, Informative)

    by FleaPlus ( 6935 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @08:11PM (#11282855) Journal
    Darn, somebody beat me to the submission. Anyways, here's my version, which has some more information:

    Robotics physicist Mark Tilden [wikipedia.org] has unveiled his follow-ups [pcmag.com] to the Robosapien [wowwee.com], which was mentioned on slashdot last year [slashdot.org] and sold rather well [timesonline.co.uk] during the holidays. The foremost is the $200 Robosapien V2 [pcmag.com], which will be able to lie down, stand up, speak, use its built-in camera to recognize objects and people, and follow a laser-traced path. The $70 Robopet [pcmag.com] will be able to perform simple tricks and learn through positive and negative reinforcement. The $100 Roboraptor [pcmag.com] is covered with sensors and will have three different moods: hunter, cautious, and playful. The Robopet is scheduled to launch in July, with the Robosapien V2 and Roboraptor scheduled for September. I can't wait to see what hacks [slashdot.org] people come up with for this.

  • With apologies to Pete Shelley (Score:4, Funny)

    by Tackhead ( 54550 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @08:13PM (#11282867)
    It's from Wowwee,
    Site says "owee!"
    Slashvertisement for,
    Robosapien 2!

    Mark the Tilden,
    BEAM he's buildin',
    10" filled in,
    Robosapien 2!

    And I just hope and pray that my two hundred bucks is at hand,
    You and I, me and you, Franklin Benjamins two - understand?
    And this filk is so wrong and their webserver's not strong enough
    (And you really don't want to see JPGs and GIFs of our love)
    I don't wanna classify you like an animal in the zoo,
    But it seems good to me to know you want a Robosapien too!

    Connection failed,
    Server got nailed,
    Sysadmin bailed,
    Robosapien too.

    Robosuperior,
    In my interior,
    Controlled from shell scripts,
    It's Robosapien 2,
    And you're Robosapien too,
    It's my Robosapien V2!
    And we're Robosapien toooooo...

  • Unbelievably Lifelike (Score:4, Funny)

    by popo ( 107611 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @08:17PM (#11282896) Homepage
    New ultra realistic 2.0 Robosapiens can get "depressed" (RealEmotion engine 2.3) in which case they just won't "want" to do anything cool. (It's pretty incredible functionality). So if your RoboSapien isn't doing anything particularly exciting -- its not broken, its just not in the mood. Oh, and apparently they also come with "RealDeath(tm)" -- so don't *ever* turn them off.

    • Oh, and apparently they also come with "RealDeath(tm)" -- so don't *ever* turn them off.

      So it's kind of like "PlannedObsolescence(tm)," right?

    • So that's why my PS/2 refuses to read discs any more!
    • New ultra realistic 2.0 Robosapiens can get "depressed" (RealEmotion engine 2.3) in which case they just won't "want" to do anything cool. (It's pretty incredible functionality). So if your RoboSapien isn't doing anything particularly exciting -- its not broken, its just not in the mood.

      ...if Robosapien was a girl this "depressed" mode you speak of sounds like it should be renamed "PMS" mode (RealEstrogen engine 2.3) instead

      -UJ

  • A feature I'd like to see (Score:3)

    by SCHecklerX ( 229973 ) <greg@gksnetworks.com> on Thursday January 06, 2005 @08:19PM (#11282921) Homepage
    Haven't read the article yet...

    I have the original, and it is a blast to bring to parties and such. What I thought would be a really easy addition would be a flash card reader that simply read a bunch of simple commands. Just put the commands in a standard file. You could then execute with a single button on the remote.

    Better yet, have the ability to have multiple sets.

    Seems like a great way to overcome the fact that the V1 robosapien can't remember anything you program into it.

    • What I thought would be a really easy addition would be a flash card reader that simply read a bunch of simple commands.

      OH! That kind of flash card! As I was reading the above I pictured standing in my living room holding index cards with commands written on them in front of my Robosapien and it reading them and nodding that it understood. Maybe some more coffee will help . . .

      • As I was reading the above I pictured standing in my living room holding index cards with commands written on them in front of my Robosapien and it reading them and nodding that it understood.

        Interestingly, the AIBO ERS-7 does have little cards like this. They're called AIBO Cards [sonystyle.com], and when you hold them up in front of the AIBO it recognizes them and does things like dance, go to its power station, turn around, etc. I think this sort of recognition needs a little more processing power than the Robosapien

  • Lost Lasers (Score:3, Funny)

    by magarity ( 164372 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @08:33PM (#11283039)
    and a laser tracking system

    Cool, now maybe I'll stop losing the things all over the place.

  • My robosapien (Score:3, Informative)

    by papasui ( 567265 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @08:39PM (#11283081) Homepage
    I got the original model for a present for christmas . Yeah it's a toy but it is pretty darn amazing just how many things it can do. The sensors can be programmed to have (i think up to 20?) reflex commands programmed. So you can set it up to wander around and if it hits a wall it turns the other direction and keeps going. Plus anything that scares the cat away never hurts having around.

  • More at PC Mag (Score:2, Informative)

    by jwgoerlich ( 661687 )

    PC Magazine [pcmag.com] has more details.

    J Wolfgang Goerlich

  • i can just imagine the robosapien alongside my cat, jumping up the wall trying to capture the laser dot. tee hee. i wonder how long it will be before these things start to replace pets?
  • Someone needs to read his physics textbook! Marketing hacks amuse me. Sometimes, I get the impression they're arbitrarily stringing together half-remembered words until their bullet point sounds cool enough.

    This might work most of the time... but when you're writing the advertising copy for a toy marketed toward geeks? Really, now!

    Next, they'll be claiming that Robo Sapien is capable of a running crawl. He'll be compatible with wired WiFi! He'll be able to jump to great depths, leaping tall buildings in a
    • I'm assuming it's referring to an infrared range sensor [acroname.com], which operates like a simple variant of radar.
      • +1 Informative, baby! I had no idea that one could buy off-the-shelf components to perform infrared rangefinding. I retract my statement; their advertising isn't misleading, simply hyped. (And if it didn't bear hype, it wouldn't be advertising.)
        • Yeah, they're pretty neat little devices. I once took a course where we put together little wheeled lego robots with the IR rangefinders stuck on, and used them to do things like generate maps of mazes.
        • And now that I think about it a little more, it's also possible that they could be using something different, where you emit IR light into the environment. You then use an IR-sensitive camera, and the IR brightness tends to inversely correlate with distance. It's not as accurate as using a rangefinder, but you can get distances for your entire visual field, rather than a single ray.
  • "Robosapien(tm) V2 - Bigger, Smarter, and more fun" Internal Server Error
  • ...via the Steel Battalion [capcom.com] game controller?

  • Anyone else but me... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by writermike ( 57327 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @09:12PM (#11283410)
    Wanna see a Robosapian program then ride a Big Trak [80snostalgia.com] into a big line of plastic, green army men?

    It's such a nostaligic cornucopia!!

    Just me, huh?

  • RoboSapien V1 disappointment (Score:3, Informative)

    by SiliconEntity ( 448450 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @09:45PM (#11283736)
    I got a RoboSapien for Christmas but I was a little disappointed in it. Although it can go through a sort of throwing motion, it doesn't move its arms fast enough to actually throw anything. And likewise its ability to "pick up" lacks feedback and requires the object to be in exactly the right place as it goes through the motions.

    It can be programmed to execute a sequence in response to a loud noise, but it's a maximum of about 8 moves. And then it's done, there's no way to have it go back into "listen" mode automatically.

    Using the remote control, it doesn't walk all that straight. To adjust its course, you have to make it turn, and it can't turn and walk at the same time (at least, not intentionally). The way it turns is to rock from foot to foot, turning a tiny little bit each time, so it's really slow to correct its course.

    For a toy that cost almost $100 I was expecting more.
    • All your disappointments will be adressed once Robosapiens runs Linux.

      It also says Robosapiens2 can sway, so it might be physically able to turn the human way.
    • You can get it to respond to sound more than once. Create a sound program to do whatever your response is, then create a master program made up of several copies of the "Listen" command. The master program can contain 14 instructions, so you can program it to respond to sound 14 times before stopping.

      It is also possible to get it to turn and walk at the same time.

      See www.robosapien.tk for more tips and tricks, hacks and mods.

  • a robosapien too far? (Score:3, Funny)

    by A3gis ( 708791 ) on Thursday January 06, 2005 @09:48PM (#11283760) Homepage
    does this line:

    "Sensory features include a vision color system that enables Robosapien V2 to recognize objects and skin tones"

    coupled with this one:

    "fully autonomous in free-roam mode"

    mean that robosapien 2 is now freely capable of joining the KKK of it's own free will?!??
  • I think household robots will finally go mainstream when they gain the capability to autonomously navigate to the refrigerator, grab the owner a beer, then sit down and watch the football game playing on the widescreen TV.

  • Wake Me.... (Score:2, Funny)

    by Hardflip ( 847208 )
    When robot wives are cheap and effective
  • I swear there was already a robot [jeffbots.com] that could fetch you a beer 20 years ago... What amazing progress we make. Now it can dance too!
  • a whopping 10" in height

    Damn, I misread that at first. If it had been a robot 10' in height for just $200, I would have been on my way to the store by now!

  • Here..

    http://www.internationalhero.co.uk/m/marvin.htm [internationalhero.co.uk]

    Remember, he's Your Plastic Pal Who's Fun To Be With..

  • ...they add HumpTheCat(TM) mode.

    Seriously.

  • I did a google and I really didn't come up with much, I can't beleive nobody has started a robosapian fighting league yet! If you could come up with a good real time control system... Are these things controllable from a PC or other computer?

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