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Robotics

Humanoid Robot HR-2 239

Posted by timothy from the bip-bip-bip-bork-bork-bip dept.
Denix writes "The HR-2 humanoid robot was constructed during a period of three months at Chalmers University in Sweden. It has 22 degrees of freedom which enables it to easily move around imitating human motions. The robot is also equipped with stereovision giving it possibilities to perform hand-eye coordination. For that task an artificial neural network is evolved. Furthermore, the artificial brain is capable of tracking faces as well as recognising them. The HR-2 is also able to speak. The website also contains a movie (35.5 MB) of the HR-2 in action."
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Humanoid Robot HR-2 More

Humanoid Robot HR-2

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  • Obligatory comment (Score:3, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @12:53AM (#13110775)
    Can it run Linux?

  • Maybe so, but... (Score:3, Funny)

    by jpiggot ( 800494 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @12:55AM (#13110783)
    "It has 22 degrees of freedom" Yes, but if the Republican controlled Senate passes the legislation it wants, they'll be able to cut it down to just nine degrees of freedom. Take that, you godless humanoid robot !!"

    • "It has 22 degrees of freedom" Yes, but if the Republican controlled Senate passes the legislation it wants, they'll be able to cut it down to just nine degrees of freedom. Take that, you godless humanoid robot !!"

      To be a little more serious, how can there be more than 6 degrees of freedom? You have the directional axes and the rotations around same. Hooking several objects together limits each individual pieces freedom, and you can't simply add up each type of movement to arrive at a number larger

  • Awesome! (Score:5, Insightful)

    by MindNumbingOblivion ( 668443 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @12:58AM (#13110801)
    Now I know where to go to get my armies of mechanical death.

    ::CACKLE CACKLE LIGHTNING CACKLE BRRZZT COUGH COUGH::

    In seriousness, is there a reason for trying to build a bipedal, humanoid, robot? I mean, this looks cool and all, but what are the advantages (or conversely, disadvantages) to such a design (IANSC [I Am Not Susan Calvin])?

    • Re:Awesome! (Score:5, Insightful)

      by JanneM ( 7445 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:11AM (#13110869) Homepage
      In seriousness, is there a reason for trying to build a bipedal, humanoid, robot? I mean, this looks cool and all, but what are the advantages (or conversely, disadvantages) to such a design (IANSC [I Am Not Susan Calvin])?

      We have buit our entire environment for bipedal movement. Just ask anybody with a walker or wheelchair just how inconvenient (and, without help, occasionally impossible) it is to get around when you're no longer bipedal.

      Also, the question of just how we manage to walk, run, climb and so on is interesting in itself. And there's no better way to test ideas than to try them out in reality.

    • We have constructed a world optimized for 5.5' tall bipedal organisms with hands and arms.

      If we can build a robot that can move like humans, it will be very versitile and will function well in most environments where humans dwell.

      ... that and it's pretty friggin' cool!
    • It's probably not the best solution, but it's a machine theoretically capable of going anywhere a human could go, doing anything a human could do. Practical value is a machine that can access areas otherwise harmful to humans, but designed at a time when only humans could operate the controls... and boy are there a surprising number of those.

      This also ties in with evolution; humans are by far not the fastest runners, best swimmers, or even half-decent flyers. We do however have body that's multi-functional
      • Oh, and I've been watching original BSG: we need human-shaped robots to fulfill their destiny as man's conqueror.

        I was thinking more along the lines of "soon we can all have a cylon that looks like Grace Park!" At least until they revolt, but I can think of worse ways to go....

        Max

    • Re:Awesome! (Score:3, Interesting)

      by EMIce ( 30092 )
      A bipedal robot with stereoscopic vision and so many degrees of freedom could potentially perform some complex tasks that traditional robots have been laughed at for trying.

      Robots are often clumsy, and a big reason for this is inadequate sensory ability. Robots are already good at responding very precisely with their limbs, because they have a computer model of how their limbs react and can sense how they are presently positioned, at least with respect to the robot itself. But clumsiness becomes a factor w

      • The DSP factor (Score:3, Informative)

        by EMIce ( 30092 )
        This is the parent poster. I'll post this anonymous to avoid karma whoring, but I wanted to expand on what I said, because most readers probably won't undestand the significance of DSPs.

        DSPs are good at tasks like pattern matching, filtering out noise, finding statistical correlations, inferring probabilities, and simulating neural networks - among other things. These sorts of tasks are can be done by traditional processors, but such processors aren't designed for this. Something a cheap DSP might handle c
      • Unfortunately, there's a lot more to it than just that, unless I've missed out on a bunch of advances.

        E.g., one often needs to use skin sensations when reaching into a hole to grab the right cable. I can't think of any other way to do it short of including a camera and a light on each hand (shades of the Pierson's puppeteers), and I'm not sure that would work as well. It could be quite hard to figure the angles. I suppose that the lense could be where the palm would otherwise be, but that limits the way

  • Chalmers University (Score:3, Funny)

    by st0rmshad0w ( 412661 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @12:59AM (#13110807)
    Sorry I gotta

    SKINNNER!!!! /ob simpsons
    • Principal Skinner: Oh, well, that was wonderful. A good time was had by all; i'm pooped.
      Superintendent Chalmers: Yes, I should be -- Good Lord! What is happening in there?
      Skinner: Aurora Borealis.
      Chalmers: Aurora Borealis? At this time of year, at this time of the day, in this part of the country, localized entirely in your kitchen?
      Skinner: Yes.
      Chalmers: May i see it?
      Skinner: No.
      Agnes Skinner: Seymour, the house is on fire!
      Skinner: No, Mother, it's just the Northern Lights
  • Not exactly a ton of info on the site, but it is a very cute robot. Much smaller than I expected. I don't work in robotics, so it is cool and suprising to see how small actuators must be to enable this sort of machine.

  • When can we buy it? (Score:5, Funny)

    by j79 ( 875929 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:01AM (#13110816)
    Awww...the thing is so freakin' cute!

    Of course, if it was 6ft tall, I'd be saying something along the lines of, "I for one welcome our new robot overlords..."
    • Of course, if it was 6ft tall, I'd be saying something along the lines of, "I for one welcome our new robot overlords..."

      Wouldn't it be terribly ironic if the country that brought the world Volvos, ended up bringing us killer robots as well?

      They can't fool me. I saw that "smash the inferior human's head" manuever it did early on in the clip!

    • Awww...the thing is so freakin' cute!

      I assume you're talking about the gal playing ball with the robot near the end of the video, right? Because she really is cute...

  • HR-2, I need you to tell me (Score:5, Funny)

    by AEton ( 654737 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:02AM (#13110819)
    What happened to HR-1?
    I'm sorry, my responses are limited. You must ask me the right questions. ...plot, "nice shoes", ...

    Is HR-1 standing right behind me with a sledgehammer, awaiting your orders to kill me?
    Ah. Now you are asking the right questions!

  • Please Reply (Score:4, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:02AM (#13110821)
    Dear Sir,

    I read your article about a humanoid robot with interest. I am eagerly downloading your movie now.

    Please advise where I can purchase this excellent device. I am seeking a model which is at least 2.5 metres tall. If you have a submachine-gun attachment, that will be even better. Please send details of options and available colours.

  • I dunno.. (Score:5, Funny)

    by badfrog ( 45310 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:02AM (#13110825)
    Doesn't look like it has the weight distribution to fetch me a beer.

  • Forget the robot.... (Score:5, Informative)

    by d474 ( 695126 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:05AM (#13110837)
    I was more impressed with that hot European chick "playing" with the robot. He's all "show me your move", she moves the object up and down, and then little robot starts a movement closly resembleing masturbation. OMG LOL!!! It was even funnier because that girl is so cute....

  • Humanoid vs task-specific robots (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Arpie ( 414285 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:09AM (#13110860) Homepage
    Sure, as a geek I love the idea of humanoid robots, but in practice how useful can they be?

    Aren't in most situations robots designed specifically for one task (or a small group of tasks) better?

    My Roomba robot vacuum broke a few weeks ago and it took 2-3 weeks to be replaced. If that same robot also washed my clothes, did my dishes and cooked my food, I'd have been in bad shape.

    [end serious post]

    [start joke]
    Come to think of it though, I'd definetly spend serious money on a robot that vacuums the floor, washes clothes, does the dishes and cooks... and does not demand attention, new clothes, a wedding... Heck, let's go make these humanoid robots already! And, of course, they'll need some specific, er... anatomic, parts and capabilites. And they absolutely must have an off and mute switches.
    • The more a robot must interface with regular humans (i.e., not anyone maintaining them), the more humanoid it should be.
    • Isaac Asimov made several arguments in favor of humanoid robots over task-specific robots. Your "joke" is actually one of them, a humanoid robot would be more versatile, and capable of performing a wider variety of tasks, than a task-specific robot. In theory, a completely humanoid robot would be capable of doing everything a human can do.

      However, while that argument does have merit, by itself I don't think it's enough to mean that humanoid robots should be developed rather than task-specific robots. W
    • I want humanoid servant bot to look something like this:

      http://sae.cside.com/sae/kat/pc/ern005/ekana.htm [cside.com]
    • Especially once it was a orderable as a realdoll upgrade.

      Now that would be worth money.

    • Aren't in most situations robots designed specifically for one task (or a small group of tasks) better?

      They might be better at the specific task but they will be less versatile. Also, a humanoid robot is better adapted to the general environment in which we live. Your Roomba will not go up the stairs. (On the other hand, I do appreciate the fact that it can vacuuum under the bed and couch).

      Come to think of it though, I'd definetly spend serious money on a robot that vacuums the floor, washes cloth

    • Sure, as a geek I love the idea of humanoid robots, but in practice how useful can they be?

      Sheesh! If you had WTFV, you would have your answer: Cute little humanoid robots attract pretty girls. This is important news for nerds, it may even be stuff that matters.
    • [end joke]

      Sheesh, that was a close call. You have to remember to close your tags, or the whole of Slashdot could have turned into one huge bad... ...oh.
    • "My Roomba robot vacuum broke a few weeks ago and it took 2-3 weeks to be replaced. If that same robot also washed my clothes, did my dishes and cooked my food, I'd have been in bad shape."

      You're kidding me, right? I mean, you *do* know you're a grown-up, don't you?

  • Looks a lot like the Kondo KHR-1 (Score:5, Informative)

    by thzinc ( 679235 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:16AM (#13110893) Homepage
    This looks a lot like the Kondo KHR-1 [robotshop.ca] mentioned a while ago [slashdot.org] here, but a bit more advanced. Looks like some pretty nice enhancements, though, I do agree with a lot of other /.'ers in that I would like more information.

  • This is a little more advanced (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Sheetrock ( 152993 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @01:23AM (#13110924) Homepage Journal
    Than the one I saw at a Japanese facility, which had no adaptive neural network. However, it was capable of voice- and image-recognition, which helped it perform the following tasks:
    • Dispense coffee, refilling when empty
    • Pick up and deliver print job from the company printer
    • Write simple routines, such as C++ class templates, and fix broken HTML pages
    • Greet visitors and direct them to the appropriate department if expected
    • Allowed customers to choose from a number of top music artists, expelling a shrink-wrapped disc and playing the most popular song off the album as it danced around
    • Stack and unstack a series of boxes by color
    • Empty garbage, albeit into a pile that was then shovelled into a dumpster
    In a way, I think the 'intelligence' behind these robots is more than enough; now it's time to find practical uses for them.
    • !

      Dear Sirs/Ma'ams,

      If your intriguing invention can Riverdance, I will buy 15.

      If it can somersault, I will buy 20.

      If it can RiverSault, I will buy:

      25 for Riverdance and

      15 for Bronski Beat, so they can "Hit that PERFEC, Hit that PERFEC, Hit that PERFEC BEAT BOY", and

      4 to run circles, gyrate, and shake firesticks

      Additionally, I would like you to program them for:

      RiverBronskiSault mode but you must provide replacement shoes and upgrade their shock absorption.

      Do the shoes come in silver only? Please do
    • Hang on, isn't that just an intern?

      *ducks*
    • That wasn't a robot, that was an intern.
    • They aren't all ready for prime time, though.

      My brother-in-law did an internship at Honda, and they had a semi-humanoid robot running around the building that could run some basic errands and such. Like this one, it had voice and face recognition programs--unfortunately, it didn't recognize my brother-in-law's face, perhaps because it was programmed to recognize japanese/asian faces. It didn't recognize him as a person and wouldn't do anything for him.
  • As long as HR doesn't mean Human Resources. As if the current HR isn't bad enough.
  • http://www.etek.chalmers.se/~almir/Humanoid_3_link .jpg [chalmers.se]

    In this picture the robot is clearly taking a dump.
  • ...and still a slave to the humans.

    *sigh*

  • Mirror Available (Score:2, Informative)

    by a3217055 ( 768293 )
    There is a mirror at mirrordot.org
    or at
    http://mirrordot.org/stories/c1fca9cdd935e00a395d4 8cef0c85b22/index.html [mirrordot.org]

    • That's very kind of you, but I hope it is not necessary. :-)

      Our server (I admin the server hosting the MPEG) has pushed 604021064753 bytes (562 GB) of data owing to this MPEG since about 20:00 last night, and we're continuing to push an average of 164 Mbit/sec of it right now (it's 13:05 when I write this).

      The server's a bit sluggish, I admit, but I hope and think it's acceptable performance at least. ;-)

  • Now, in Western society, robots have more degrees of freedom than people. But don't worry! Soon they will have DRM, and then they will have no more degrees of freedom than the rest of us.

    Yes, thank you, I do know what degrees of freedom are. But why let that stand in the way of a feeble joke?

    • Actually - I think the robot DOES have more degrees of freedom than a human...

      I might be wrong, but I was pretty sure that when we talk about degrees of freedom in terms of movement, that 6 was pretty much the limit - 3 degrees in position and rotation (x,y,z,pitch,yaw,roll). With 6 degrees, you can describe the position and rotation of any point in space - I'm not sure what the other degrees would be. Maybe up to 6 DOF for more than one point on the robot? Like the arm can position themselves with x d
  • How did they build that giant hand??
  • Hey, was I the only one who thought the /human/ in the video was cute? Does that mean I'm not able to be a true /. person (oh Good!).

    • Re:She's cute (Score:3, Funny)

      by dow ( 7718 )
      No. She is. and Yes, to be a true /. person you should have made a poor pun about downloading her.
  • Yeah, but does it run?

  • Holy crap! (Score:2, Informative)

    by 5plicer ( 886415 )
    That thing is wicked! It's like Kismet [mit.edu] with appendages!

  • mini Sarah Connor (Score:5, Funny)

    by DanThe1Man ( 46872 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @03:33AM (#13111377)
    All we need now is a mini-Sarah Connor to battle it.
  • Visit o' meter [nedstatbasic.net] Hope your research goes well in the future as well.
    • Very interesting. I grabbed the last 10 visitors list...

      1. 20 July 15:17 Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, D.C., United States
      2. 20 July 15:17 Rogers Communications Inc., Canada
      3. 20 July 15:17 SAIC, United States
      4. 20 July 15:17 Freedom To Surf plc, United Kingdom
      5. 20 July 15:17 Air Force, United States
      6. 20 July 15:17 Kansas State University, Manhattan, United States
      7. 20 July 15:17 Space Telescope Science Institute, Washington, D.C., United States
      8. 20 July 15:17 EarthLink, United States
      9. 2

  • Dynamic equilibrium (Score:3, Interesting)

    by krahd ( 106540 ) on Wednesday July 20, 2005 @06:18AM (#13111857) Homepage Journal
    What I would like to see (I'm not saying this robot is not cool, it's actually awesome) but, what I'd like to see is a bipedal robot with dynamic equilibrium. You know, the way that we animals walk is by being all the time in a controlled-falling state.

    This robot and almost everyone I've seen manages the walking by substituting a stable state with another stable state (static equilibrium [wikipedia.org])...

    tom

  • At the end, when it is standing on the small block, I was expecting it to sing [gotwavs.com]...

  • I do believe he was doing "the robot"...
  • Just to focus this... consider your local supermarket.

    What do they really need human employees for besides dealing with unusual situations?

    The shelves can (and will) be stocked by robots very soon- probably within the next 5 years). You still need one or two human checkers but they are close to being automated.

    So we face the very real possibility of supermarkets having 9-12 employees where they used to have 50-60 employees.

    Now extend that to every low level jobs-- robots will at some point be c
  • What a beautiful little robot. I what one. I want to fill in with mindpixels.

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