DARPA's top robotics challenge contender to become a commercial Google robot. The S-One humanoid robot, which completely dominated DARPA's Robotics Challenge trials in December, has been pulled out of the $2 million competition... and it's not exactly surprising.
You see, S-One was created by Japanese team SCHAFT, one of the robotics companies Google acquired last year, and Mountain View said long ago that it's not interested in pursuing military contracts. While S-One's withdrawal means we won't be seeing it go through the agency's rigorous challenges anymore, it does come with a very exciting news. According to DARPA Product Manager Gill Pratt, the SCHAFT team ultimately decided to bow out not only because it doesn't need funding anymore, but also because it wants to focus on building a commercial product. In other words: a Google robot that people (most likely huge corporations, governments and the obscenely wealthy) can buy. Military robots: No reason to freak out. As a robotic warfare veteran, there are three common misperceptions about the use of robots in warfare that I’d like to address.
Misperception #1: There is some sort of ethical quandary or challenge in using robotic weapons. There is no controversy about the legality or ethics of current and contemplated robotic weapons. Winged robots may shed light on fly aerobatics. Robots that can flap their wings, hover and dart around like a fly could help scientists better understand the finer points of insect aviation, researchers report in the May 3 Science.
ROBOFLY Penny-size flying robots (shown) inspired by the flight prowess of flies could help researchers peer deeper into the complexities of insect aviation. Kevin Ma and P. Chirarattananon/Harvard University Flies can easily dart out of a flyswatter’s path or land on a surface blowing in the wind. Some research suggests that subtle changes in wing motion can create enough twisting motion for them to make sharp turns. “People have been trying to build flapping devices like this for years.” says Michael Dickinson, a bioengineer at the University of Washington in Seattle, who wasn’t involved in the work. Should Robots Be Able to Decide to Kill You On Their Own? No, Really, How Do We Keep Robots From Destroying Humans? In the demilitarized zone dividing North and South Korea, SGR-1 robots are on patrol, equipped with cameras and radar to detect intruders as well as speakers to warn them off.
If that fails, they also carry machine guns and grenade launchers. In the U.S., the Home Exploring Robotic Butler can retrieve a book from a shelf, a meal from a microwave or a drink from the kitchen. It can even separate an Oreo cookie. In Japan, a seal-like robot called Paro provides companionship for seniors -- and seems to ease the effects of dementia. Over the next few decades, robots will become part of everyday life. Three challenges in particular need to be explored.
Robot Warriors. Google Buys DARPA-funded Robotics Firm Boston Dynamics. Truthstream Media TruthstreamMedia.com December 14th, 2013 Reader Views: 540 Google has announced that it has purchased Boston Dynamics, the engineering firm which has produced all those creepy dystopian future robots for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), such as the Big Dog (a dog robot that can throw cinder blocks with an arm coming out of its head), Cheetah (the world’s fastest sprinting robot that can outpace humans) and Atlas (the one that’s eerily reminiscent of something out of a Terminator film…Skynet, anyone?).
The Times of India reports: The deal is also the clearest indication yet that Google is intent on building a new class of autonomous systems that might do anything from warehouse work to package delivery and even elder care. So Google is building a new class of autonomous systems that might do anything… To that end, Boston Dynamics is now the eighth robotics firm Google has bought over the past six months. Google Adds to Its Menagerie of Robots. Boston Dynamics Boston Dynamics’ four-legged robot named WildCat can gallop at high speeds. Google confirmed on Friday that it had completed the acquisition of Boston Dynamics, an engineering company that has designed mobile research robots for the Pentagon. The company, based in Waltham, Mass., has gained an international reputation for machines that walk with an uncanny sense of balance and even — cheetahlike — run faster than the fastest humans.
It is the eighth robotics company that Google has acquired in the last half-year. Executives at the Internet giant are circumspect about what exactly they plan to do with their robot collection. Four self-funded robots qualify for DARPA Robotics Challenge. The field for this month’s DARPA Robotics Challenge Trials is now set, with four self-funded teams — who built their own hardware and software for the competition — rounding out the line-up.
Previously, we learned about the seven teams that survived the Virtual Robotics Challenge and received an ATLAS robot as well as the six teams that built their own hardware with financial support from DARPA. Yesterday, DARPA shared some details on the final four teams. The teams are: Team Chiron (Kairos Autonomi from Sandy, Utah, USA) Team KAIST (Rainbow Co. from Daejeon, Republic of Korea) Intelligent Pioneer (Institute of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, Hefei Institute of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Science from Changzhou, Jiangshu, China) Team Mojavaton (Mojavaton LLC from Grand Junction, Colo., USA) The event will take place Dec. 20 and 21 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Fla., and is open to the public. Boston Companies: 3 Boston Breakthroughs Make TIME's List of 2013's Best Inventions. Published: November 16th 2013, 11:34am Read More: Tech , Boston Startups, MIT, Atlas, Boston Dynamics, inception, Boston Companies, 3Doodler, WobbleWorks This week, TIME published its "25 Best Inventions of the Year 2013.
" » New Robocop Movie Envisions World Patrolled by Drones Alex Jones. Americans need to be brainwashed out of their ‘robophobia’ Paul Joseph Watson Infowars.com November 8, 2013 The fourth installment of the Robocop franchise, set for release in February next year, is based around the premise that robotic drones patrol the world but that America is the last holdout and needs to be brainwashed into relinquishing its “robophobia”.
A new trailer for the movie released today features a scene in which Samuel L. Jackson promises to make even the worst neighborhood in America “completely safe,” before showing footage of huge lumbering robots acting as military patrols in middle eastern countries, whose citizens are forced to submit to biometric scans by the robots in order to avoid being treated as a criminal. DARPA uncloaks unTerminator for $2 million robotics challenge. High performance access to file storage.
Yet another terrifying Boston robot roll call (with bonus DARPA Cylon) - Laser Orgy. Boston Dynamics' WildCat is a Terrifying Glimpse into a Horrifying Future. Boston Dynamics’ WildCat is a Terrifying Glimpse into a Horrifying Future By Anna Culaba, RYOT News October 4, 2013 at 10:51 am - TAKE ACTION ON Creative Visions Foundation - Make an impact on this story by supporting Creative Visions Foundation.
Evil Boston Dynamics Reveals Terminator-Like Walker, Puts Horns On BigDog. US robotics firm Boston Dynamics shows off Atlas robot.