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Aristo Bot Clones Itself
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Misc. Tech, Science, Wireless / WiFi,
The Washington University Aristo bot can wirelessly navigate through a fire, clone itself by creating a ring of software around that fire, then send the information through a PDA to let its owner know exactly where and how intense the fire is. If the fire intensifies, the agent clones again and maintains the ring.
Creators Burchan Bayazit and Nuzhet Atay claim that the robot can be used for other applications such as farmers gathering soil data over hundreds of acres of land without ever leaving home. At the rate that technology is speeding up these days, the Aristo will be able to clone a few cows while it is checking out the acreage. Check out the demo to see Aristo in action.
Read More 
| Space Daily
We have just found a Chinese security bot that can move about pre-programmed or on its own on flat surfaces and inclines up to 20º. This two-wheeled robot is best suited for airports, warehouses, residential areas, and shopping centers. It was developed by the Robot Research Institute of the Civil Aviation University of China in cooperation with the Tianjiin YAAN Technology Electronics Company. Although it may not replace your Neighborhood Alert, it least it doesn’t carry a machine gun like its Korean cousin.
Read More | ST Daily
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WidgetStation Keeps You in Touch
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Smart Home, Internet, Misc. Tech,
Imagine waking up to your favorite midi or MP3 instead of a screaming shock jock. The WidgetStation has two screens and an amazing amount of capabilities such as playing music, receiving stock market and weather reports, RSS feeds, Internet radio, podcasts, PhotoShow, and message notification. Made by Emtrace, it has alarm clock synchronization within 1 ms, a stopwatch, countdown timer, and even world time by country.
It’s easy to see why WidgetStation has already received 2007 CES Design & Engineering Showcase Honors. Available early next year, contact Emtrace for specs, price, and availability.
Read More | Emtrace
Latest Gear Live Videos
Thanko has created a mouse that will actually keep your hand warm. It features the same aspects of any other optical mouse and also has the ability to keep your palm toasty this winter. With an 800 dpi resolution, you simply connect the 60 x 125 x 35mm, 80g mouse into your USB port and the lower part warms up. Designed ergonomically with its rubber grip, it also features blue LED lights, an adjustable temperature control button, and carries a MSRP of 2,980 Yen (~$25.00.) Once your hand heats up, we suggest you share the mouse with your feet.
Read More | Fareastgizmos
IGURO enters the market as D2E’s version of the Tmusk receptionist/porter bot. Introduced at Robo World 2006, this robot comes equipped with a built-in visual sensor on its head and voice recognition. He actually knows the difference between employees and visitors, and can be managed via remote. IGURO can tell you about information services or escort you to a specific location. We would love to witness a showdown between IGURO and the Tmusk bot in some darkened, crowded hallway.
Read More | Aving
Watch out, Superman. Luminetx has created the VeinViewer that allows health care professionals to have x-ray vision. The device works by a near-infrared light highlighting red blood cells captured by video camera, digitizing them, then displaying them below the skin, thereby aiding clinicians to find veins that might otherwise be difficult to discover.
The UT Health Science Center in Memphis originally designed it for tracking macular degeneration in the eye. Luminetx CEO Jim Phillips says that when the VeinViewer was accidentally shined across an arm, its inventors realized it had other applications. He also forsees it being used for ID purposes much like eye scans and fingerprinting.
Read More | Luminetx
SALIX Responds to Environment
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Smart Home, Misc. Tech, Science,
SALIX doesn’t exactly qualify for our bot category, but it comes fairly close. Displayed at the recent ArtBots 2006 Regional Show in NYC, these willow trees interact by means of motor prosthetics embedded in the root system. It sends numerical data messages via small GPS accelerometers implanted in the ends of the branches. Next thing you know, it is speaking to humans with a computerized voice. Creator John Lathram claims that his inspiration “came out of an attempt to record the movement of the wind as it moves through willow branches.” Check out his demo to see SALIX in action.
Read More | John Lathram via Wired
CeeLite Light Bulb Panel Named One of 2006 Best Inventions
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Smart Home, Misc. Tech,
The latest issue of Time Magazine features their “Best Inventions of 2006.” Included in this list is the CeeLite LEC (light emitting capacitors) light bulb panel. These 1mm sheets of plastic contain a layer of phosphor that shines white when hit with AC. You can fade, dim, or flash them almost anywhere, including floors, walls, ceilings, and even people. Contact CeeLite to for price and availability. We’re thinking of installing one in our basement in hopes of luring out the troll that lurks there.
Youmail: Individual Personalized Voicemail Messages
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Internet, Misc. Tech,
Gear Live reader “Emergency Trap” sent this in, letting us know how impressed he is with the free YouMail voicemail replacement service - thanks…er…Trap!:
I can tell Youmail is going to take off. It’s currently in a free Beta stage that couldn’t be more attractive. If you love your cell phone, Youmail is a fun customizable voice mail feature that adds another level of uniqueness to your phone.
At it’s core, Youmail is a service that re-routes your standard voice mail to their service which lets you assign multiple voice mail messages to specific numbers. It’s like assigning your favorite Barry Manilow song to your honey’s phone number. Their service is free and works with any cell phone, but they send you a TXT whenever someone leaves a message. You’ll need to check with your service plan to see how text messages are handled. You can set a default voice mail for all unknown calls, so don’t worry, your professional image isn’t at stake. One other feature offered is the “ditch mail” feature. They claim that if you get a call from someone you’d rather never hear from again, you can send a numeric code which will “give them a ditch mail, and you’ll never here from that person again.” You can access, record, delete, and manage messages from their site. Alternatively, you can choose to record and assign a new custom email from your phone.
I’ve signed up and found the voice interface to be clear and helpful. I’ve listened to a couple messages my friends left me, and they sound just as if I were using my service providers voice mail service. As of this writing, I haven’t gotten feedback from them on how my custom voice mail messages sound, but I listened to them on my computer and they sound fine-virtually indistinguishable from my service provider. I haven’t tried the ditch mail feature, and am a bit confused by it. I started wondering if they totally block that number or if they simply send some kind of default message stating that I don’t want to hear from them again. I’m counting on the former, but I have a feeling it won’t work for unavailable calls-which would really be great to stop telemarketers.
I don’t know how long this service will stay free. I’ll be surprised if they don’t start charging. The big service providers are already charging extra for customized ring backs, and other extra services. If it does stay free, then kudos to Youmail.
We are going to play with this service for a few days. If we are impressed enough, we will do a video review over on The Bleeding Edge. If you try it, let us know what you think.
Read More | YouMail via Emergency Trap
Japanese Hospital Debuts Receptionist and Porter Bots
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Misc. Tech, Science,
The Aizu Central Hospital in Aizu-Wakamatsu (124 miles north of Toyko) has introduced Japan’s first receptionist and porter robots created by Tmusk. The receptionist welcomes you and answers inquiries, while the two porters carry your bags and take visitors and patients wherever they need to go. The porters move at a max speed of about 1 mph, stand about 4 1/2 feet high, and can also alert you if you are about to bump into something or someone.
Hospital spokesperson Naoya Narita says, “By introducing them, we want to show the scene of a future hospital, where robots are getting along with patients and visitors.” At a cost of 60 million Yen (~$508,000), the hospital is hoping to add a third porter next year. At that price, they ought to wait for the bot that does bedpans.
Read More | Tmusk via Space Daily
