A Day in Robot News

Smallest Mobile Robot

"When we say 'controllable,' it means it's like a car; you can steer it anywhere on a flat surface, and drive it wherever you want to go. It doesn't drive on wheels, but crawls like a silicon inchworm, making tens of thousands of 10-nanometer steps every second. It turns by putting a silicon 'foot' out and pivoting like a motorcyclist skidding around a tight turn."

Robot Lifeguard Assistant

September 19, 2005 The BraunPrize for 2005 has been awarded to Jens Andersson from Sweden for his design “Rescue Buoy” - a swimming robot in the form of a lifebuoy.

NASA Robot Prize

"They bring in their rovers and each get 30 minutes in the sandbox," NASA spokesman Brant Sponberg explained. "The machine that autonomously excavates and delivers the most lunar soil simulant to a collection point in 30 minutes wins the purse."

The prize is $250,000 U.S.

Mitsubishi Robot Companion

Able to recognize up to 10 people and call them by name, the 100 cm (40 inch) tall Wakamaru will approach and greet family members in a gentle, feminine voice when they arrive home and offer to pass on telephone messages or read out any e-mails that may have arrived.

Fujitsu Service Robot

As a fully developed practical-use service robot, enon features enhancements such as lighter weight, smaller size, and more safety features than the prototype that Fujitsu developed last year.