Soft robotics are inspired by animals which don't have hard internal skeletons, like squid, worms, and starfish. Developed at Harvard, with funding from DARPA, this particular soft robot, "not only walks, it knows several different gaits and can deflate to stuff itself through tiny little gaps." Another design here, and another (also), and another. In addition to movement, soft robotics can also be used for grip. More information about the Harvard lab is available here (with a student describing the research here).
posted by codacorolla on Nov 29, 2011 - 26 comments

"Cubelets is a robot construction kit; by combining sensor, logic and actuator blocks, young kids can create simple reconfigurable robots that exhibit surprisingly complex behavior." Watch the Cubelets Engineering Prototypes demo (1.01) on Vimeo. [more inside]
posted by bwg on Jun 24, 2011 - 14 comments

Braindriver is a car that allows you to steer, accelerate and decelerate with nothing more than the faint electrical signals generated by the brain.
posted by jason's_planet on Mar 5, 2011 - 13 comments

One small step for a robot, one giant leap for robot-kind... but not yet. The Robonaut R2 (sic) will have to wait at least another three weeks, as the final mission of Space Shuttle Discovery is delayed.
posted by philipy on Nov 5, 2010 - 13 comments

Sure, guys, that’s totally based on an elephant’s trunk, and not from an overwhelming desire to have the greatest Comicon outfit ever.
posted by Cool Papa Bell on Apr 19, 2010 - 20 comments

The Best Robots of 2008 (via)
posted by Artw on Jan 18, 2009 - 13 comments

Self-assembling robot. A self-assembling chair. A swarm of robots attempting to assemble. (All you-tube links.)
posted by pyramid termite on Aug 31, 2008 - 14 comments

David Byrne writes three thoughtful essays on robots, song, and the uncanny valley on the occasion of the creation of a robot which sings in his voice at a Madrid museum: Visiting the robot factory in Texas, regarding the uncanny valley, on machines and souls.
posted by whir on Aug 8, 2008 - 15 comments

The uncanny valley just got deeper. "Treat yourself to the perfect woman."
posted by loquacious on May 27, 2008 - 100 comments

Amazing video of BigDog. Described by its developer, Boston Dynamics, as "The Most Advanced Quadruped Robot on Earth."
posted by qldaddy on Mar 18, 2008 - 106 comments

Noelle can't stop giving birth.
posted by Brandon Blatcher on Jan 3, 2008 - 34 comments

Remember that X-files episode? The one with the robot cockroaches from outer space? Well, scientists in Belgium have created robots that act like cockroaches, and are accepted by the real cockroaches because they smell sexy to them. Better yet, the scientists were able to use the robots to change how the cockroaches behaved. [more inside]
posted by gingerbeer on Nov 17, 2007 - 16 comments

New surgical robots are not only capable of working more precisely than human hands, but they have no metal or electrical parts, so will work under MRI machines on tumors that would otherwise be invisible. The NeuroArm will set you back $27 million, but may confer more karma than that trip to space.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium on Apr 17, 2007 - 25 comments

Dr. Rajesh Rao of the University of Washington has created a brain-computer interface that allows a human to control a small humanoid robot (video link) through brain activity alone.
posted by jason's_planet on Dec 18, 2006 - 19 comments

Issac Asimov's first Law of Robotics has been broken.
posted by icosahedral on Nov 3, 2006 - 80 comments

Cockroach Controlled Mobile Robots — Overview: an experimental mechanism that uses a living Madagascan hissing cockroach atop a modified trackball to control a three-wheeled robot. If the cockroach moves left, the robot moves left. Infrared sensors also provide navigation feedback to the cockroach, striving to create a pseudo-intelligent system with the cockroach as the CPU. Garnet Hertz, creator of Fly with Implanted Webserver and Cockroach with Wireless Video, has used Gromphadorhina portentosa on three generations of autonomous roachbots (YouTube video and Ars Electronica 2005 gallery).
posted by cenoxo on May 22, 2006 - 29 comments

Perhaps you'll remember one of the most popular bits of actual home robotics from the distant past, the venerated Heathkit Hero -- as seen on the teevee show Whiz Kids and other geek-facing programming. As I kid I thought they looked RAD and would nearly killed for one. Those days of everyman robo-lovin' I thought were well past, their niche filled with Aibo and other toy-based robots. Until today, however. The White Bot Robotics 914 rekindles dreams of a telerobotic presence lovingly slaved to robust hardware. Sadly, reports put the pricetag enticingly out of reach at $10K and the thing by default runs on XP, but in theory it's expandible. Also, the same report cites an $1,200 "less featured" model that "may" be forthcoming. Via
posted by Ogre Lawless on Aug 18, 2005 - 5 comments

With My Special Partner, I can drink my way back to the 7th Millenium BCE for ancient music, and the fish’ll tell me how to get home.
posted by dfowler on Apr 13, 2005 - 13 comments

DUBAI (AFP) - The United Arab Emirates is to mount robot jockeys on racing camels later this year after a ban on using children in the region's popular sport.
posted by Tlogmer on Apr 11, 2005 - 7 comments

Honda has upgraded Asimo. They've added jogging, autonomous continuous movement, some new joint designs, and better intelligence, expanding the range of humanoid robots, which includes, the Qrio from Sony, Isamu, and Toyota's offering that entered the fray earlier this year (previously discussed). (More)
posted by effwerd on Dec 16, 2004 - 27 comments

Koolio is a traveling autonomous refrigerator robot ... a cross between R2D2 and a vending machine.
posted by lola on Apr 21, 2004 - 8 comments

Towards a robot-based economy. Lots of interesting ideas here regarding what might happen and possible solutions to economic and social problems when robotics and automation become as cheap as computers did in the 90s.
posted by skallas on Aug 31, 2003 - 20 comments

The Man Who Mistook His Girlfriend for a Robot When David Hanson set out to build a robotic head, he saw no reason not to make it look just like a human. Then he stumbled into the Uncanny Valley. (For contrast and comparison, a similarly-themed prior post).
posted by LinusMines on Aug 13, 2003 - 12 comments

But what about the terrible secret of space? Inteligent robot escapes, then gets run over by a car. The driver makes a bad joke.
posted by delmoi on Jun 19, 2002 - 16 comments

The robot with the mind of an eel. Doesn't this scare you just a little bit?
posted by PWA_BadBoy on Apr 17, 2001 - 13 comments

The best idea for a PDA in a long time! I love my palm but I think this would be even better yet.
posted by Brilliantcrank on Oct 9, 2000 - 5 comments

Boba Fett hired by NASA.
posted by Nyarlathotep on Jun 14, 2000 - 4 comments