Video: Japan's 2007 Robot Of The Year
METI (Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry) established last year the annual Robot of the Year award "to recognize outstanding developments in the field of robotics, encourage further research and development, and stimulate demand." Sounds like Cylon propaganda to me.
However, the winner of the 2007 Robot of the Year award features a distinct lack of machine guns and evil red eyes, so I'll let this one pass for now. The honour went to Fanuc's M-430iA Robot, which has very fast optical tracking, enabling to pick up and arrange 120 objects per minute! Watch the video to see it in action:
Those are some nimble robot arms.
Hit the jump for the honourable mentions.
「今年のロボット」大賞２００７ [Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry]
[via: Pink Tentace]
Small to Medium Sized Venture Award: The Miuro by ZMP.
The Miuro is a dancing music playing robot - watch it shake its groove thing:
Top Robot Selected by Japan Machinery Federation: Robotic Blood Sample Courier System by Matsushita.
Dude, robotic hospital helpers:
Matsushita’s Robotic Blood Sample Courier System consists of autonomous mobile robots working as a team to perform blood sample delivery and courier tasks at hospitals and laboratories. A group control computer assigns various tasks to individual robots who pick up blood samples, deliver them to automatic analyzers, and collect the samples after testing. An automatic battery charging system enables the system to work around the clock by preventing all the robots from running out of power at the same time. At present, 17 robot systems are working at hospitals and laboratories, where they are helping to improve the reliability and efficiency of operations.
Special Jury Selection: MR Image-Guided Surgical Robotic System by Hitachi.
This endoscopic surgery support system uses a high-precision robotic surgical clamp that moves like a tiny (1-cm diameter) human hand, while magnetic resonance images (MRI) provide real-time navigation during surgery. Able to outperform the human hand and eye, this system brings an unprecedented level of accuracy and safety to endoscopic surgery. The system is still in the research and development phase, but its effectiveness has been confirmed in 8 liver cancer treatments performed between April and September 2007.
Top Robot Component: Mini AC Servo Actuators by Harmonic Drive Systems.
These electromechanical actuators have many superior performance features including zero backlash, high accuracy, fast response time, high vacuum compatibility, and are available in a wide range of sizes, and hollow shaft designs.
Den Den Boy
Posted to Hot Stuff, In Your House, In the News, In the World, Videos on 21 December 2007
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