ishiguro

We've found the perfect accessory for your next cell phone rave/love-in.

Introducing "Hugvie," the latest creation from Japanese roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro -- the Osaka University professor behind the giant-fetus-like Telenoid R1.

The Hugvie is a colorful cushion shaped a bit like a pudgy stick figure (or the old AOL Instant Messenger logo). When you slip your cell phone into a pocket on the Hugvie, the cushion vibrates in sympathy with your caller's voice, creating a physical sensation of his or her alluring tones.… Read more

Ah, Valentine's Day. It's just around the corner, so have you thought about how you'll express your love for your favorite inanimate object? Humans are so passe.

Japanese retailers have a suggestion. They're setting geek hearts aflutter with a pretty, ageless female android who's looking for love.

Clutching a bag and cell phone, she seems to be waiting for a suitor.

"Android falls in love? She is waiting for you" reads the writing on her glass box at Takashimaya Department Store in Tokyo's Shinjuku district.

The special Valentine's display features Geminoid F, the photogenic robot developed by Osaka University professor Hiroshi Ishiguro and colleagues. … Read more

Imagine walking into a room and seeing these people. Well, only some of them are people. Imagine they're all sitting down and they slowly turn to you and one says, "Welcome. You're just in time for your Voight-Kampff test."

Kyoto took on a sci-fi tinge recently when the Geminoid clan had a family reunion. The people who spawned three of Japan's eerie lifelike robots met up with their clones at the Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR) for some heart-warming photos.

ATR has been developing the air servo-powered doppelgangers since 2006, when Osaka University engineering … Read more

Here's a nifty way to preserve your youth and popularity: get Japanese entertainment company Kokoro to make an ageless robot clone of yourself.

Danish academic Henrik Scharfe did just that and his clone looks ready to get out and party. Or perhaps play the villain in a reboot of "Die Hard."

Aalborg University's Scharfe (no relation to Alan Rickman) has been working with Kokoro and Japan's Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR) to create Geminoid DK, a lifelike android copy of himself. DK follows in the silicon footsteps of Geminoids HI-1 and F1, developed in collaboration with Osaka University roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro, father of the Telenoid robo-fetus.

Scharfe plans to test his clone at ATR and then ship it back to the new Geminoid Lab in Denmark, where he presides over Aalborg University's Center for Computer-mediated Epistemology.

Geminoids are basically remote-controlled slave robots powered by a quiet air servo system. They mimic the facial expressions, lip movements, and body motions of a human user through motion-tracking gear and an Internet link. As the vid below shows, Scharfe's clone is already quite lifelike. So when it starts projecting his voice and mimicking his idiosyncrasies, students may freak a bit. See more videos and pics here. I love its evil sideways glance. … Read more

Japanese demon-spawn Telenoid, the nightmarish fetus-like telepresence robot, has had a little half-baked runt of its own. As we reported at a January preview, Elfoid is a humanoid-shaped cell phone that tries to look cute. And lives in your pocket.

Osaka University roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro, never a stranger to controversy with his lifelike robot clones, outdid himself again with his Eraserhead-like baby.

A few details of the android (not Android) phone were released at a press conference today in Tokyo. Elfoid is covered with creamy polyurethane foam and is about 8 inches long. The idea is that it works as … Read more

With child-like eyes staring out from an expressionless face, the Telenoid R1 does look a little creepy. But if Professor Hiroshi Ishiguro of Japan's Osaka University has his way, a miniature Telenoid that lets you "feel" the presence of the party on the other line could soon replace the cell phones of today. It turns out the future could be just around the corner as the roboticist said a prototype of the mobile "Elfoid" would be ready in a few months.

Speaking today at the sneak preview of the Singapore-based Asia on the Edge festival--an annual showcase of ideas and cultures from Asia--Ishiguro is most regarded for his development of lifelike androids. He has even created a mechanical doppelganger of himself called Geminoid in his bid to understand humans. Ishiguro controls his motorized twin remotely with a motion-tracking Webcam that captures voice, facial expressions, and head movements over a high-speed network.

The most difficult task, he said, is to have a human-like conversation. Ishiguro's surrogate doesn't have the sophisticated capabilities of avatars depicted in the movies, but it produces enough of an estimate to dupe people into regarding the bot as a human.

While his previous creations replicate in detail the features of a real person, the Telenoid simply looks like an overgrown fetus with a bald head and abbreviated limbs. With the minimal design of the Telenoid, this forces people to use their imaginations to make the interaction more personal.

At the same time, Ishiguro is looking at what he calls the maximum design of a human with richer facial expressions and teleoperated by a professional.

Much of Ishiguro's work has provoked deep questions about man, machine, and humanity. With the Elfoid, users can feel the presence of the person on the other line and, when in the hands, becomes "part of your body."

… Read more

Geminoid F, the uncannily lifelike fembot we saw in April, is back in a new PR vid from Kokoro, a Tokyo-based entertainment company that collaborates with Osaka University's Hiroshi Ishiguro in the creation of androids both feminine and creepy.

Geminoid F was so named because it's a nearly exact replica of a human female model, seen here. In the new video, the robot calls itself "Actroid F," as it has joined the ranks of other Actroid robots produced by Kokoro.

The air servo-powered fembots can be rented for trade shows and other events. While Actroid F … Read more

Japanese roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro has unveiled his latest creation, and it's a far cry from the ultra-lifelike robot clones he has produced in the past. Meet Telenoid R1, designed to be a "minimalistic human." Or a nightmare baby. Take your pick.

Telenoid is a child-sized telepresence robot through which users can interact with others from a distance. Created in collaboration with Osaka University and Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR), Telenoid is a tool for investigating "the essential elements for representing and transferring humanlike presence," according to Ishiguro and his team.

As seen in the video below, Telenoid users can interact with people at a distance through a laptop. The control system tracks the user's face and head motion and captures his or her voice. The motions and voice are relayed to Telenoid, which expresses them while interacting.

The most striking feature of the robot is its design, which packs a high creep factor. It's meant to appear neither male nor female, young nor old. It has an abbreviated torso and arms, but can wiggle around to a limited extent while on its stand.

Compared with Ishiguro's Geminoid F and Geminoid telepresence robots, Telenoid has far fewer actuators--only nine DC actuators instead of dozens of pneumatic actuators--meaning it will cost much less to manufacture.

Osaka software firm Eager plans to start distributing Telenoid later this year. A research version will be priced around $35,000 and a commercial version about $8,000, according to IEEE Spectrum. … Read more

Japanese engineers have created a female android that's an exact replica of a woman while being cheaper and more compact than earlier models, bringing the futuristic world of the film "Surrogates" closer to reality.

The Geminoid F is an air servo-powered, remote-operated talking humanoid with eye, mouth, head, and shoulder mobility. She was designed by Osaka University's Hiroshi Ishiguro, ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Laboratories, and Kokoro, a Tokyo-based entertainment firm. Copies of Geminoid are to go on sale for about $110,000, Ishiguro was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse.

Geminoid F (F stands for "female") is a replica of an unnamed model, a woman in her twenties at right in the photo (see more pics here).

The robot is designed to mimic human behavior and possibly serve in roles like receptionist, museum guide, or patient attendant in hospitals, according to Kokoro. She's slated to begin patient communication trials at the University of Tokyo Hospital in May. Kokoro says patients have already reacted favorably.

Compared with Ishiguro's first Geminoid HI-1 robot, in which he replicated himself in android form, Geminoid F has fewer servomotors (only 12 compared with HI-1's 46), meaning it was significantly cheaper to produce. … Read more