Lego Mindstorms NXT: Pre-Orders From 1st April

Lego has announced that they will be accepting pre-orders for the next generation Mindstorms NXT robotic toolkit from April 1st 2006. Shipping will not be until later in the summer.

Mindstorms NXT is due to go on retail sale in August 2006 with a suggested retail price of USD 249.99.

Does anyone know when we might see it here in the UK?

Acrobat Robot Assists Surgeons

Research by London's Imperial College shows that the use of robots in knee surgery considerably improves accuracy.

The robot being tested was Acrobat which helps surgeons to line up replacement parts with existing bones. The study found that although operations using Acrobat took a few minutes longer the replacement parts were lined up considerably better.

Professor Justin Cobb, who led the research, said:

"These robots are designed to hold the surgeon's hand in the operating theatre, not take over the operation. This study shows they can be an enormous help, preventing surgeons from making mistakes. More importantly, by showing how the increased accuracy makes a difference to how well a knee works after surgery, we will be able to develop a new generation of less invasive procedures without the risks of error, providing faster recovery and better functional outcomes for patients."

The study was funded by The Acrobot Co. Ltd. a spin out of Imperial College London.

Full press Release here

Robots in the Fields

If you thought you could escape the rise of the robots at a country farm then think again. Researchers at the University of Warwick (my old alma mater) plan to take robots down among the mangle wurzles.

Researchers from the University's horticultural arm, Warwick HRI, and its manufacturing engineering section, Warwick Manufacturing Group, are working on a number of robotics and automation products. These include:


Robot Mushroom Picker
This will use cameras to decide which mushrooms are the right size then use a suction cup to pick them.

Inflatable Conveyor Belt
A collection of inflatable harvesting aids are being developed in conjunction with Aeropick.

Robot Grass Cutter
Researchers are working on a system where a single employee can deploy and oversee numerous autonomous robot grass-cutters.


That last one could bring a whole new dimension to "One Man And His Dog". Come by, Robby!

Full Press Release here

TIAX to Build Robotic Bridge for Military

TIAX, a technology company from Cambridge, MA, has been awarded the contract to design and build a prototype for a next-generation robotic bridge. The contract will be part of the Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS) initiative.

Existing mobile bridges - known as GDT ^(*) - are bulky and require considerable manual intervention. The new robotic bridge will incorporate an "autonomous launch and retrieval feature".

TIAX see their robotic bridge as having applications beyond the military. TIAX program manager Anil Mankame said:

"We envision uses for this technology in homeland security operations and in rescue missions following natural disasters, such as hurricanes and earthquakes."

Full press release here


* Only the military could describe a bridge as "Gap Defeating Technology"!

Hitachi's New Security Robot

Hitachi has announced that it is working on a new prototype robot which it believes would be ideal for security applications.

The 'bot is 57 cm high and that thing sticking out of its head is a camera not a gun, so presumably it is just pleased to see us.

Unlike some similar robots, this one doesn't need floor markers to guide it but instead uses sensors and an onboard computer to plot its route. The camera allows it to detect intruders, missing items, etc.

The new robot is still without a name - any suggestions? Some people have said it looks like R2D2 from Star Wars. Personally I think it looks more like Dusty Bin's Evil Twin.

Austrian Robots Win at Football

The Austrian robot football team has won two European titles and one runners-up title.

The Federation of International Robosoccer Association (FIRA) held the FIRA European Cup 2006 last weekend. The Austrian squad ("Team Austro") won the Large League and the Extended Middle League, beating the Slovenian Ljubljana Dragons for both titles. In the Middle League the Slovakian TUKE Robotics team beat the Austrians into second place.

Also competing were teams from the Czech Republic and the Netherlands. A German team ("Droids") had registered but did not take part in the event.

The event took place at the Vienna University of Technology, Austria, which raises an interesting question: do robot footballers play better in front of a cheering home crowd?