So ::sob:: beautiful ::weep::

Courtesy those masters of modern problem solving techniques, Willow Garage (proud and beloved Sponsors of RoboGames, full disclosure, natch)

O robot fans the world over: in an effort to open myself up to as much drunken heckling by my friends as humanly possible, while also spreading the love for robots and, especially, RoboGames, I am giving a 50 (!) minute talk this Saturday, May 22nd, at Makerfaire!

The talk is “Build A Robot, Be A Rock Star: RoboGames” and it will be about various and sundry interesting tidbits about our seven years producing RoboGames.

So, grab a giant can of Tecate, camp out in the parking lot, and troop in to hear me talk a bunch about robots, games, and other things.

MakerFaire is this Saturday and Sunday May 22-23rd at the San MAeo Convention Center in lovely San Mateo, California. See everything cool you could possibly think up in the wildest realms of your imagination, all in one place, and learn how you can make each and every single thing yourself.

Whee! So much will be going on, you won’t even be able to absorb it all in one weekend. Yay!

This week, we bring you the lovely Nick Donaldson, of GotRobots.com. Nick is often referred to as “That one guy. From RoboGames. With that monkey. The one that sits on his shoulder and high-fives people.” In any case, Nick is a brilliant inventor and robot builder and we were thrilled to have a chance to talk to him!

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So sensitive, so poetic, so artfully programmed. . .

Hurray for Kiva Systems, and the robots they employ [via Le Boing]

Ray Billings’ Last Rites vs VD6

If ever there was a ComBot that made you say “OH $#!%- RUUUUNNNN!!!!” it was most likely built by Ray Billings, of HardCore Robotics. Ray is an ex-prison guard, and became interested in combat robotics after the fact, when he was working at an adult college, and a colleague introduced him to the sport. He was hooked, and so this week, our BotLight is on Ray Billings. Interview below!

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If you’ve ever been to a ComBots event, odds are that you’ve run into Wendy and Matt Maxham. Together they form Team PlumbCrazy — the plumbiest, craziest, yellow shirtediest couple of robot fanatics at the competition (They’re the nicest, too. Believe it- they let me use their drill once!). A big thank you to Wendy, who donated her time to appease this starving intern (did I mention I’m a starving intern?), by giving her thoughts and revelations on robotic combat, and what it takes to make a winner.

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Greetings, humanoids, robots, and humanoid robots. My name is G[REDACTED]io… I… I mean Intern. They call me Intern. At least I think they do. They starve me. The hunger does silly things to your memory. Anywho, I’m here to provide you with awesome interviews and coverage for RoboGames 2010 and beyond, starting with a BotLight On Marco Antonio Meggiolaro of RioBotz.

<– AKA that guy.

Marco has well over a decade of hands-on robotics experience, and has been involved in ComBots since 2003. He graciously offered his time and insight on ComBots, teamwork, and how to avoid pummeling random passersby with 120lb steel cylinders from 100 yards away! See our exclusive interview with the founder of the RioBotz robotics team below!
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Cover that delicate flooring, hide the dog and spray for hippies, The Orb Swarm is gong to India!

Swarm In India Image Courtesy The Orb Swarm.

Your favorite vivacious rolling globes are packed and headed halfway around the world to meet their adoring public in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India for the annual Techkriti Festival for Technology and Entrepreneurship held at IIT Kanpur.

Techkriti will be feature innovative and creative minds from all over the world:

“After a certain high level of technical skill is achieved, science and art tend to coalesce in aesthetics, plasticity, and form. The greatest scientists are always artists as well.”
- Albert Einstein

Techkriti is a celebration of that fusion – where the beauty of form is merged with inspiring ingenious innovations. It is about creation that moves beyond barriers. Techkriti has always been synonymous with excellence. Graced with the presence of “Nobel” minds, inspiring inventors and young mettle competing to dazzle, Techkriti has been the stuff that dreams are made of. This year we go a step further and combine a flavor of business with the festival. We strive to have a fine balance between the world of science and the real world where we live our day-in day-out lives. Techkriti is about ideas that inspire. For those who wish to know of what use is a new idea, Faraday’s answer is most apt – “Of what use is an new born baby?” Techkriti is about attenuating surly bonds of our mundane existence and going a step further. Over the years, the festival has witnessed the very best coming forward and showcasing their talent.

This being the Golden Jubilee year promises to be bigger and better. No matter what you like – Competitions, Talks, Workshops or Exhibitions- we have it all. And to top it all off, numerous fun events enliven the atmosphere and make the festival a grand treat. So be there from February 11-14, to witness it all live. We are making you an offer that you will not be able to refuse.

@mister_robotics went a few years ago with a team from San Francisco State University to show off their then-new combat robot Beer Bash (more on him later). They had loads of fun.

What’s more, Lee Sonko, Orb tweaker extraordinaire, is speaking! The other speakers at this conference include a couple of Nobel Laureates, A Gödel Prize winner, and a director of the Max Planck Institute of Biological Cybernetics, so, well done Lee!

No pressure or nothin’.

Follow the Orbs on Twitter here!

Bored supercomputers running a fully automated widget factory- What could possibly go wrong?

Instead of brush, ditches, a variety of upright fences, and other horses, there are conveyor belts, crushers, pits, gears, lasers….and other robots.

Assuming the role of said bored computer, you program your robot from a selection of movement cards, and maneuver its way from a starting bay past numbered flag checkpoints. There’s damage and obstacles, skills and thrills, strategy and luck, possible teamwork, weapons, plus it’s also a race against time. The winner reaches the final flag first, or is the last robot standing.

RoboRally was designed in 1985 by Richard Garfield (who later created the card game Magic: The Gathering), and originally published from 1994-99 by Wizards of the Coast (WotC). The board game was re-released by Avalon Hill in 2005, to much fanfare, and a bit of grumbling about the decline in material quality of the game boards and the robot pieces. (You’ll have to look for the originals on eBay or through roborally.com) The newer boards are compatible with the original and expansion sets.

BTW, there is also an online version to help you with all that spare time in your day that you’ve just recently noticed. Go ahead, view the demo. And turn it UP!!

From the FAQ:
Q: What can a robot do when it is powered down?
A: Nothing. A powered down robot cannot fire weapons, receive option cards, tag checkpoints (if pushed onto them), update archive locations (ditto), or use turn programmed cards (for example, Shield). It cannot use any options unless the options specifically say they can be used while a robot is powered down. The robot basically becomes a lump that can be pushed around and suffer damage.

Q: If you fire and move in front of a missle, can you hit yourself?
A: Theoretically, yes. It’s fairly tough to get hit by your own missile, though, unless you are both unlucky and careless.

I know what you’re thinking. I know you’ll see this and say “Okay great, he’s *really* good at using the playstation controller or whatever. So what, big deal.” Oh no, my friends, make no rash assumptions, this leetle droid is doing all by himself:

The bioloid robots climbs a freely configurable wall, this is NOT a predefinded motion sequence. It is part of an autonomous system that first looks for possible ways up (according to the abilities of the robot and to physical constraints) and after placing the robot at the start position of the chosen path the robots climbs up just by knowing the x/y-positions of the grips.
The final scenario will be a bioloid looking at the wall using an onboard vision system, detecting marked grips, calculating the best way up, walking to the start position and climbing up the wall, totally autonomously.

This is the project of student, robosoccer referee and RoboGames contestant Marko Wickrath, in association with the Technical University of Dortmund, Germany & University of Manitoba, Canada.

Here’s a demo of the inverse kinematics used to help the robot with arm and leg placement:

This demonstration has 4 different target positions only and it shows the system’s accuracy even at a very high speed. This is part of an autonomous system that first looks for possible ways up a climbing wall (according to the abilities of the robot and to physical constraints) and after placing the robot at the start position of the chosen path the robots climbs up just by knowing the x/y-positions of the grips.

In other words, it does this by being awesome. Stay in school, kiddies.

RoboGames 2010 is coming up quickish, and with it we will be featuring in this space some recaps, explanations, and OMGWTFSPARKLEPONIES!!!1!1! moments for your edutainment. First up: Mech Warfare!

Here’s a video, courtesy those prolific bastards over at Botjunkie:

Ah Mech Warfare, developed in part by the kindly loons at our very favorite Trossen Robotics, it consists of several little robots going head-to-head with several other little robots, all on their cute and merry way to totally obliterating each other with airsoft guns. Good Times!

You can find a whole world of options and excitement for mechwarfare and a bunches of other stuff at the Trossen Robotics Community. As for parts, you can pick em up here! And here! And here and here!

To register your masterpiece for RoboGames 2010, go here! Questions and abuse, please direct to knickers at suicidebots.com. Thanks for playing!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xkhqVKJGHg

Machinarium is a point and click adventure game made by Amanita Design, a Czech indie game development studio founded in 2003. Check out the trailer, then head on over to the front page where you can play a free demo, download the full game, or peruse the blog, FAQ and forum. Warning: Not for the easily discouraged!

Despite being unbearably cute, the robot characters and their adventures are complex and difficult. Hints are accessible only after winning a short game which unlocks a book filled with crazy assed drawings describing what needs to be done to succeed. Ideas pop up, as do alternate reality thought bubbles and helpful animations. The music is soothing and eerie, punctuated by cartoon noises. Mouse over the landscape and click where suggested. Parts and pieces must be consumed to become available as props to assist in the adventure. Still with me? Some robot assembly is required.