Roboy is a work in progress; the project is being used as a test-bed for the use of 3D printing technology to fully replicate the human musculoskeletal system.
(Roboy 3D printed robot video)
The plan is to continue improving the models of Roboy iteratively, until he (it seems to me that Roboy is a boy) is able to perform in a way that’s “comparable to humans in dexterity, robustness and flexibility.” The first prototype was called Roboy Junior and was developed in just nine months several years ago. Roboy’s complete skeletal body structure was created using EOS systems for plastic additive manufacturing. Instead of motors, Roboy Junior actually has muscles and tendons in his joints.
The fact that Roboy is a work in progress reminded me of the 1958 story Brother Robot. Starting out as a baby robot, the robot grows quickly to somewhat more menacing proportions.
Tactile Skin Supplier Map
'What strange sensitivity! What an amazing development of science was manifested in every move and act and word of this Robot!' - Ray Cummings, 1931.
DIY Robot Scorpion Crushes It
'...it raised its front end off the ground and waved its antennae at them, then raised one armoured claw as if to snip them out of the sky.' - Neal Asher, 2008.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!)
is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for
the Invention Category that interests
you, the Glossary, the Invention
Timeline, or see what's New.
Tactile Skin Supplier Map
'What strange sensitivity! What an amazing development of science was manifested in every move and act and word of this Robot!'
Orb Nomad Zero-Emission Electric Aircraft
'That explains how it was so easy for me to remain motionless in midair or to perch on a flagpole in imitation of a giant bird, even in the windy city of Chicago.'
DIY Robot Scorpion Crushes It
'...it raised its front end off the ground and waved its antennae at them, then raised one armoured claw as if to snip them out of the sky.'