University of California, Santa Cruz researcher Jacob Rosen is developing a robotics exoskeleton that has the potential to help the disabled and infirm.
Despite rave reviews for its sophisticated robotic dinosaur, the high price Ugobe put on its product was too much for a market that doesn’t want to pay more than $150 for a toy even in a strong economy.
The government of South Korea is promising to invest as much as 1 trillion Won ($750 million U.S.) into research, development, marketing and partnership development to help drive the global market for robotics and raise Korea’s stake in it. The goal is 10 percent market share by 2013 and overall market leadership by 2018.
At RoboBusiness Expo, Joseph Dyer, former admiral and current head of iRobot’s government and military division, says the robotics industry has to build up its non-technical capabilities, as well as do R&D, if it’s going to fulfill the mission the U.S. military plans for it.
The day that robot playmates help children with autism learn the social skills that they naturally lack has come a step closer with the development of a system that allows a robot to monitor a child’s emotional state.
The press picks right up on the robot-replaces-human fear when reporting on robotics, and gives even small successes more exposure because of it. But robotics people don’t have to encourage the misperception, and shouldn’t fall victim to it themselves.