Tag: PR2

The future in which robot servants toil in our kitchens to provide us sustenance is slowly becoming reality. (And we do mean slowly.) Two PR2 'bots named Rosie and James recently teamed up to make pancakes at Willow Garage, where they've also been made to fetch beer. The flapjack flipping is surely impressive, but making breakfast for a family of three could take days. Video after the break. ...

Want to watch a robot fold a pair of socks? Don't worry. The UC Berkeley researchers behind the PR2 bot's laundry experiment have sped up the video 15 times, so it only takes a minute. The droid looks like it's teaching a combination home economics and sex-ed class, and it won the 'Sockification' team $5,000 from PR2 makers Willow Garage. ...

There's a load of great tech news happening out there every day, and, unfortunately, we just can't cover it all. Here are a few of the other noteworthy things we saw today on our never-ending journey through the wild, wild Web. This Google Maps hack takes out everything but the location markers and names. Somehow, it's still navigable. [From: xn-slarsteinn-gbb.com, via: Kottke] Mary Roach ...

The engineers at Willow Garage already taught their astounding PR2 bot to play pool, and now those same developers have added a new capability that corresponds perfectly with the PR2's stick-shooting, barroom skill. While bartender-bots and beer-pouring "kegs on wheels" grow increasingly commonplace, the PR2 adds an entirely new dimension to cybernetic drinking. Using a Web interface, thirsty ...

We already knew that the PR2 robot could fold a mean basket of laundry. But we had no idea it could also play a mean game of billiards. In the matter of a week, the Willow Garage team that developed the PR2 has taught its brainchild how to play pool -- although, as Gizmodo reports, it certainly wasn't easy. Willow Garage had to create a special bridge and grip to enable its bot to hold a cue, ...