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Mitsubishi unveils two-armed nuclear plant bot

Call it too little, too late.

Mitsubishi is the latest Japanese conglomerate to show off a new robot to work at the devastated Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, following Toshiba's flubbed demo of a quadruped walker.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), Japan's largest defense contractor, yesterday unveiled the Maintenance Equipment Integrated System of Telecontrol Robot (Meister), a two-armed unit that rolls around on four tracks.

The remote-controlled bot can wield a variety of tools such as cutters and drills, clear obstacles, and pierce through concrete to check radiation levels, according to MHI.

Just like human arms, its robotic appendages can move along seven axes. Check it out cutting a pipe in the video below. … Read more

Shanghai expo robots start climbing the walls

We were unable to sleep for nights after seeing the giant robot baby that's set to rampage at the 2010 Expo in Shanghai, China. It turns out there are a number of robots at the event, so many that they're literally climbing the walls.

Humanoid robots in silver suits have been seen scaling the walls of the Japan Industry Pavilion, a private-sector showcase for Japanese technology. Never ones to pass up an opportunity to show off their robotics chops, Japanese participants designed humanoids that can climb the 50-foot walls by hooking onto the ladder-like structure, which is composed … Read more

RoboThespian a raving, emotional mess

Is your company's marketing department getting enough attention? If not, try going robot. RoboThespian is a robot pitchman that can chew the scenery better than William Shatner, crying like a baby and laughing hysterically a second later.

First created in 2005 by U.K. firm Engineering Arts, RoboThespian is built on an aluminum chassis and powered by compressed air. He can be controlled live or act out programmed skits from "Star Wars," Shakespeare, or just about anything else. I'd love to see him do Captain Kirk.

The latest generation, RT3, has a redesigned torso, pelvis, and … Read more