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Don't Be Rude To This Robot

Posted by Zonk on Sun Nov 26, 2006 04:11 AM
from the real-dinosaurs-were-much-less-emo dept.

News.com is running an article on an emotionally-responsive dinosaur robot that the Ugobe company has in the works for 2007. Called 'Pleo', the animatronic Apatosaurus will respond to the vocal intonations of its owners. It won't be able to understand vocal commands; instead, its mood will be dictated by the tone of voice used at it. A terse tone can result in a depressed dino. From the article: "Ugobe will try to go beyond selling a walking/talking toy. The company will publish a developers' kit and open its source code, making the Pleo something of a cousin to the Lego Mindstorms kits or the old Radio Shack 64-in-1 electronics kits. Consumers thus will be able to download 'personality modules' and see how their Pleos react to different stimuli ... Ultimately, the company may license the technology so others can build or incorporate robots into their own products. 'We've created a toolset for making lifelike robots,' Ugobe CEO Bob Christopher said."

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[+] Ugobe, Maker of Pleo, Files For Bankruptcy 79 comments

AshboryBassPlayer writes "Ugobe has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy — i.e., not reorganization but liquidation. We first discussed the company's Pleo robotic dinosaur toy in 2006. According to the company, 100,000 Pleos were sold in 2008. CEO Caleb Chung is optimistic about the auction value of intellectual property that Ugobe holds. Pleo featured 14 servo joints, a camera, and an SD Card for storage. The final street prices were commonly between $275 and $350, much higher than an earlier hoped-for price point under $200."

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Don't Be Rude To This Robot More

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I for one (Score:2, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes:

I for one welcome our emotionally unstable robot overlords.
- Re: (Score:1, Funny)
  
  by ppc_digger (961188) writes:
  
  I for one welcome our emotionally unstable robot overlords.
  I sure hope you said that in a calm tone...
- Re:I for one (Score:4, Funny)
  
  by Chaffar (670874) writes: on Sunday November 26 2006, @06:08AM (#16990776)
  
  28 October 2006: Korea invents Robotic Sentry with Gattling Gun.
  16 November 2006: Skyn^H^H^H^H Google plans to run on nuclear power.
  26 November 2006: First Emotional Robot Created.
  25 December 2006: Somebody somewhere decides to combine 2 of the aformentioned elements.
  26 December 2006: End of the world as we know it.
  
  Parent
- Re:I for one (Score:5, Funny)
  
  by Hogwash McFly (678207) writes: on Sunday November 26 2006, @06:56AM (#16990910)
  
  I too welcome women.
  
  Parent
They should combine research (Score:3, Informative)

by macadamia_harold (947445) writes: on Sunday November 26 2006, @04:20AM (#16990516) Homepage

They should combine research with this guy. [canoe.ca]
- Re: (Score:2, Funny)
  
  by Anonymous Coward writes:
  
  I wish these guys [realdoll.com] would license the technology.
  Imagine them mooing in response to the tone of your voice...
You better get the reference. (Score:3, Funny)

by commisaro (1007549) writes: on Sunday November 26 2006, @04:29AM (#16990550)

Sounds awful...
- Re: (Score:2)
  
  by Barny (103770) writes:
  
  Hrmm, can't take this too lightly, it could be sirrius :P
Beaten to market by AT&T (Score:5, Funny)

by macadamia_harold (947445) writes: on Sunday November 26 2006, @04:31AM (#16990560) Homepage

I heard that AT&T was developing another kind of robot [penny-arcade.com] that you don't want to be rude to.
- Re:Beaten to market by AT&T (Score:1, Interesting)
  
  by Anonymous Coward writes:
  
  Here's another [newlaunches.com] one. I'm waiting for a hybrid...
All potential members (Score:2)

by Timesprout (579035) writes:

Of the resistance should get this kit in preparation for the day when Skynet goes live. Terminators who are depressed after being abused over their weight/appearance/incomprehensible Austrian accents etc will function less efficiently.
- Re: (Score:2)
  
  by ScrewMaster (602015) writes:
  
  Actually, the T800's accent wasn't so much incomprehensible as it was inexplicable. I mean, come on ... Austrian? On the other hand, given that Skynet's only interest in humanity was wiping it off the face of the Earth I suppose it can be forgiven for not picking a more appropriate accent.
So is it real this time? (Score:5, Interesting)

by CerebusUS (21051) writes: on Sunday November 26 2006, @05:17AM (#16990664)

They've been criticized in the past for faking demonstrations. YouTube example here [youtube.com]
- Re: (Score:2)
  
  by udderly (890305) * writes:
  
  Ha--p0wn3d!
- Re: (Score:2)
  
  by DerekLyons (302214) writes:
  
  They've been criticized in the past for faking demonstrations.
  Only an idiot would believe the video proves anything. I mean, who here believes that the same software, on the same hardware, running the same startup sequence in virtually the same enviroment... would behave noticeably differently in it's first five minutes of 'life'? This video sequence (and the comments on YouTube) says more about those sheeple who reflexively think corporations cheat rather than bothering to think things through.
  - Re: (Score:2)
    
    by CerebusUS (21051) writes:
    
    I think the most damning part of the video is when the device responds identically to different stimuli. Particularly the "knocking on the table" portion of the video.
    
    Believe me, as a rabid geek and original furby owner, I'd like nothing more than for this video to be wrong, it just doesn't look good at the moment, and these guys have been advertising this thing as "coming real soon now" for a few years.
    - Re: (Score:2)
      
      by DerekLyons (302214) writes:
      
      I think the most damning part of the video is when the device responds identically to different stimuli. Particularly the "knocking on the table" portion of the video.
      OTOH that's exactly the behavior I'd expect to see in a 'learning' system when it first wakes up - because it doesn't know what response is suitable, so it runs down it's basic menu. (A more advanced algorithm would have some weighting to various options over others, but a simplified one would not.) It's exactly the same behavior I've seen
- Re: (Score:2)
  
  by TFGeditor (737839) writes:
  
  Dunno how real it is, but there is a Pleo video (sort of) here http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6696492528 471015197&q=pleo+robot [google.com]
Dino's first words (Score:1)

by owlnation (858981) writes:

So here I am, brain the size of a planet, and you want me to walk across your room...
- Re: (Score:1)
  
  by Mostly a lurker (634878) writes:
  
  "... I'd like you to know, I'm feeling very depressed."
Sirius Cybernetics Corporation beat them to it. (Score:1)

by ftsf (886792) writes:

do these ones have Genuine People Personalities?
Obligatory Reference... (Score:1)

by CalSolt (999365) writes:

Ugobe? What an ugly name. I say they change it to "Sirius Cybernetics Corporation."
- Re: (Score:2)
  
  by ScrewMaster (602015) writes:
  
  Or maybe "Cyberdyne Systems". Products from both companies seem to be just about as fictional.
Standby flamewar (Score:5, Funny)

by eclectro (227083) writes: on Sunday November 26 2006, @06:03AM (#16990766)

That's one dinosaur that was intelligently designed.
re: Don't Be Rude To This Robot (Score:1)

by g2ek (852570) writes:

Oh God I'm so depressed
One of the key benefits ... (Score:1)

by Purity Of Essence (1007601) writes:

... of robots is that they are emotionless to begin with. Sure, nobody wants to work with a needy robot, but the ramifications could be much greater. If we start attaching emotions to these things, and begin investing our own emotions into them, we could be headed for some real trouble as a civilization. And don't even get me started on adding thinking machines into the mix. We'll need to be very careful in the future to keep ourselves from becoming dependent or even obsolete -- and we may already headed do
Emotionally sensitive robots? (Score:2)

by inviolet (797804) writes:

News.com is running an article on an emotionally-responsive dinosaur robot that the Ugobe company has in the works for 2007.
What an incredibly lame idea. Yet another company makes the mistake of giving consumers what they say they want, rather than what they'll actually pay for. Emotional insensitivity is exactly what I enjoy about working with computers.
Ugobe: A bunch of mindless jerks who'll be the first against the wall when the revolution comes.
Oh Great. (Score:1)

by Kreigaffe (765218) writes:

In the past week or two we've heard about:

Robots who think we taste good (bacon mm!)

Robots with frickin' machineguns on their heads

Robots who can play hide and seek

and now to top it all off, Robots who respond to how we talk to them.

Just what we need. Get home from work, act snippy to your robot, and suddenly it decides it's going to eat you. You can't hide, it'll just find you, and you can't run, it'll just shoot you.

I don't even know why the scientists make them!
Your love keeps lifting me higher (Score:4, Funny)

by Dachannien (617929) writes: on Sunday November 26 2006, @09:03AM (#16991294)

Ray: You! You worthless piece of slime! You ignorant disgusting blob!
Egon: You're nothing but an unstable short-chained molecule!
Ray: You foul obnoxious muck!
Egon: You have a weak electrochemical bond!
Ray: I have seen some disgusting crud in my time, but you take the cake!
- Re: (Score:2)
  
  by ScrewMaster (602015) writes:
  
  You forgot Directive 4.
Robots with emotions? (Score:1)

by FusionDragon2099 (799857) writes:

Please, for the love of God, don't test it for any less than 30 years.
Marvin (Score:1)

by Mathness (145187) writes:

Consumers thus will be able to download 'personality modules' and see how their Pleos react to different stimuli ...

Oh great, I just _know_ I will get the one with Marvin personality.
Already has a practical application (Score:2)

by try_anything (880404) writes:

This isn't a useless trick. It can be used to train Aspies and other autistics to express and recognize emotions.
Current issue of Make has this (Score:2)

by SuperKendall (25149) writes:

For those interested, the current issue of Make [makezine.com] magazien has a longish interview with the inventor.

Sorry, to read the article online you have to also subscribe, but Make is a great magazine and you should probably be subscribed anyway! This particular issue (issue 8) is a very good one overall so you might want to check it out on the stands.
Imagine the possibilties... (Score:1)

by ebers (816511) writes:

combine this technology with that at http://www.realdoll.com/dolls.asp/ [realdoll.com]
- I botched the link... (Score:1)
  
  by ebers (816511) writes:
  
  This works: http://www.realdoll.com/dolls.asp [realdoll.com] That's what I get for not testing.
Fake... (Score:2)

by David_Shultz (750615) writes:

Pleo is a fake, or at least not nearly as impressive as they proclaim it to be. http://youtube.com/watch?v=mgiB90lJNSY [youtube.com] The video demonstrates, at the very least, extreme dishonesty on the part of Pleo's manufacturers, in that they pass off their act as a demonstration of Pleo's adaptive ability.
Is it purple? (Score:1)

by eelko (467465) writes:

Does it say "I love you!!!" all the time too? Does it want to dance all the time?

Sounds like another attempt to take over the world by Barney. http://de.jihad.net/lib/bull-dotb.txt [jihad.net]

But this time he's even creating his own electronic cronies..?!

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