Boomer: Tennis-Playing/Trash-Talking Robot
Boomer is a new tennis robot that vastly improves on the current tennis ball machines. Instead of just firing balls randomly at its opponent, Boomer has the ability to serve, return, play out a point, call the lines and the score, rate the quality of shots, and even "talk trash." Using a computer and a camera setup, Boomer tracks the location of the tennis ball in the court. If the human opponent makes a shot that's in, boomer will reply with a "realistic" return. This continues until the human or robot makes a mistake, or when the human attacks the robot for its nonstop insults. Boomer's skill level can be changed from beginner to world champion, and it costs approximately $14,450. If you can't find an actual person to play tennis for $14,450, I suggest you take up a less social sport like solitaire or vandalism.
-
NOTE: Video is after the jump dammit. I always thought the whole John Connor bit was a bunch of bullshit. And you know what? I was right for once in my Godforsaken life. This is the video evidence proving what Terminators are REALLY sent back for. Which SPOILER ALERT: is... / Continue →
-
This is a video of Macs and PCs transforming into little robot people and battling to the death. Who wins? You'll have to watch to find out! Read: I stopped watching halfway through to go scavenge for food. Well sandwiches don't make themselves! *ahem* Ladies, that was a h... / Continue →
-
Researchers at Cornell University have developed a robot which can adapt to injury. Most robots fail completely if something goes wrong, but this robot uses software to keep moving if, say, a limb is shortened or disabled. The robot maintains a computer model of itself which is... / Continue →
