Jul 6 2009KILL IT!: Transformer Robot Really Tranforms
Miss me? I missed you. I hope everyone had a safe yet explosive weekend. Amazingly, I'm still alive and fingerful. Let me tell you: it wasn't easy. Now, let's return to our regularly scheduled program, shall we?
NASA, who I used to respect, wants to build a bunch of transformers to do their dirty work. *shaking head* And I used to want be an astronaut.
NASA wanted a robot that could start as 100 blocky modules dropped from an airplane to a desert, reconfigure into a rover that could drive to a sand dune, and then change again to "grow" legs and climb up it. Once the blocky robot reached the top, it would transform into a greenhouse that could protect a group of seeds for two weeks.
Only 20 of the modules were built during an ambitious project more than two years ago. But together, they are known as Superbot.
Now repeat after me, "All hail Superbot!" ZOMG -- A COUPLE OF YOU ACTUALLY DID IT! You make me sick.
Hit the jump to see two of the robot's other configurations.
Superbot: The Real Transformer [livescience]
Thanks to the Kokopure and Jason, who know the only good Transformers are the first generation toys. And only in their packaging.
Reader Comments
1. Freddy - July 6, 2009 10:12 AM
I'm not concerned. NASA is probably trying to use this thing to test living conditions on Mars or something. Since everybody knows skynet will eventually take over Earth, we need a backup planet.
2. Hello - July 6, 2009 10:12 AM
Cool
3. Gordon "Fücking" Shumway - July 6, 2009 10:14 AM
Pretty cool. GW, give us more of these awesome robots! We all love robots!
4. Timbo - July 6, 2009 10:14 AM
That's the best looking design they could come upo with??
It looks like silver legos! Go back and watch transformers a few hundred times
5. Daisy - July 6, 2009 10:19 AM
FAKE!!!!
This is a complete photoshop job. You can tell its a fake because the shadow's are all wrong.
This is exactly like that scene in the movie Never Back Down where Max and Baja were going to breakfast after crushing up a car with a dead body in it. They offered Vincent and Jules a ride but then declined because they live in the sticks.
6. Chuck Nunchuck - July 6, 2009 10:19 AM
REVENGE OF THE PHALLUS.
7. FDSY - July 6, 2009 10:20 AM
I'm not going to go into the whole "FFFOOOOLLLSSS!" speech because I have a fallout shelter and many a BIG weapons.
They'll put these on Mars so they can build then launch an offensive that'll wipe us out in one blow.
They won't kill me. Not me. I know to much
8. Jaded Icon - July 6, 2009 10:23 AM
This the the best NASA could come up with?
9. STOMPY - July 6, 2009 10:29 AM
Well, this is a fairly unimpressive looking robot. I could probably kick its ass without really breaking a sweat.
10. nadalo日本にいます。SHADOWS ALL WRONG - July 6, 2009 10:50 AM
well i personally will be more worry about the robots HERE ON EARTH! that
are already taken the jobs of people, like the following robot that took
one noodle shop worker's job....and they plan to make more!!
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/national/news/20090704p2a00m0na013000c.html
why GW hadnt reported this yet? the news came up like 3 days ago!
11. henree - July 6, 2009 10:51 AM
i missed you GW!!!
i'm afraid humanity will have to leave the planet soon.
we'll have to reproduce. only one male allowed [me] and plenty of women.
12. STOMPY - July 6, 2009 11:05 AM
Fack, wut a slo day this is! Why the ell am eye even a wake this mourn-ing...
13. Mooseknuckle - July 6, 2009 11:08 AM
I'm surprised Michael Bay has'nt blown that up yet...
14. naas in southern cali - July 6, 2009 11:08 AM
At first glance I thought that was computer power supply art at its finest, but now I understand it's something better
15. led display - July 6, 2009 11:30 AM
looks very cool .
16. rayfield - July 6, 2009 11:34 AM
Cool!
Especially picture 3. So that's how an autobot's sperm looks like. I always knew they had penises and vaginas like humans, just that theirs were made of STEEL.
17. dave - July 6, 2009 11:55 AM
my iphone has an app for that
18. Jerry - July 6, 2009 12:01 PM
I want 2.
http://bootelicious.mybrute.com
19. Chaosthirteen - July 6, 2009 12:02 PM
Neat, the burning man now transforms into a coffee table and the "worm."
P.S. Daisy still sucks.
20. Elboroto - July 6, 2009 12:05 PM
Would it have the Decepticon logo on it?
21. Gordon "Fücking" Shumway - July 6, 2009 12:42 PM
@21
Nope. It would have a GoBot logo.
P.S. Chaosthirteen sucks dick...for money...and Ground Round coupons.
22. Watch-303 - July 6, 2009 12:43 PM
would everyone stop this retarded ass "OMG ROBOTS ARE GOING TO GO TERMINATOR ON US" crap!!!!!!!!!!! ITS FCUKING ANNOYTING AND ITS AN OLD MEME ALREADY!!!!! anyways these will be used for research, not killing people
23. Cooky - July 6, 2009 1:00 PM
@23 yes we all know this is going to be used for research but u know its called a sense of humour something the robots will take away from us when they take over the world
but on this robot its a pretty cool idea i have to say get some life growing on mars soon turn that dust ball into earth mk2
24. super_ninja - July 6, 2009 1:08 PM
i strongly disagree with watch-303. have u ever seen i robot? they were suppose to help ppl too. all it takes is one asshole to totally screw up the robos programming and make it go ninja on ur ass.
and i think they should name it optimus prime...
25. RK - July 6, 2009 2:04 PM
With NASA's track record, they'll end up spending billions of dollars on it, killing the astronauts who take it into space, and this thing will safely travel a trillion miles, successfully release at just the right time, be completely on target, then smack it into the surface of the planet making a crater - because some egghead forgot to convert the reentry distance from meters to kilometers.
26. Katharine - July 6, 2009 2:36 PM
I actually did miss you. A day without Geekolgie is like a day without day.
27. Gordon "Fücking" Shumway - July 6, 2009 3:23 PM
@25
Have you ever seen Star Wars? It took one robot to save the god damn galaxy. Robots are the shit.
28. Ronald - July 6, 2009 3:35 PM
the thing is... what if skynet takes control of it.
29. robot fighter - July 6, 2009 6:29 PM
ive got my assault rifle and shotgun and the occasional basooka to fight the rise of the machines, its time to defend our planet!
30. Nonspec - July 6, 2009 7:40 PM
@ 26
That was not NASA, that was the Europeans -__-
31. Watch-303 - July 6, 2009 8:25 PM
well its the same damn joke over and over, its more played out than the rickroll meme.
32. caroline - July 6, 2009 11:47 PM
i still like Daisy :)
33. Robot - July 7, 2009 2:25 AM
ALL HAIL SUPERBOT!!!!
34. Jaded Icon - July 7, 2009 7:12 AM
The ironic part about this is Watch-303 will later be killed by a cyborg. Which, understandably is not a robot, but ,hey, its close enough.
35. Findlay D - July 9, 2009 12:37 AM
Na, this is NASA’s entry for RobotWars. They haven't attached the flamethrower yet.
36. YellowBird - July 9, 2009 3:55 PM
Comment test.
37. Chesha - July 23, 2009 1:22 AM
:3 I think that you're just jealous of it. -pets it-
It's so cute when it transforms :D
ALL HAIL SUPERBOT INDEED. Hail them, I demand it!
38. rocky - August 23, 2009 3:18 AM
hii guys i m from india..i want to make a transforming robot which can transforming in to a small car or nything..so plz can ny one help me out?plz give me some infiormation abt it & some diagrams of it..i cant find here components of the robot..so plz also tell me abt the place from where i can get it..plz reply me as fast as u can & also tell me can nyone make me this robot & how much it will take cost? plz reply fast guys....