Soft Floating Robotics Designed for Safe Interaction #SFR #drone #droneday
Article excerpt
There is a huge push for the humanoid robot companion. A recent New Yorker article looked into the state of humanoid robots that are poised to hit the consumer market. The general consensus seems to be that, at the moment, the form factor may not be the best. “The same robot that can land a […]
There is a huge push for the humanoid robot companion. A recent New Yorker article looked into the state of humanoid robots that are poised to hit the consumer market. The general consensus seems to be that, at the moment, the form factor may not be the best. “The same robot that can land a backflip might not be able to walk up a flight of stairs,” Even more, the power and weight of these bots make them a risk to small children and pets. Is a bipedal bot with two arms and 10 digits really the pinnacle of robotic evolution?
Mingyang Xu with Keio University is looking into soft floating robotics. Their idea is a floating ethereal mini whale [cuddlefish] that can help with tasks and keep you company. No massive bulk at risk of falling or misfiring, no noisy fans or motors that would come with a traditional drone.
Soft floating robots (SFRs) represent a shift from rigid machines, offering gravity-defying, compliant, and tactile embodiments for indoor cohabitation. However, their development remains fragmented across isolated prototypes, lacking a coherent design vocabulary. Without a systematic understanding of their interactional capabilities, designers struggle to leverage SFRs’ unique affordances, and these systems often remain limited to novelty applications that are difficult to integrate into everyday life. To address this, we propose a design space for interaction with SFRs.
Can robots be gentle? See more from the tedx presentation: The Robot That Swims Through Air | Mingyang Xu | TEDxInnovation U
Floating Companion: Exploring Design Space for Soft Floating Robots in Indoor Environments
More from CNet:
Inspired by animated flying friends like Tinker Bell, Mew and Studio Ghibli’s Soot Sprites, a team of researchers set out to show what a floating robotic companion might be good for and how humans could interact with it. Led by Mingyang Xu from Keio University in Japan, with participation from other institutions like the MIT Media Lab, the team recently released a demo video.
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