IEEE Robot contest 2011; Quincy Dagger, Swann's "Friend Me" Robot

Friend Me Robot installation, different sizes possible. Giant as shown on poster, or human scale, or desk top version.

2D barcode pixel cube unit

Robot Event participants in front of a display

Quincy Dagger, winner of Rover Robot Contest; you phone in to the number provided by the exhibition and using voice can direct his bot forwards backwards etc. The only entry that has a real time active functioning robot.

Almost everybody elses are variations of dreams of Jo Job robot, dust, clean save the world - using super metal, but no model in real life - never mind about a working model.

Robotic Dog project: One of the display is a robotic dog for companionship for the elderly. It takes in the account of human emotion needs. However, I find that sooo sad. Elderly people want to talk to real young people, not a rough robotic dog which you have to push a button to get a "pill" reminder delivered on a stick coming from the robotic dog. The robotic dog better look very cute too, otherwise, it wont do. Better to use the energy to train real human to have more human kindness than to script a robot to give mechanical feedback to people. Better use of ressources I think. This Project received 2nd prize.

Swann's "Friend me!" robot is a human emotional trigger robot - if you fancy this robot, it will do things for you. If you dont fancy it, then you shoudl choose another type of robot, and this one is not for you. Because you love it, you entertain relations w it. It is a working robot, but the work is performed by the owner. The robot only triggers emotions the desire of the owner to move it, fill it with friends, interact with it, take it along. Like a talisman with abstract supports from 20 friends. This project received Honorable Mention prize. The judge asked: "How is this a robot?", Swann said, "It looks like a robot, so it qualifies as a robot". Actually, there is a whole field of robot which exists as love object robots and nobody would deny their status a robots, even if its as robotic as any scholarly stone on a pedestal.

If the owner doesnt have 20 friends to put in the housing cubes, perhaps he could take this occasion to start making friends now, enjoy it, one at a time.
:)