Japanese Robot Powered by iPod Touch

**Michael Essany** · 03-24-2010, 04:12 AM

It sounds like the plot of science fiction movie. But there's nothing make believe about a world in which iPod-powered robots dwell. That reality has arrived. And we can thank Japan's ATR Robotics and Communication Laboratories for it. The robot makers at ATR are behind the Robovie mR2, which is pictured above.

So what exactly is the Robovie mR2? It's definitely a robot, and one that is powered by a "heart" consisting of an iPod Touch, which enables control via the obvious touchscreen, over Wi-F, or Bluetooth. The little guy speaks Japanese and can communicate directly from the "heart" - that is, information contained within the iPod Touch that powers the Robovie mR2.

The one-foot-tall "humanoid robot" represents the hard work of ATR's Robovie, a research platform endeavoring to develop advanced robot technologies capable of decoding audio and detecting textile sensations. For now, while this robot is limited in its physical capabilities, the technology in place is providing some of the most sophisticated communication functionalities ever observed in a robot.

Although advancements in robot technology aren't widely reported - perhaps because such advancements are far from commonplace - mobile smartphone technology and other mobile devices like the iPod Touch seem to play a major role today in the development of "smarter robots."

One can only wonder if Greenpois0n already has a robot jailbreak in the works

Image via ATR