David Geer Talks Tech
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Mini musical robot Miuro is about to rock the house! Courtesy of http://www.GeerCom.com.
Geer Communications - your on time technology writer!
Technology-rich Asia is a frequent landing dock for new gadgets. So it is with Miuro, your personal robot DJ that roams around and rocks the house!
ZMP (http://www.zmp.co.jp/e_home.html), makers of Miuro, is already taking orders for the half-pint digital DJ with an expected release date of December of this year. The price tag for the Miuro, which gets its acronymic moniker from “Music Innovation based on Utility RObot technology”, is 108,800 yen. That’s roughly US$923, which is a bit pricey for anyone but wealthy early adopters.
The dual-wheeled audio bot can connect to your Wi-Fi network to retrieve music files in WAV, MP3, WMA, AAC, AIFF, and LPCM formats from PCs on your network. It can also pull music from other portable audio players or an iPod. Miuro comes with a remote control for song selection for those using the iPod configuration. Miuro can air your favorite Internet radio station, too.
The Miuro uses gyroscopes, acceleration sensors and rotary encoders to keep itself erect as well as determine its course and speed. You can drive the remote controlled mobile music player around your home (or office?) using infrared technology. You can also set it to move to preset locations in series; the wireless LAN connection drives this functionality.
ZMP is already planning upgrades, including autonomous movement enabled by a camera for robot vision and a distance sensor and a touch sensor for location and avoiding obstacles. Miuro will be able to map out its environment and explore (be careful your jammin’ new robotic companion doesn’t get swept off its feet by your Roomba!). Battery life for this expensive entertainment toy will range from three to four hours.
ZMP states emphatically that this will be the first ever example of autonomous behavior (thinking on its own) in a “consumer-level” robot.
Best,
David Geer - your on time technology writer!
Geer Communications
Geer Communications - your on time technology writer!
Technology-rich Asia is a frequent landing dock for new gadgets. So it is with Miuro, your personal robot DJ that roams around and rocks the house!
ZMP (http://www.zmp.co.jp/e_home.html), makers of Miuro, is already taking orders for the half-pint digital DJ with an expected release date of December of this year. The price tag for the Miuro, which gets its acronymic moniker from “Music Innovation based on Utility RObot technology”, is 108,800 yen. That’s roughly US$923, which is a bit pricey for anyone but wealthy early adopters.
The dual-wheeled audio bot can connect to your Wi-Fi network to retrieve music files in WAV, MP3, WMA, AAC, AIFF, and LPCM formats from PCs on your network. It can also pull music from other portable audio players or an iPod. Miuro comes with a remote control for song selection for those using the iPod configuration. Miuro can air your favorite Internet radio station, too.
The Miuro uses gyroscopes, acceleration sensors and rotary encoders to keep itself erect as well as determine its course and speed. You can drive the remote controlled mobile music player around your home (or office?) using infrared technology. You can also set it to move to preset locations in series; the wireless LAN connection drives this functionality.
ZMP is already planning upgrades, including autonomous movement enabled by a camera for robot vision and a distance sensor and a touch sensor for location and avoiding obstacles. Miuro will be able to map out its environment and explore (be careful your jammin’ new robotic companion doesn’t get swept off its feet by your Roomba!). Battery life for this expensive entertainment toy will range from three to four hours.
ZMP states emphatically that this will be the first ever example of autonomous behavior (thinking on its own) in a “consumer-level” robot.
Best,
David Geer - your on time technology writer!
Geer Communications
