Telenoid R1 with creator Dr Hiroshi Ishiguro. (Credit: Osaka University)
The "ghost" robot, or Telenoid R1, is part-telephone, part interface, all creepy.
Designed by Japanese roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro, the Telenoid R1 is operated remotely by a laptop user. The user's voice is relayed through the robot, while a webcam tracks the user's movements and relays them to the robot.
Ishiguro worked with Osaka University and the Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International and hope to have a commercial version of the robot available later this year.
Said the team, "Using Telenoids, we will investigate the essential elements for representing and transferring human-like presence."
Well, it transfers some sort of presence, anyway. And really. Who needs to ever sleep again?
Check out the video below to see this weird thing in action.
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