Original Inkha (2002). King's College, London, UK.
Inkha uses a camera in its eye to track the movement of people who come close to it. It moves in a lifelike way based on studies of human movement. Inkha exhibits fright when it sees sudden movements and interest when it sees small movements. It becomes bored and goes to sleep if there is nothing of interest to "see".
Inkha also speaks periodically about facts and astrology and gives out fashion tips.
During 2003 Inkha was enhanced to become a Roboreceptionist at the Strand entrance of King's . This saw the addition of additional sensors, industrial-grade servo motors and a touch screen so that Inkha could give room directions to visitors. The Roboreceptionist operated for over ten years, giving out over 74,000 room directions and making over 81,000 comments. In this time Inkha spoke over a million phrases and the buttons on the touch screen were pressed over 140,000 times. Inkha was decommissioned at King's in October 2014.
Inkha is part of the Science Museum, London's Robots exhibition appearing in London from February to September 2017 and then touring internationally.
A portable version of Inkha was created and was installed as a Roboreceptionist at the Cheltenham Science Festival each year between 2004 and 2006.
Inkha has appeared on the children's television programme Blue Peter and been the subject of articles in the science journal Nature (reprinted here ) and The Times.
Mat Walker is now working with Dan Warner developing the Ohbot robot for children.
Assistive technology (AT) is a term for assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities and the elderly. Disabled people often have difficulty performing activities of daily living (ADLs) independently, or even with assistance. ADLs are self-care activities that include toileting, mobility (ambulation), eating, bathing, dressing, grooming, and personal device care. Assistive technology can ameliorate the effects of disabilities that limit the ability to perform ADLs. Assistive technology promotes greater independence by enabling people to perform tasks they were formerly unable to accomplish, or had great difficulty accomplishing, by providing enhancements to, or changing methods of interacting with, the technology needed to accomplish such tasks. For example, wheelchairs provide independent mobility for those who cannot walk, while assistive eating devices can enable people who cannot feed themselves to do so. Due to assistive technology, disabled people have an opportunity of a more positive and easygoing lifestyle, with an increase in "social participation," "security and control," and a greater chance to "reduce institutional costs without significantly increasing household expenses." In schools, assistive technology can be critical in allowing students with disabilities access the general education curriculum. Students who experience challenges writing or keyboarding, for example, can use voice recognition software instead. Assistive technologies assist people who are recovering from strokes and people who have abstained injuries that effect their daily tasks.
A pointing device is a human interface device that allows a user to input spatial data to a computer. CAD systems and graphical user interfaces (GUI) allow the user to control and provide data to the computer using physical gestures by moving a hand-held mouse or similar device across the surface of the physical desktop and activating switches on the mouse. Movements of the pointing device are echoed on the screen by movements of the pointer and other visual changes. Common gestures are point and click and drag and drop.
Robby the Robot is a fictional character and science fiction icon who first appeared in the 1956 film Forbidden Planet. He made a number of subsequent appearances in science fiction movies and television programs, which has given him the distinction as "the hardest working robot in Hollywood".
BattleBots is an American robot combat television series. The show was an adaptation of the British show Robot Wars, in which competitors design and operate remote-controlled armed and armored machines designed to fight in an arena combat elimination tournament. For five seasons, BattleBots aired on the American Comedy Central and was hosted by Bil Dwyer, Sean Salisbury, and Tim Green. Comedy Central's first season premiered on August 23, 2000, and its fifth and last season ended on December 21, 2002. The show was in hiatus until it was revived on ABC in 2015.
Telepresence refers to a set of technologies which allow a person to feel as if they were present, to give the appearance or effect of being present via telerobotics, at a place other than their true location.
Audio-Animatronics is the registered trademark for a form of robotics animation created by Walt Disney Imagineering for shows and attractions at Disney theme parks, and subsequently expanded on and used by other companies. The robots move and make noise, but are usually fixed to whatever supports them. They can sit and stand but usually cannot walk. An Audio-Animatronic is different from an android-type robot in that it uses prerecorded movements and sounds, rather than responding to external stimuli. In 2009, Disney created an interactive version of the technology called Autonomatronics.
The Stepford Wives is a 1972 satirical "feminist horror" novel by Ira Levin. The story concerns Joanna Eberhart, a talented photographer, wife and young mother who suspects the submissive housewives in her new idyllic Connecticut neighborhood may be robots created by their husbands.
Remote surgery is the ability for a doctor to perform surgery on a patient even though they are not physically in the same location. It is a form of telepresence. A robot surgical system generally consists of one or more arms, a master controller (console), and a sensory system giving feedback to the user. Remote surgery combines elements of robotics, telecommunications such as high-speed data connections and elements of management information systems. While the field of robotic surgery is fairly well established, most of these robots are controlled by surgeons at the location of the surgery. Remote surgery is remote work for surgeons, where the physical distance between the surgeon and the patient is less relevant. It promises to allow the expertise of specialized surgeons to be available to patients worldwide, without the need for patients to travel beyond their local hospital.
Contemporary Sant Mat Movements, mostly among the Radha Soami tradition, are esoteric philosophy movements active in the United States, Europe, Australia, Latin America, and especially India. These movements assert that Sant Mat shares a lineage with Sikhism and contains elements of thought found in Hinduism, such as karma and reincarnation. They further assert that Sant Mat also contains elements found in Sufism and has inspired and influenced a number of religious groups and organizations. They refer to this spiritual path as the "Science of the Soul" or ‘Sant Mat’, meaning ‘teachings of the saints’. More recently it has been described as "The Way of Life" or "Living the Life of Soul." It incorporates a practical yoga system known as Surat Shabd Yoga.
Kamelion is a fictional character from the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. A shape-changing android voiced by Gerald Flood in its default form, it is a companion of the Fifth Doctor and appears in the television series in two serials between 1983 and 1984.
The Creature from the Pit is the third serial of the 17th season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 27 October to 17 November 1979. It was the first serial to feature David Brierley as the voice of K9.
The Land Walker is the first 3.4-meter-tall (11 ft), two-legged exoskeleton robot with a cockpit and two cannons mounted on the arms that for now shoots out rubber balls. It does not actually walk, however, instead shuffling on wheels hidden under its "feet" at approximately 1.5 km/h (1 mph). This means it is not technically a walker; it merely has the appearance of one. It was invented by Masaaki Nagumo and created by researchers who hope to someday create similar robots to be used in the military and in defense against crimes. But for now it is used as a way to promote the idea of robotic defense.
"Satisfaction Guaranteed" is a science fiction short story by American writer Isaac Asimov, originally published in the April 1951 issue of Amazing Stories, and included in the collections Earth Is Room Enough (1957), The Rest of the Robots (1964), and The Complete Robot (1982).
Tardisodes are mini-episodes of the television programme Doctor Who, created to accompany the 2006 series of the programme. Made by Doctor Who producers BBC Wales, each Tardisode is approximately 60 seconds long and serves as an introduction to one of the actual 45-minute episodes. They were available on the BBC Doctor Who website free of charge, and on mobile phones by subscription. They were produced as an effort by the BBC to expand the reach of Doctor Who beyond the television series, and include footage not seen on television, and some back-story for the following episode. Their name is a portmanteau of the words TARDIS and "episode".
David Vaughan Icke is an English conspiracy theorist and a former footballer and sports broadcaster. He has written over 20 books, self-published since the mid-1990s, and spoken in more than 25 countries.
Robotics is the branch of technology that deals with the design, construction, operation, structural disposition, manufacture and application of robots. Robotics is related to the sciences of electronics, engineering, mechanics, and software.
Ex Machina is a 2014 science fiction film written and directed by Alex Garland in his directorial debut. There are only four significant characters, played by Domhnall Gleeson, Alicia Vikander, Sonoya Mizuno, and Oscar Isaac. Gleeson plays a computer programmer employed by a billionaire (Isaac) to assess whether a humanoid robot (Vikander) is sentient.
The Night King is a fictional character appearing in the HBO high fantasy television series Game of Thrones, based on George R. R. Martin's novel series A Song of Ice and Fire. He is depicted as the leader and the first of the White Walkers, having existed since the age of the First Men, and is the most dangerous and powerful of his race. The Night King is an original creation of the television adaptation, thus far having no counterpart in the novels upon which the show is based.
Tactile technology is the integration of multi-sensory triggers within physical objects, allowing "real world" interactions with technology. It is similar to haptic technology, as both focus on touch interactions with technology, but whereas haptic is simulated touch, tactile is physical touch. Rather than using a digital interface to interact with the physical world, as augmented reality does, tactile technology involves a physical interaction that triggers a digital response.
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