Posted on 09/20/2018 7:55:06 AM PDT by BenLurkin
OmniSkins is made from elastic sheets embedded with sensors and actuators. The flexible sheets can be wrapped or affixed to a soft, malleable surface, such as a stuffed animal or a foam tube. The skins then “animate” these objects by applying force to their surface, leading to distinct movements.
“We can take the skins and wrap them around one object to perform a task—locomotion, for example—and then take them off and put them on a different object to perform a different task, such as grasping and moving an object,” said Kramer-Bottiglio in a statement. “We can then take those same skins off that object and put them on a shirt to make an active wearable device.”
The robotic skin not only initiates movement, it can also sense the “pushback” from an object to help the system know how much force is needed to generate movement. The motion achieved by an object “depends on the relationship between the dimensions, material properties, and force capabilities of the skin and the dimensions and stiffness characteristics of the body,” the authors write in the study. The robots can be controlled remotely by an operator or by using built-in light sensors.
In tests, the system allowed a stuffed toy horse to walk on all four legs, and a foam cylinder to move like an inchworm. It was also used to create a gripper capable of grabbing and moving objects, and a wearable device that, when worn as a t-shirt, corrects poor posture.
(Excerpt) Read more at gizmodo.com ...
SexBots with moveable, malleable “skin”?
Yeah right! go ahead and tell me that I am the ONLY one thinking of this craziness!
Hate to say it, but the porno industry is going to be a big player in this technology...most industry analysts still largely attribute VHS’s winning out over Beta video formats to porn.
Lt. Commander Data may become a reality.
Cherry 2000 will come before Data.
Okay, I’m frightened.
Sounds like Dr. Who territory.
Sounds like Dr. Who territory.
Helping with posture would be great.
I always had some problems with it.
Agree.
Pamela Anderson drove the growth of the internet more than any other factor.
That’s a fantastic invention! Not discussed is how the skin reacts to heat, cold or quick changes in temperature.
That can be figured out later.
Not discussed is how the skin reacts to minor damage of it’s surface. If a puppy sees the toy horse ‘walking’, and playfully nips at the moving toy horse, tearing the skin, does the entire system stop working, or is the surface disturbance localized to the area of that tear only?
Is the skin sensitive to changes in environmental light?
No doubt this skin has already been patented by the team of inventors.
The porn industry is helping drive demand for high def video and virtual reality technology.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.