:::ROBOTIS:::

[Update] ROBOPLUS v1.0.28.0.

ROBOTIS — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 20:31:00 +0900

[NOTICE]

The RoboPlus software has been updated from 1.0.27.0 to 1.0.28.0.
Please refer to the link below for detailed information :

Go to Download Page

For those who already have RoboPlus installed, simply turn on the RoboPlus software (with internet connection), and a pop-up note will appear to help you with the update.

Thank you.

ROBOTIS

[NEW RELEASE] DYNAMIXEL MX SERIES!

ROBOTIS — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:31:51 +0900

[NEW RELEASE] DYNAMIXEL MX SERIES!

(To be released on April, 27th, 2012)

We are releasing a new series of MX actuators!

The MX series comes with a contactless absolute encoder and 32 bit ARM Cortex MCU.

Main performance of the MX series.

- Position Sensor : Contactless Absolute Encoder

- Position Control Range : 360degrees

- Resolution : 0.088 degrees

- PID Control

- Current Control (MX-64/MX-106)

- Baud Rate : Max 3Mbps

- Communication Method : TTL or RS-485 (depending on model)

DYNAMIXEL MX-106T / MX-106R

- Contactless Absolute Encoder version of

the EX-106+

- Supports TTL or RS485 depending on model

- Current Sensing Function

DYNAMIXEL MX-64T / MX-64R

- Contactless Absolute Encoder version of

the RX-64

- Supports TTL or RS485 depending on model

- Current Sensing Function

DYNAMIXEL MX-28R

- Contactless Absolute Encoder version of

the MX-28

- Supports RS485 communication

DYNAMIXEL MX-28T

- New name for MX-28

- Supports TTL communication

Click to go to Online Shop

[New Release] DARwIn-OP FSR-Embedded Foot Set

ROBOTIS — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 15:17:47 +0900

Dear Customers,

The DARwIn-OP FSR-Embedded Foot Set has just been released.

Comes assembled as a foot with hinge frames and cover and can be replaced 1 : 1.

	Product Name	Remark
“NEW”	DARwIn-OP FSR-Embedded Foot Set	DARwIn-OP Exclusive

Click on product name to go directly to the product.

Thank you.

ROBOTIS

[2012 ICRA] Online Vote for the Best DARwIn-OP Application

ROBOTIS — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 10:03:15 +0900

What can humanoids do for people? What do scientists need to do?

Here are the 11 finalists from teams developing new applications

using DARwIn-OP.

Now, please vote for your favorite application! The deadline is April 12th,

Thursday. We will be giving out special gift for voters with the best comments

on the post. Please check below for more info on the videos.

(1 BIOLOID Premium, 3 OLLO Bug Kits, 10 OLLO Action Kits sponsored by ROBOTIS)

Click on link to vote : http://www.robotsource.org/xe/2567#0

The winner will be announced after the final demo at 2012 ICRA ceremony, in St. Paul, Minnesota.


	ICRA 2012
	DARwIn-OP Humanoid Application Challenge

1	Darwin Animator
	Affiliate	University of Georgia	Country	USA
	Video	http://clubs.engr.uga.edu/robotics/DarwinAnimator/
	Description	Darwin Animator is a tool to create extremely complex, interactive motion sequences of any length for a Darwin robot easily, without any programming — and to tightly synchronize the robot’s actions with stage lighting, sound and video. It runs on a Mac or PC within the Max/MSP/Jitter visual programming environment. TellDarwin, a custom application running on Darwin, works in conjunction with it, passing messages between Max and Darwin. People familiar with Max/MSP/Jitter can take advantage of Max’s many powerful features, such as its ability to analyze audio and video input and interface with sensors like the Wii and Kinect.









2	UofM Humanoids – Jennifer
	Affiliate	University of Manitoba	Country	CANADA
	Video	http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fewkTnSavDU
	Description	Jennifer - a ROBOTIS DARwIn-OP - is the first member of our robotic ice hockey team. Even though superficially similar to soccer provides several unique challenges that make it a very interesting research topic. Firstly, movement on skates on ice is very different from walking, as most beginning skaters know. The ground reaction force is very high perpendicular to the blade, but negligible parallel to the blade. In other words, the robot cannot move by kicking backwards. We developed new walking gaits that emphasis side to side movement. Skating is also the fastest method for humans without mechanical support. Secondly, the movement of the puck requires more accurate and complex movement than dribbling a ball, since the stick needs to move the puck from side to side. Thirdly, since the experiments were done outdoors, we had to replace the blob detection with our own region-based segmentation and shape detection algorithm. We are also currently developing some inline roller blades for DARwIn-OP, since we may not have an ice rink available for our demonstration.














3	Team Avatar #1
	Affiliate	CCCKC Kansas City Hackerspace	Country	USA
	Video	http://youtu.be/kNyGk3CCJxw
	Description	My idea is Real Steel-OP. I want to create boxing and Kungfu moves for the OP and ways for the OP to be controlled during a match. In the movie "Real Steel." Atom is controlled in the ring in three different ways; voice, remote control, and shadow boxing. I will use the Kinect to do voice and shadow boxing by WiFi or direct connection and a PS/3 game controller for remote control by Bluetooth. I will also create a fourth method for the OP to do boxing in a fully autonomous mode. The autonomous mode will take advantage of the onboard processing power of the FitPc.








4	Team Avatar #2
	Affiliate	CCCKC Kansas City Hackerspace	Country	USA
	Video	http://youtu.be/1Em1s0ZwQVc
	Description	My idea is to make customized OP parts on a Makerbot ( 3-D printer ). I want to show how easy it is to create and customize your DARwIn-OP for different applications. Want to try new arms and new brackets? How about a new grasping hands design? Want to create a mount for an airsoft gun so you can possibly do mech warfare? Will also illustrate how to customize the outer shell of the OP to make your robot look like Atom from "Real Steel" or another favorite robot look or design.









5	DASL (Drexel Autonomous Systems Lab)
	Affiliate	Drexel University	Country	USA
	Video	http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-jm3Pn9GVg&feature=youtu.be
	Description	For this challenge we have designed a mobile manipulation platform that serves as a tool for the Darwin-OP. In order to advance humanoid mobility, humanoid robots need to work with human environments. In this simulation the Darwin-OP has become the driver of a vehicle. The vehicle itself is a Roomba (robotic vacuum cleaner) that the DARwIn-OP controls through the use of gas, break, and steering sensors. Using a linear pixel acquisition method the Darwin-OP is able to follow the road and detect when he is close to the edge.This environment serves as a useful platform to advance humanoid mobility.









6	Humanoid Lab - IRI
	Affiliate	Institute of Robotics, CSIC-UPC	Country	Spain
	Video	http://youtu.be/fjt9wdpDN_A
	Description	We present in this video the work we are currently carrying out with the DARwIn-OP robot, which includes: * Integration of a 2 degree of freedom gripper in each arm using AX-12A servos * Integration of a time of flight camera in the robot's head * Integration of all the standard robot features and also the new ones with the ROS middleware Currently developing autonomous grasping operations using 3D ToF camera perceptions









7	Team Reaction
	Affiliate	Purdue University	Country	USA
	Video	http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bUqtEqw6Dc
	Description	The purpose of the application is to give the DARwIn a “sense” of its environment. The camera will be used to sense the amount of light in the environment. The thermometer will be used to determine if the temperature is within the range a human is generally comfortable in. This also provides a practical application since some of the hardware should not be exposed to extreme temperatures. The foot sensors will detect if the robot is approaching a ledge. The responses elicited will not only be entertaining and humanizing, but they will also assist in the protection of the expensive hardware.









8	Tic-Tac-Toe Purdue
	Affiliate	Purdue University	Country	USA
	Video	http://youtu.be/MAmhKBWkhyg
	Description	The goal of our project is to take advantage of the multifacted capabilities of DARwIn-OP, engage the ICRA audience with artificially intelligent robotic gameplay, and contribute to the DARwIn open platform community. Our project includes several features: robot to robot interaction, image recognition and processing, possible robot to human interaction as well as recognition of simple voice commands in the case of surplus time, robotic movement, and the development of an artifical robotic adversirial personalities.







9	Dance Dance Revolution
	Affiliate	Purdue University	Country	USA
	Video	http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdcNu0yEqZk
	Description	My project is darwin playing the video game dance dance revolution. It incorporates robotic movement and vision processing to step on a dance pad at the correct time. Darwin sees the arrow using libraries in openCV and computes the estimated time when he should step on the on a corresponding dance pad. He correctly steps for all arrows, yet the accuracy of some steps is better than others.






10	RoMeLa
	Affiliate	Virginia Tech	Country	USA
	Video	http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwYtbhs7xCk
	Description	Our novel gripping mechanism utilizes a cam and torsional spring to generate two effective degrees of freedom - one for gripping, one for positioning - using only one motor. The gripper replaces the original hand and requires only the wrist servo for actuation. Thus, this gripper can be installed on DARwIn-OP without the burden of additional weight or motors. Also, the original hand's range of motion is maintained, so none of the pre-programmed motions or keyframes require revision. It is inexpensive and easy to manufacture; once the design is finalized to incorporate the original hand cover, it can be uploaded to RobotSource.org to reinforce the open platform nature of DARwIn-OP.









11	Skating DARwIn
	Affiliate	Virginia Tech	Country	USA
	Video	http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp4D4-uTMcM&feature=youtu.be
	Description	We have created skates for DARwIn, and working on a remote control to control him while skating. We currently have a working skating DARwIn.

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.27.0.

ROBOTIS — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 17:52:23 +0900

[NOTICE]

The RoboPlus software has been updated from 1.0.26.0 to 1.0.27.0.

Please refer to the link below for detailed information :

Go to Download Page

For those who already have RoboPlus installed, simply turn on the RoboPlus software (with internet connection),

and a pop-up note will appear to help you with the update.

Thank you.

ROBOTIS

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.26.0.

ROBOTIS — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:16:44 +0900

[NOTICE]

The RoboPlus software has been updated from 1.0.25.2 to 1.0.26.0.

Please refer to the link below for detailed information :

Go to Download Page

For those who already have RoboPlus installed, simply turn on the RoboPlus software (with internet connection),

and a pop-up note will appear to help you with the update.

Thank you.

ROBOTIS

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.25.2.

ROBOTIS — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 11:17:11 +0900

[NOTICE]

The RoboPlus software has been updated from 1.0.24.0 to 1.0.25.2.

Please refer to the link below for detailed information :

Go to Download Page

For those who already have RoboPlus installed, simply turn on the RoboPlus software (with internet connection),

and a pop-up note will appear to help you with the update.

Thank you.

ROBOTIS

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.24.0.

ROBOTIS — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 17:34:34 +0900

[NOTICE]

The RoboPlus software has been updated from 1.0.23.0 to 1.0.24.0.

Please refer to the link below for detailed information :

Go to Download Page

For those who already have RoboPlus installed, simply turn on the RoboPlus software (with internet connection),

and a pop-up note will appear to help you with the update.

Thank you.

ROBOTIS

[ROBOCUP 2012] Special Offer

ROBOTIS — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 16:29:31 +0900

http://www.tzi.de/humanoid/bin/view/Website/Call2012

See #9, for the special DARwIn-OP offer for the Humanoid Soccer Teams!

Call for Participation

RoboCup 2012 Humanoid League

June 18-24, 2012 (Mexico City, Mexico)

http://www.robocup2012.org/

The RoboCup humanoid league is inviting interested teams to apply for participation at the RoboCup 2012 competition in Mexico City. The humanoid league will host competitions in three classes: kid, teen, and adult sized robots. For more information about the humanoid league, please refer to the humanoid league home page at http://www.tzi.de/humanoid.

Due to restrictions on the number of teams able to participate at RoboCup 2012, all teams must provide the qualification material described below. The technical committee will evaluate the qualification material and select the best teams.

Team Data
- Team name
- URL of the team's home page
- Name of team leader or team contact person
- E-mail address of team leader or contact person
- Postal address of the team, team leader or contact person
- Competition class: kid or teen or adult size
Please note that teams applying for participation in several classes must submit individual application material for each class and pay the appropriate registration fee for each class. Furthermore, teams in different classes must be able independent and able to compete at the same time.
Robot Video
The first part of the qualification material is a video of your robot demonstrating your team's autonomous soccer playing skills.
The minimum standard for qualification is:
- localization of unknown ball position,
- walking ability towards the ball,
- robot positioning at the ball for kicking,
- kicking the ball towards the goal,
- ability of getting up autonomously from a fall.
However, more complex and intelligent behavior of teams of robots demonstrating localization and team play are preferred. Videos of your team during competition are also good.
The qualification video must be supplied as a link to it via www.youtube.com. The maximum duration of the video is 5 minutes. The qualifying team is responsible to ensure that the video adheres to YouTube's TOS (especially in regards to music copyright) to prevent the video from being blocked for the reviewers.
No video means no qualification!
Team Description Paper
A team description paper (TDP) must be submitted which:
- includes a statement committing to participate in the RoboCup 2012 Humanoid League competition,
- includes a statement committing to making a person with sufficient knowledge of the rules available as referee during the competition,
- fully describes the scientific aspects of your humanoid robot system and your research interests,
- includes a summary of previous relevant achievements in research and development as well as publications,
- mentions prior performance in RoboCup competitions
- states explicitly whether software from other teams is used and if yes, which parts are used and what the team's own contributions are
The TDP is limited to 8 pages maximum. It must be original work.
The TDP must follow the LNCS format which can be downloaded from here
The paper must be submitted in PDF format.
The quality of the TDP and the robot video will be decisive for qualification.
Other evaluation criteria include contributions to the RoboCup community by release of significant papers or software.
New teams and teams from countries that have not previously taken part in RoboCup competitions may be given priority.
In the future, the TC may include the fulfillment of the statement of commitment of participation as well as the performance of the team's referee in previous RoboCups.
Robot Specification
A one-page specification (PDF) for each different type of humanoid robot used by the team that includes the followings:
- Robot picture
- Robot name
- Height of the robot
- Weight of the robot
- Walking speed
- Number of degrees of freedom
- Type of motors
- Type of sensors used (incl. type of camera(s))
- Computing unit(s)
- Other specs
Online Submission
All qualification material must be submitted online at http://application.germanteam.org/entries/new (The application page will open before January 2012.)
Deadline
Deadline for submission: * January 29, 2012 *
Announcement of qualified teams: February 16, 2012
Publication
Please note that after the announcement of the qualified teams the qualification material of the qualified teams will be made publicly available. Teams applying for participation therefore grant the right of publication of their qualification material to the humanoid league.
Rules
The rules of the RoboCup 2012 Humanoid League are discussed at https://lists.cc.gatech.edu/mailman/listinfo/robocup-humanoid and will be published at http://www.tzi.de/humanoid
DARwIn OP
ROBOTIS (http://www.robotis.com) provides an offer for selected humanoid RoboCup teams to purchase a set of DARwIn-OP robots for a reduced price. ROBOTIS offers teams that intend to participate in RoboCup 2012 to purchase five robots for the price of four - that is $38,400 (4*$9,600USD) for a team of five DARwIn-OP (Academic Edition) robots. Please note that the quoted price does not include shipping and handling charges.
Teams that are interested in this offer need to apply for this offer by December 31st. Selected teams will be able to buy the robots under the special offer until the middle of February. (contactus2@robotis.com)

With best regards,

Technical and Organization Committees of RoboCup Humanoid League 2012

P.S. Special thanks go to Thomas Roefer and Tim Laurinat from DFKI Bremen for their support of the HL submission and web page.

[FIRA 2012] Special Offer

ROBOTIS — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:20:18 +0900

http://fira.net/?mid=news&document_srl=3776

FIRA Teams,

Together with ROBOTIS, we have arranged for a special promotional offer of the ROBOTIS' DARwIn-OP robot for the FIRA HuroCup United 5 vs 5 soccer competition, which will be held for the first time at FIRA 2012 in Bristol (I hope to see you all there). The rules of the competition are currently being finalized. However, a couple of things have already been decided: (a) the competition is not limited to one robot only (in contrast to the RoboCup Standard Platform League). So custom built or other commercially available humanoid robots will be allowed to play as long as they fit under the FIRA HuroCup rules, (b) teams will be mixed and robots will receive points for each successful action (e.g., touch the ball, score a goal, making a goalie save), and (c) a standard extensible language for communicating between the different robots (probably based on JSON) will be made available soon, so that robots can communicate with each other.

ROBOTIS Special Offer:

-------------------------------

ROBOTIS has kindly agreed to sell the <a href="http://www.ROBOTIS.com/xe/darwin_en"> ROBOTIS DARwIn-OP </a> Academic Edition for a special price to FIRA HuroCup teams. The kit includes a complimentary hard case, 1 yr warranty on replacement parts. ROBOTIS has also agreed to provide on site support at the next three FIRA competitions. The cost of the kit is $9,600 (Excluding shipping and handling charges, taxes, and custom charges). However, for each ROBOTIS DARwIn OP sold under this special agreement, the team will receive $2,000 travel support ($1,000 per year for a maximum of two years) to attend the FIRA HuroCup WorldCup in Bristol and Malaysia. Furthermore, ROBOTIS will make a donation to the FIRA organizers which will allow us to keep the registration fees low. This offer is only available to old and new FIRA teams. Teams that purchase a DARwIn-OP through this offer must be willing and able to perform their own routine maintenance on the robots - the one year warranty only applies to replacement parts that must be shipped with an return merchandise authorization (RMA) number.

So if you have been considering buying a ROBOTIS DARwIn-OP and to participate at FIRA HuroCup, then now would be a good time. The deadline for this special offer is February 15, 2012. Please contact <a mailto:jacky@cs.umanitoba.ca> Jacky Baltes< /a> for more information and ordering information. You can also order from ROBOTIS directly via the <a mailto://contactus2@robotis.com> ROBOTIS Special Offer</a>.

[ICRA 2012] DARwIn-OP Humanoid Application Challenge

ROBOTIS — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 16:12:47 +0900

Objectives:

DARwin-OP is an open platform humanoid project supported by NSF. Being a vision-capable humanoid with full functionality and scalability, researchers are strongly required to join an open source community for cooperative research. (www.robotsource.org) The main objective of this open source challenge is to encourage creative applications from around the globe and maximize contribution for humanoid research.

Registration:

Teams (1-4 members) who use DARwin-OP robot to develop their own application are eligible. Projects using simulation only or customized DARwIn-OPs are also welcome.

Participants required to deliver:

1 minute video demonstration (for online registration and review)
All participants are entitled to receive a free Webots Pro 90 day License (1 each)

Please contact info@robotsource.org to get this license.

For Finalists selected to make presentation at ICRA:

5 minutes free-style demonstration (within 1 meter x 1 meter square table)
5 minutes presentation of project (PPT explanation of robot's functions and technologies)

All necessary equipment and items for your demo must be prepared by each participating team.

(Tables, chairs, xtention cables, projector, MICs, etc to be supported by IEEE ICRA.)

Important Dates:

Online Video Registration - February 29, 2012 (HAS BEEN EXTENDED!!)
Notification of Finalist - March 16, 2012
Final Presentation - TBD (at ICRA 2012)

Judging Criteria:

Creative Idea - 40%
Technical Skills - 30%
Overall Completion - 30%

Judging Committee:

Professor Dennis Hong (Virginia Tech)
Professor Daniel Lee (University of Pennsylvania)
Peer review among finalists

Registration Form

Please check attachment!!

Awards

1st Place Winner

DARwIn-OP
LabVIEW Robotics Software
Webots Pro

Finalist (by draw)

Bioloid Premium Kit
LabVIEW Robotics Module
Webots Edu

For more details, please visit www.robotsource.org or contact Kayla Kim (info@robotsource.org)

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.23.0.

ROBOTIS — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 13:37:14 +0900

[NOTICE]

The RoboPlus software has been updated from 1.0.22.0 to 1.0.23.0.

Please refer to the link below for detailed information :

http://www.robotis.com/xe/download_en/40595

For those who already have RoboPlus installed, simply turn on the RoboPlus software (with internet connection),

and a pop-up note will appear to help you with the update.

Thank you.

ROBOTIS

[ROBOFEST] Hexapod Sumo Robot Camp & Competition.

ROBOTIS — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 13:52:45 +0900

Hexapod Sumo Robot Camp & Competition

LOCATION : Lawrence Tech

DATE : August 23, 2011 (TUESDAY)

TIME : (10AM~3PM)

http://www.robofest.net

Registration is free and free lunch will be provided.
Each team can borrow a BIOLOID Premium hexapod robot sponsored by ROBOTIS Inc.
Teams that take this camp are required to compete on Sep. 26 during RoboExpo.

Highly qualified high school teams only.

Please send email to Dr. Chung (chung@LTU.edu) to apply.

Please feel free to check out the videos taken at Oakland University.

http://www.robotis.com/xe/gallery_en/57611

2011 RoboCup humanoid competition winner, DARwIn-OP

ROBOTIS — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 10:54:47 +0900

2011 RoboCup humanoid competition winner, DARwIn-OP

The annual 2011 RoboCup competition was held in Istanbul, Turkey July 5th~11th.

DARwIn-OP wins first place in the humanoid kid-size league!

DARwIn-OP is an open platform humanoid robot with infinite possibilities.

Click! DARwIn-OP’s Competition (Finals) Video

http://sourceforge.net/projects/darwinop/

Adult-size league winner CHARLI uses DYNAMIXELS 100%.

CHARLI also won the prestigious best humanoid award and takes home the Louis Vuitton Cup!

Click! CHARLI’s Competition (Finals) Video

DARwIn-OP Simulator Released: Webots 6.4.0

ROBOTIS — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 16:15:13 +0900

DARwIn-OP Simulator Released: Webots 6.4.0

Thanks to the technical cooperation with Cyberbotics,

ROBOTIS is happy to announce the release of the simulator S/W for DARwIn-OP.

Now, users can download and test DARwIn-OP which include :

- Realistic physics model (masses, torques, inertia)

- Set robot properties (accelerometer, gyro, camera, led)

- Read motion file from source code

(Some functions can be limited for the free version.)

For more information, please visit the following links.

http://www.cyberbotics.com/download

(File: /webots/projects/robots/darwin-op/worlds/Darwin-op.wbt)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFIvnh_9rgE

:::ROBOTIS:::

[Update] ROBOPLUS v1.0.28.0.

[NEW RELEASE] DYNAMIXEL MX SERIES!

[New Release] DARwIn-OP FSR-Embedded Foot Set

[2012 ICRA] Online Vote for the Best DARwIn-OP Application

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.27.0.

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.26.0.

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.25.2.

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.24.0.

[ROBOCUP 2012] Special Offer

RoboCup 2012 Humanoid League

June 18-24, 2012 (Mexico City, Mexico)

http://www.robocup2012.org/

[FIRA 2012] Special Offer

[ICRA 2012] DARwIn-OP Humanoid Application Challenge

Objectives:

Registration:

Participants required to deliver:

For Finalists selected to make presentation at ICRA:

Important Dates:

Judging Criteria:

Judging Committee:

Registration Form

Please check attachment!!

Awards

1st Place Winner

DARwIn-OP LabVIEW Robotics SoftwareWebots Pro

Finalist (by draw)

Bioloid Premium Kit LabVIEW Robotics ModuleWebots Edu

[UPDATE] ROBOPLUS ver 1.0.23.0.

[ROBOFEST] Hexapod Sumo Robot Camp & Competition.

2011 RoboCup humanoid competition winner, DARwIn-OP

DARwIn-OP Simulator Released: Webots 6.4.0

DARwIn-OP
LabVIEW Robotics Software
Webots Pro

Bioloid Premium Kit
LabVIEW Robotics Module
Webots Edu