Robotic buttocks: Just what the planet needed?
A group in inventors at Tokyo's University of Electro-Communications has developed something we had no idea the world was in need of: robotic buttocks.
But the robotic derriere, named Shiri, may actually represent a big step forward in replicating physical human sensation, according to an article in Forbes Magazine.
The magazine report, quoting the university, says the project is meant to “advance the innovative use of robotic technology and its purpose,” and “to raise the argument as to what perceptions will be manifested in the minds of people who communicate with Shiri.”
Forbes says the inventor is graduate student Nobuhiro Takahashi, who grabbed a few headlines last year for inventing the “e-kiss” simulator that allows people to french kiss across the internet. He's also reportedly working on a self-hugging machine.
But the robotic derriere, named Shiri, may actually represent a big step forward in replicating physical human sensation, according to an article in Forbes Magazine.
The magazine report, quoting the university, says the project is meant to “advance the innovative use of robotic technology and its purpose,” and “to raise the argument as to what perceptions will be manifested in the minds of people who communicate with Shiri.”
Forbes says the inventor is graduate student Nobuhiro Takahashi, who grabbed a few headlines last year for inventing the “e-kiss” simulator that allows people to french kiss across the internet. He's also reportedly working on a self-hugging machine.
