Frogs, scooter, clothes and helmet for AIBO

A team of from ECAL (beware of the dwarfing web page: Ecole Cantonale d’Art de Lausanne) collaborated with researcher Frederic Kaplan (also known for his work on curiosity-driven robots) and interaction designer Martino d'Esposito to build a playroom where AIBO could engage in various new learning activities. After a few days, they came up with a set of smaller objects, toys and infrastructures that included a “universal gripper” with which the robot can pick up everyday objects, a special pen for the robot to doodle, a switch to control lamps and electrical devices, a mirror that takes into account the specific morphology of the robot’s head and the position of its sensors, various toys that jump or can be pushed or pulled, a rocking chair to take a nap, a raincoat, and even a children’s bike. None of these objects contained any technology, but each of them enlarged the robot’s range of possible activities, they acted as some kind of extensions of its body. link