Video: Toyota's robo-quartet makes Kerouac cry
After watching Honda's Asimo conduct the Detroit Symphony, Toyota's distressed team of robots hopped a box car with a jug of wine and wound up leaning in and kicking out a clear harmonic cry to some corporate goons in Japan. The band consists of a couple repurposed DJ Robots and new Partner Robots. While laudable, there's not enough ecstasy for us, not enough life, joy, kicks, darkness, music... not enough night. Video after the break, Jack.
Filed under: Robots
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Shadowise @ May 16th 2008 4:02AM
They can play those instruments better than me, so it's something... when they start playing Bass Guitar, let me know.
vdogg89 @ May 16th 2008 6:48PM
eh its not bass but close enough
http://www.engadget.com/2005/07/08/the-crazy-j-guitar-playing-robot/
Teejay @ May 16th 2008 4:23AM
Ooh! And they're playing LUPIN III'rd theme song!
Kevin Adder Snake @ May 17th 2008 10:55AM
Yeah, how cool is that. I was kinda expecting them to play the Cantina song from Star Wars Episode 4. That would be cool
nxtiak @ May 16th 2008 4:25AM
They should have them play Rockband
David @ May 16th 2008 4:30AM
So they have buzzing lips and airflow?? cool
LarryLarryLarry @ May 16th 2008 5:32PM
Exactly. They're not even moving their fingers to key the different notes. This is robot lip-sync, not robot performance.
The drummer is the only one who might even possibly be playing music, the rest are robto air-guitarists with worse instruments.
There's something really wrong about watching robots with no mouths play wind instruments.
Cassini @ May 16th 2008 6:05PM
Actually, in the video, they are moving their fingers to key the different notes.
Bad Beaver @ May 16th 2008 4:42AM
If Jack wasn't dead, he'd cry. In fact, looking around the world, he'd be too busy crying about other stuff than to even notice this travesty. Sometimes, you just cannot take it all in.
Bad Beaver @ May 16th 2008 4:47AM
On the other hand, I think Burroughs would like this. Those bots would have run on certain human liquids and feature some interesting orifices, bristling with razorblades and needles, but he'd like them.
Nick @ May 16th 2008 5:23AM
Neat... However I can't imagine these ever replacing real performers or contributing anything useful to robotics except for replacing those horribly creepy animatronic animals at Chuck E. Cheese. At least it gives us a hint at the future of design of electronics design, in the future everything electronic will be white and will glow blue. Cause, ya know, it looks cool.
Eh @ May 16th 2008 5:42AM
that was one short ass video, is that Lupin III?
stevedeleo @ May 16th 2008 12:19PM
http://youtube.com/watch?v=oQSe4Z1cH4E
cysko @ May 16th 2008 5:43AM
i saw this at chuck e cheese's before it was great!
Geggs @ May 16th 2008 6:16AM
This isn't that exciting - these Toyota robots were playing musical instruments YEARS AGO on public display at the World Expo in Nagoya in 2005.... there they made up for the lack of robot emotion and action by an over zealous human announcer.
Richard Lai @ May 16th 2008 8:08AM
Damn.... When I first saw the photo I thought they were holding weapons.
Ryback @ May 16th 2008 8:47AM
I for one welcome our new robot overlords!
couchpundit @ May 16th 2008 11:13AM
That's pretty cool. If a composer could control an ensemble of these, that would be really cool.
SurKaz @ May 16th 2008 11:40AM
That is cool,
Even if they were all preprogrammed to perform excactly in sync, still good. They actually played the music pretty well..
And the music was quite catchy.. Lupin IIIrd you say?. That cartoon show?.. It had this catchy music?..
Gotta watch it now..
Magallanes @ May 16th 2008 11:56AM
Welcome to the bottom deep of the uncanny valley.
Dave @ May 16th 2008 11:59AM
Those things seriously give me the jibblies.
kyle allen @ May 16th 2008 2:37PM
"come on in here!!"
DilRod @ May 16th 2008 6:00PM
Who said they were not moving their fingers? Look closer dude.
jackkerouac127 @ May 17th 2008 8:42PM
I saw the robot trumpet player up close (ten feet) last year at the toyota Grand Prix here in town. As a music teacher, I was curious to see what was going on up close. What I can tell you is that there is no buzzing whatsoever. The mouthpiece is is not a real mouthpiece. As the robot dude brought the trumpet to his "mouth," a small tube popped out of the mouthpiece and inserted into the hole in his face. What that means, I have no idea except that it wasn't the real thing. The "performance" was actually kinda boring after the first minute. About as exciting as watching my coffee pot brew coffee.