Plen is a small desktop hobby robot that is only sold in Japan, unfortunately the official website (www.plen.jp) is almost all in Japanese - but here is some info on this brilliant little robot..
He can roller skate and skateboard impressively, controlled wirelessly using a mobile phone with Bluetooth connectivity you can direct Plen around, get him to pick things up & carry things around or chuck the item aside, or kick it away. He also has a USB socket to enable you to connect him up to your computer and program in new actions & movements.
The Plen bot is 23cm tall and weighs in at 700grams, it's tiny size enables it to pull off tricks that it's bigger robot cousins like Asimo would never dream of. It is easily a contender for Asimo's crown of the most advanced humanoid robot, We're well impressed with Plen's balance while roller skating & skateboarding, it can even get back on it's feet when it falls over.
Plen is sold in Japan for ¥250,000 Yen - which converts to a pricey £1,050 GBP ($2,050 USD or €1,575 EUR). There are no known plans to release Plen to the wider world, which is a great shame as despite the high price it's worth it for the amount of work that has gone into the making of Plen, and the things that the robot can achieve.
Inside Plen, powering it's brain, is a 33Mhz 32bit ARM7 processor, connected to a 3-axis accelerometer to control it's movement. Complete with USB and Bluetooth interfaces for easy connectivity to your PC/Laptop and mobile phone.
Cute looks and smooth human-like movements are a winning combination for this little guy. Have a look at the pictures & videos on the right.
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Pictures of Plen:
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Videos of Plen:
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Plen kicking a ball at CES 2007
Plen skating & skateboarding
Plen roller skating
Plen walks to & lifts a box
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