a history of cybernetic animals and early robots
During 1933, engineer's were determining how the Golden Gate Bridge[1] was to be built. Source: Modern Mechanix and Inventions, Dec 1933. One engineer's suggestion for the solution of the problem of sinking caissons[2] is depicted here in this picture of a "walking bridge." Definite placement of caissons has always been an engineering bugaboo when they are …
Read More “1933 – Giant Walking Bridge – M. Clemients (French)”
I first saw this mentioned in David M. Earle's interesting book titled "Re-Covering Modernism: Pulps, Paperbacks, and the Prejudice of Form", but John Ptak's recent post reminded me of it. I have used his image of the prototype walking machine. The model of King Grey, the Electric Titan. Although called "Electric", the motive power is …
Read More “1916 – “King Grey” the Electric Titan – Fern Pieper (American)”
Aizawa's Remote Controlled Train (Popular Mechanics, Nov, 1936) article was popularised in blog.modernmechanix.com . Sadly, Jiro Aizawa was not named as the inventor in the article. Robot Engine Built in Japan Is Driven by Remote Control Automatic train control is understood to be a feature of a mysterious robot locomotive model built in Japan. Streamlined, but of a …
Read More “1936 – Robot Remote Controlled Train – Jiro Aizawa (Japanese)”
Ft. Lauderdale – TOMATON and his creator Lenny Schectman. July 1979. Tomaton, short for Automaton, is 6-foot tall. Lenny Schectman became involved in robotics mainly because of his interest in technology allowing the brain to be tapped to signal function in limbs of paraplegics and quadraplegics. He wanted to enter the biomedical engineering field but lacked …
Read More “1979 – “Tomaton” the Robot – Lenny Schectman (American)”
Source: (I've lost and been unable to relocate the source to this image. Please contact me if you do know the source.) This early Robot may have been in the Boston area in 1935. It looks capable of standing and sitting, raising and lowering either arm, and appears to have microphones in its ears. Like most …