CES Robot Roundup, Part 2

Most of the robots on display in the robotics section at the CES Sands Innovation exhibition involved some kind of programmability, which is of course a good thing -- robots you can't customize are no fun, and when they can program themselves all sorts of bad things happen.

Lego has had a considerable head start with their Mindstorms kit, but that hasn't deterred another longtime maker of kids' construction toys from getting in on some robo-action. No, not Lincoln Logs (though that might be kinda cool) -- I'm referring to Erector sets (or, as they're known everywhere else in the world, Meccano).

Compared to the techno-menagerie that makes up the Mindstorms family, Erector is starting fairly modestly, with a "WiFi spy robot" named Spyke. Much like the robots I wrote about yesterday, Spyke can play music and roam around the house, keeping an eye on things with its webcam. Two bonuses: Spyke can also be used as a Skype/MSN/Google Talk phone, and the Spyke family is compatible with standard Erector parts. And, as its tagline implies, Spyke can be controlled over an Internet connection via its Wi-Fi connection.

At the other end of the spectrum is the Robotis Bioloid construction kit, which includes servos, a variety of sensor modules, controllers and a number of parts so that you can build your own robotic creatures. The Robotis website includes examples of dinosaurs, puppies, and -- excuse me while I barricade the windows -- spiders. The included Motion Editor software seems a bit more complicated, but given the degree of flexibility that all these components give you, that's to be expected. It looks to me like the days of Anakin Skywalker building C-3PO aren't that far off.