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By Mellissa Block | NPR
This video shows a PR2 robot programmed by designers at UC Berkeley working at six times its actual speed. It takes about six minutes for the robot to fold one towel. Courtesy of Willow Garage/YouTube
Meet Jake. At 500 pounds, he stands 4 feet 4 four inches tall, with a spine that stretches another foot. He has white urethane skin, a flat head sporting an array of camera lenses, and a laser scanner in his throat.
And he may be coming to a home near you.
Jake is a PR2, which stands for “personal robot,” and the brainchild of Willow Garage, a robotics company in Menlo Park, Calif. Founded in 2006, the company is considered one of the most exciting, influential players in the world of personal robotics.
Courtesy of Willow Garage/YouTube
