Murata Boy
Murata, a Japanese company invested in electronic components, has put their technology to better use with Murata Boy – the world’s first bicycling robot. Standing 50cm tall and weighing about 5kg, Murata Boy can travel at a speed up to 2km/hour. The goal was not to go as fast as possible, but rather to maintain perfect balance at all times. Murata Boy costs about as much as a car, but he was developed for PR purposes so price was never a consideration. Amazingly, Murata can balance on the bike moving forwards, backwards, and when remaining still (without planting his feet on the ground). He manages this feat using a gyro sensor located underneath his bicycle seat, which detects minute changes to his center of gravity. A rotating disc in his chest generates the necessary force to correct any slanting. TIME listed him in their list of Best Inventions of 2006.
Murata Boy has a camera located in his head which allows him to track his position very precisely. For example, he can steer the bicycle along a winding S-curve balance beam only 2cm wide without falling off. Using two ultrasound sensors located on his chest, he can avoid obstacles and even come to a full stop while maintaining his balance. Meanwhile, a shock sensor detects impacts to the body caused by bumps or uneveness in the road and sends signals to the control circuit.
Like the rest of us, Murata Boy originally used training wheels before mastering the technique. All of these components are built by Murata, making Murata Boy a great showpiece for their technology. Most of these technologies are applied to equipment in various fields including mobile, home electronics, and automotive industry. Murata Boy’s life goal is to ride around the world, and his motto is: “When you fall off a bicycle, get right back on!“
At CEATEC 2008, Murata Manufacturing unveiled Murata Girl along with a new controller that controlled Murata Boy’s movement. Called the Magic stick, the controller operated similar to the Wii remote using both pointer and tilt functionality to make Murata Boy move around.
Murata Girls
Unveiled in 2005, Murata Manufacturing’s bicycling robot mascot Murata Boy is so popular that his legion of fans have demanded they build him a companion. ”Why isn’t there a Murata Girl?” they asked, and so development began in late 2007, and finally on September 23rd 2008, Murata unveiled Murata Seiko-chan (Murata Girl). Supposedly the paternal cousin of Murata Boy, Murata Girl rides a unicycle instead of a bike. She is 50cm tall and weighs 5kg. Her outward appearance, meant to evoke a tomboyish kindergartner, was designed by a trio of female employees who brought a feminine touch to the drawing board.
Murata Girl maintains her balance in similar fashion to Murata Boy; using gyroscopic sensors to detect minute shifts in her posture. Then, a fly wheel in her chest revolves to compensate for any changes that might cause her to fall. She can move forwards, backwards, and avoid obstacles, but she sometimes falls down. So far, she can travel at a rate of 15cm a second and can balance on a 2cm wide beam. Development continues to improve her functionality.
Besides demonstrating Murata Manufacturing’s electronic components, Murata Girl serves to broaden interest in the sciences amongst students young and old alike. Several engineers working at the company were inspired to apply after seeing Murata Boy.
