Cute snout robot on roof of the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

Here's a neat video of a funny robot on the roof of the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts. The robot was made by Golan Levin with Lawrence Hayhurst, Steven Benders and Fannie White.

"Double-Taker (Snout)" (interactive installation, 2008) deals in a whimsical manner with the themes of trans-species eye contact, gestural choreography, subjecthood, and autonomous surveillance. The project consists of an eight-foot (2.5m) long industrial robot arm, costumed to resemble an enormous inchworm or elephant's trunk, which responds in unexpected ways to the presence and movements of people in its vicinity. Sited on a low roof above a museum entrance, and governed by a real-time machine vision algorithm, Double-Taker (Snout) orients itself towards passers-by, tracking their bodies and suggesting an intelligent awareness of their activities. The goal of this kinetic system is to perform convincing "double-takes" at its visitors, in which the sculpture appears to be continually surprised by the presence of its own viewers — communicating, without words, that there is something uniquely surprising about each of us.

Double-Taker (Snout)

[#1 posted by Chris L, August 13, 2008 11:32 AM]

Big Brother is cute! Such a cool idea and even better in action.

[#2 posted by Axx, August 13, 2008 11:42 AM]

That is really, really cute. I imagine surprised "Scooby noises" for each double take.

[#3 posted by t3knomanser, August 13, 2008 11:51 AM]

Huh. That's right down the street from me. I still haven't gotten over to the Center of the Arts despite having lived in walking distance for a year.

[#4 posted by Agies, August 13, 2008 11:57 AM]

Hey. I got married there!

[#5 posted by ivoras, August 13, 2008 1:05 PM]

In other words, people will tolerate surveillance as long as it's presented in a form of a funny cartoonish character? :)

[#6 posted by DaPhinoXX, August 13, 2008 1:06 PM]

Why does the building look like it is made out of legos?

[#7 posted by tboot, August 13, 2008 1:34 PM]

Still waiting for the Spit-Take Snout.

[#8 posted by Drew from Zhrodague, August 13, 2008 3:39 PM]

golan has a suprisingly long history of extremely interesting projects, including the Pittsburgh chapter of dorkbot - http://dorkbot.org/dorkbotpgh

[#9 posted by scionofgrace, August 13, 2008 3:43 PM]

Oh, how cute! I think I'd laugh every time I went past.

[#10 posted by Chris L, August 14, 2008 9:12 AM]

#5: Yes.

Oh GOD, YES.

Actually, that would be a pretty good sci-fi premise.