Angry Bird robots on show at the Beijing International High Tech Expo
Robots modeled after the characters in the popular mobile game Angry Birds were controlled over Wi-Fi at the Beijing International High Tech Expo this week.
To see the robots in action, watch them on YouTube.
The robots create their own wireless network, allowing smartphones to connect to and control them. Developers said that products based on the wireless-network-control technology will be out this summer and will work with all the major smartphone operating systems.
Angry Birds is a popular game on iOS and Android devices where the player needs to slingshot birds into enemy pigs.
Other robots that attracted a crowd were able to perform a synchronized dance and do other stunts like headstands. Each part of the robot could also be individually controlled by a laptop.
Another project gave control of a toy car to a tablet. It appeared as if the tablet's accelerometer controlled the car, as tilting the tablet would cause the motorized toy to move in the same direction.
The exhibitor of the tablet-controlled car said that the software was so simple that even children could program it.
"This can test children's knowledge of machinery, electrical and electronic appliances and computer science," said the exhibitor of the robots.
The High Tech Expo takes place every May in Beijing and organizers place attendance around 300,000.
Nick Barber covers general technology news in both text and video for IDG News Service. E-mail him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter at @nickjb.
