Waldo
Definition
Waldo was a short story by Robert A. Heinlein originally published in Astounding Magazine in August 1942 under the pseudonym Anson MacDonald.[1] It describes a disabled man who crafts for himself an exoskeleton that grants him great powers.
The cybersuit exoskeletons made for soldiers were all designed around the concept of the Waldo.
"Waldo put his arms into the primary pair before him; all three pairs, including the secondary pair before the machine, came to life. Waldo flexed and extended his fingers gently; the two pairs of waldoes in the screen followed in exact, simultaneous parallelism".[2]
When people think of cyborgs - they always think of hardware, not software. When really it's that balance and boundary. WHen it becomes most interesting. Is at the boundary between hardware and software, hardware software and wetware. Which is why user interface design is such an essential and challenging profession.
Waldo-Like Technologies
Tmsuk T52 Enryu Support Dragon Hyper Rescue Robot
- Enryu, a telefactoring rescue robot capable of lifting steel girders and tearing the doors off cars, was demonstrated to the press yesterday.
Robonaut Performs Hubble Space Telescope Repair Tasks
- Robonaut is a dexterous humanoid telepresence robot developed by NASA. The intent of the project is to have an "EVA astronaut equivalent" on station in space.
RAPUD Robotic Arm Helps Disabled Reach
- Robert Heinlein also thought about robotics for the disabled; we're catching up.
Robonaut Performs Hubble Space Telescope Repair Tasks
- Robonaut is a dexterous humanoid telepresence robot developed by NASA. The intent of the project is to have an "EVA astronaut equivalent" on station in space.
Robonaut Centaur At NextFest 2006
- The remarkable Robonaut telepresence robot is now available in a new form.
Heinlein's Giant Waldo Comes To Life
- Engineers and scrap metal artists worked hard to bring this enormous robotic hand to life.
