Welcome to Robbie the Robot's page!

Here are 50 words to paint a picture of what this project entails.

Conversations have always tried to be mimicked by computers. However, In order for a human-machine conversation to occur successfully, the proper use and interpretation of words is needed through natural language processing and speech synthesis. This is demonstrated through the development of a new computer program, Robbie the Robot.



Robbie the Robot is a computer program for Mac OS 10.5 designed by Erin Kennedy. This computer program demonstrates a human-machine conversation using speech synthesis and natural language processing. With the use of language models and pre-programmed responses, Robbie has the ability to converse for a long time, while being able to reflect on past responses, then slowly transition into new sub-conversations. In Mickey Mouse terms... Robbie is kind of like a Furby, however has less potential to become exceedingly annoying. It comes off as more intelligent, too. (No offence Furbys!)

Potential future uses of Robbie include:
  • Assisting children with autism to communicate
  • Using pre-programmed phrases that have a calming effect on pets
  • Allowing household staff to communicate with Robbie via VoIP
  • Serving as a vocal interface for people who are deaf
  • Helping people with Alzheimer's to keep their memory intact with precise quizzes and games
  • Assisting the communication between divers and people on the surface
  • Creating an accessable and simple emergency device for communication and conversation
  • Allowing a portable unit to navigate into dangerous situations and communicate
  • Communicating with undiscovered life-forms
  • Allowing military personnel to receive to receive live vocal updates
  • Allowing the creation of amiable robots
  • Personal laboratory assistant
  • Therepeutic devices in a stuffed animal for children


There are many reasons why you should download Robbie, which includes...
  • Observing this technology, and interacting with it vocally, puts computers on a whole new scale.
  • You will be surprised how witty Robbie can be.
  • If you're feeling down, Robbie can help cheer you up as it also serves as a therapeutic device.
  • By downloading it, and completing the survey, you allow me to see what I can improve on.
  • Robbie simply looks cool!


Video!




Full-res Quicktime Video (56.1 MB)


Download Robbie


System Requirements
  • 12 MB Free space
  • Mac OS 10.5 (Leopard)
  • Microphone & Speakers
  • Using the Alex voice (Set in Speech Preferences)

As a side-note, Robbie uses a big chunk (2.97 +- 0.03 GB) of virtual memory.

DOWNLOAD!



Contact Erin Kennedy || Visit Blog || Complete Survey || Robbie's Page