Modulus

Domestic Robot

Design: Isao Hosoe with donato Greco, Ann Marinelli and Alessio Pozzoli

Production: Sirius, Italy, 1986

Awards and recognitions:  XIV Compasso D’Oro Selection, 1986

 

I was asked to develop a domestic robot when the market of the personal computers was saturated in the ‘80s. After various experiments I was directed to a formal and functional stratification. I decided on a human form. I was trying to develop the communicative expressions of “the face”, to make it acceptable within the family.

Modulus is comprised of three modular units; the base unit with drafting and vacuum cleaner accessories, the home security/service unit, which performs functions such as smoke/gas/water detection, acoustic direction finder, meteorologic system and voice synthesizer, and the human-like unit that has moving arms and gripping hands, a body that can turn and bow, and that has slots for an alphanumeric display and a head with graphic displays, programmable for expressions.

The client was extremely excited and unfortunately the company folded before the end of the project.