NASA will attempt to send a pair of astronauts to space aboard Boeing’s Starliner aircraft for the first time soon, but not today. As the the astronauts settled into place, officials scrubbed Monday night’s planned launch attempt at around 8:30PM ET, due to “a faulty oxygen relief valve observation” on the ULA Atlas V rocket’s Centaur second stage. Another launch window is available on Tuesday night, but it’s unclear whether they will be able to reset that quickly.

The launch was scheduled to take place at 10:34PM ET from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, with a livestream available on NASA’s YouTube channel.

The United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket will propel the Starliner aircraft to space, where it will stay at the ISS for one week. While on board, flight commander Butch Wilmore and pilot Suni Williams will test the Starliner’s capabilities, including launching, docking, and its eventual return to Earth.

Boeing built the Starliner as part of its $4.2 billion contract with NASA, which encourages the development of new spacecraft from private companies through the agency’s Commercial Crew Program.

If all goes well during this flight, NASA will certify Starliner, allowing it to ferry NASA astronauts between Earth and the ISS. This could make the Starliner a new rival for SpaceX, which has been carrying NASA astronauts to space since 2020.

Update May 6th: Added details about scrubbed Monday night launch attempt.

Some other variations include a big red power switch and the fact that the controller ports are on the left side of the console, rather than centered as they were in the eventual production model. There’s also what looks like the console’s expansion port on the front, rather than the bottom where it lived on the final design. The panel surrounding the controller ports looks yellowed — it wouldn’t be part of the SNES family without that though, would it?

Here’s a gallery of the images from the auction:

Compare that to the final release:

And the terrible thing we ended up with in the US:

Those design touches went out the window for the SNES released in the US, which ended up with a chunky, boxy design that had purple, sliding switches on top instead of the round, sloping, compact design. Nintendo released a revised SNES, the New-Style Super NES, in 1997 that came a little closer, but with a pill-shaped power switch and circular reset button.

Another lost Nintendo prototype showed up a few years ago in the Nintendo / Sony PlayStation that Pets.com founder Greg McLemore bought at an auction — which also had a headphone jack. Two years before that, an unreleased, wired version of the Wiimote that connects to the GameCube was sold in a Japanese auction for $660. The Super Famicom prototype being auctioned today is, as of this writing, sitting at just over one million yen (just shy of $7,000 USD), with more than five days to go.

In a groundbreaking development, researchers have unveiled the impressive capabilities of the Aloha Unleashed project. This project, spearheaded by Stanford Ph.D. student Tony Z. Zhao and assistant professor Chelsea Finn from the Mobile Aloha team, showcases the next level of robotic dexterity.

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The Aloha Unleashed Project

The Aloha Unleashed project builds upon the success of the original Aloha housekeeping robot. Back in January, the research team wowed the world by demonstrating the kitchen skills of an open-source Aloha robot. Now, they’ve taken it a step further, focusing on intricate tasks like knotting shoelaces, hanging shirts and even repairing other robots.

Autonomous robot (Aloha Unleashed project) (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

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Enhancements and innovations

The team behind Aloha Unleashed has made five key upgrades to the robot’s design:

1) Improved manipulator arms: The Aloha 2 manipulator arms are at the heart of this project. These arms have been meticulously developed to enhance performance and durability. Facing pairs of these arms allows for more complex tasks and fleet-scale data collection.

2) Smarter grippers: The scissor mechanism on the grippers has been replaced with a low-friction rail. This modification enables the robot to grasp smaller objects with precision.

3) Advanced cameras: Smaller RealSense cameras with a broader field of view provide better visual input for the robot’s decision-making process.

4) Gravity compensation: A passive gravity compensation setup, using off-the-shelf components, supports leader arms during teleoperation.

5) Simulation model: The team has created an improved simulation model that enhances accuracy and visual fidelity. This model aids in training the robot for various tasks.

Autonomous robot (Aloha Unleashed project) (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

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Autonomous performance and adaptability

Over the past year, researchers have pushed the limits of the Aloha 2 fleet. They’ve released a series of videos showcasing the dual-arm setup autonomously performing tasks.

Autonomous robot (Aloha Unleashed project) (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Tying shoelaces

The manipulator arms deftly tie shoelaces, demonstrating their precision and agility.

Autonomous robot (Aloha Unleashed project) (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Robot repair

The robot assists DeepMind’s SARA-RT model in a fascinating demo by slotting in a replacement gripper/finger. This hints at a future where robots can repair each other autonomously.

Autonomous robot (Aloha Unleashed project) (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

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Hanging a T-shirt

The Aloha manipulators tackle the challenge of getting a T-shirt on a hanger and placing it on a nearby rack. Despite not having specific examples of adult shirts during training, the model generalizes successfully.

Autonomous robot (Aloha Unleashed project) (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

It’s worth noting that the robot adapts to real-time slips and placement issues during the demonstrations.

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Kurt’s key takeaways

The Aloha Unleashed project is an ongoing endeavor with immense potential. As we witness robots seamlessly performing complex tasks, we glimpse a future where automation and adaptability go hand in hand. If you’re intrigued by manipulator action, consider exploring the Aloha research kit available from Trossen Robotics.

What other groundbreaking applications can you envision for dual-arm robot systems like Aloha Unleashed? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.

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