Yokohama Giant Spider
Was in the Yokohama area picking your table but didn't know about this event - if I did then I could have stopped by as it was held at Akaranga which was in the same area.
Hector also took some great photos too. Would be interesting to see this in the middle of Tokyo - Ginza maybe?
Original text from gordon below.
You have seen the giant mecha beetle now check out his good friend from across the ocean.
Meet La Princess, a 15m mechanical spider by French production company La Machine. Constructed in Liverpool, England, the giant mecha spider was in Yokohama yesterday April 19 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the opening of the Port of Yokohama.
More pics at flickr by cabcab.
Princess in action. (Video is by the same person, cabcab, who took the pictures above and at flickr)
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Otaku, CNS / IT student
Holy mother of Konata, thats WICKED! If only the hydraulics could function faster so that it'd move quicker.
Design Student
http://wraith11.deviantart.com/
Haha, nice... kinda gave me a Wild Wild West flashback though ---> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-WdWbHYsFo
銀河帝国五〇一軍团 TK/TD 8316 M.E.P.D. Police Sergeant
http://gordonator.com/
yup that and also half life 2. ^^;
I.T.
http://www.groovydrift.com
if it was purple, it would kinda remind me of that scarab in HALO
Student
Half Life 2 is what popped into my mind at first.
Dance Trooper: DCX-001 O.D.E. (Order of the Dancing Empire)
http://dannychoo.com.my
O_O Stare in awe~~~~~
Remind me of the giant bugs in Half Life 2...
hobbyist snapper
reminds me of dr loveless spider in the movie wild wild west.
銀河帝国五〇一軍团 TK/TD 8316 M.E.P.D. Police Sergeant
http://gordonator.com/
do check out the high res pics at flickr for the sophisticated mechanical designs, especially the legs. simply awesome.
student / NEET
fire a rocket!!!!!
its a giant spider!!!!!
銀河帝国五〇一軍团 TK/TD 8316 M.E.P.D. Police Sergeant
http://gordonator.com/
wouldn't a giant shoe or giant newspaper be more appropriate? ('~')
Sniper
http://1254lifejournal.wordpress.com
How about bug spray or sticky paper ?
Free lancer/gunner for hire
http://gunstray.blogspot.com/
Hax 20X size...Still ineffective
Otaku Programmer/Gamer/Artist/Photographer
http://argylebolivar.wordpress.com
OH MY HARUHI!!!!! >__< THIS IS MORE EPIC THAN THE MECHA BEETLE!!!!! >___< =3 lololo
Student/ Anime Club Leader at St. Joseph Secondary
http://haruhiist.blogspot.com/
Epic Indeed!
Web developer
I disagree despite the technical achievement this is, the obvious support truck in its behind ruins it entirely for me :(
university film student | ecchikid | the Archivist
http://www.vimeo.com/longhim
Agreed. That, and they likely had more funding and technology available than the old man in his garage.
Student, Uncle & hopfully a good husband..
So that was what it was...very cool looking...
Student, part-time Haruhi wannabe (that bit about godhood etc)
http://www.aprilius20.com
Found myself thinking about Starship Troopers^^;
Saw this in the papers today. Just too bad it can't walk on those legs without extra support.
studying comp studies, planning to look for part time job
http://bruneian-otaku.blogspot.com
Oh! my goddess O.O
Student~
http://kiddokid.wordpress.com/
reminds me of tachikoman...
Scientist, unemployed.
http://fmphoenixhawk.livejournal.com
It does, kind of. I wonder if this is one of the Tachikoma's mechas for their Super Sentai series?
Otaku / Student in Networking
http://hayasaki-kun.blogspot.com/
Wow ^_^ But it looks ugly lol xD
Network Specialist by day, Otaku by some other time
Spiders should look ugly and creepy ...
studying comp studies, planning to look for part time job
http://bruneian-otaku.blogspot.com
but they are awesome when spider become mecha ^o^
Free lancer/gunner for hire
http://gunstray.blogspot.com/
Tachikomas are cute though^^
University Student
Haha, this was in Liverpool near me a few months ago, but I missed it by a few hours! Dang!
Polytechnic Junior, Bronze Lifesaving Trainee, Mech Designer In-training.
http://thehangerbay.wordpress.com/
The dawn of combat mecha grow ever closer...
Pseudo-Graphic Designer, 触手 wrangler, H-Man
http://lightningsabre.blogspot.com/
Kabuto vs Spider so far... and not too mention that 1/1 Gundam they're building >.>
Student
it would be a awesome fight
Designer
http://kyoricasorochi.blogspot.com/
OMG.. I have been cheated... I thought it can move by itself without the crane behind... it will be real awesome if it can move by itself.
Student (mad scientist in training)
My thoughts exactly. It shouldn't be too difficult to automatize the movements of the legs, it has been done in small scale.
Polytechnic Junior, Bronze Lifesaving Trainee, Mech Designer In-training.
http://thehangerbay.wordpress.com/
It is possible, but they have no way to balance it. Its legs can't move as fast as a real spider's to compensate.
Though... they could just install wheels and make the world's first Tachikoma. XD
student
http://zephi-san.deviantart.com/
ah I saw this on TV, would love to be able to see it in person.
First thing which came to my mind when I first saw this was half-life 2 tripod things.
For 8 weeks im a NEET
O god theres a big fat spider. WE ALLLLL DOOOMED. XD thats sooo cool.
http://pantsukudasai.deviantart.com/
I was tossed into the pits of disappointment the moment I saw that it was being carried by a crane >_>
三年せいとオタク
First thing that popped into my head was the movie Wild Wild West...
Freelance Digital Production Artist
http://www.flickr.com/photos/victor_lee/sets/
LOL!!! Same here. Where is Will Smith?
Student, Otaku, She-Geek(Sheek lol)
http://meimi132.wordpress.com/
Thats a rather random way to celebrate an opening of something... unless it was a zoo that specialised in Spiders lol. Very cool though.... Glad it was made in the UK lol.
Geotechnical Engineer
OMG! Freakin hell!
Programmer
http://knime.wordpress.com
The people on the legs, are they controlling each leg? o_O Soh synchronized :D must be fun control something huge like this one.
-1
http://necrophadian.blogspot.com/
rather lame an unimpressive. -_- i can see the crane supporting it. We're still a long way from giant robot crabs armed with lasers.
Student
http://foxkey.blog126.fc2.com/
I enjoyed the giant mecha beetle more because I feel it was more of an accomplishment, as in 1 man built his giant beetle in a decade AND it could support itself and not use a crane.
Student
http://blueplains.wordpress.com/
O.O I knew the Japanese were gonna take over the world with mechs xD
銀河帝国五〇一軍团 TK/TD 8316 M.E.P.D. Police Sergeant
http://gordonator.com/
this one is by the french and english. ('~')
Space Pirate
So thats why it needs lifting support O.o
But seriously, even with the support arm its damn impressive, massive machine :P
Online Shop
http://wildarms.egloos.com
Attack of the killer mecha spider, oh boy!
Pokemon master
http://thecococafe.wordpress.com/
How come I thought of War of the Worlds when I watched this. It must seem like an alien ship or something.
university film student | ecchikid | the Archivist
http://www.vimeo.com/longhim
I thought of War of the Worlds as well - it's not an alien ship. It's the tripod walkers. The circular design supported by thin legs is very similar, but more importantly its slow, creepy movement is very reminscient of War of the Worlds. Particularly if you're referring to the most recent movie adaptation.
Pokemon master
http://thecococafe.wordpress.com/
Ah, I see it now. I actually haven't seen the newer version, only the first. (And heard the radio reading that scared everyone half to death. :P )
College Freshmen
If they make a whole army of these they can scare off any potential attackers.
Computer Engineering Student
http://www.killer-tofu.com
Very epic. I saw this earlier today on Hector's site. I am so glad things like this exist in the world.
Studio Bleach founder/owner
http://myspace.com/studiobleach
Alright... I am going to need that, and three California-based DC members to team up with me.
My plan is to use it to storm Fox's studio and find the people who hired the director, screen writers, and producers for the Dragonball movie. I want to find out why they allowed what could have been an interesting variant of the Japanese franchise and allowed it to be dulled down.
Other than that... Que schweet. :3
SOS Brigade Leader
Haha good and I would try helping you for your journey
University's Slave
It's Shelob, run! Lol, my mom would hate those. XD
To those who are bothered by the support: looking at their movements, I think these are designed more as puppets than stand-alone robots. Getting something like that to balance on its own, at least at this point in time, would likely severely compromise their flexibility and expressive capability, which seems to be what they're after.
Reminds me of these awesome puppet bird things I saw at a renaissance fair and later at the San Diego Zoo, but those birds had no electrical components whatsoever--in fact, as I recall they were made entirely out of wood and leather. I wish I could link to a video of them, but I'm not even sure what they're called. The puppeteer stood on stilts inside this wooden bird and pulled on levers to move the bird around, and then they had fake stuffed human legs dangling down the sides so it would look like the puppeteer was riding them. They were awesome!
University's Slave
Ah, with a bit of extra google-fu, I found out they're called Cirikli Stilt Birds. Unfortunately, it seems not many people have recorded video of them. :( The only video I found on YouTube only had about 30 seconds worth of just one of them halfway through.
graphic designer, dog groomer
http://www.kilmerhansen.com
That creeps me out. The legs look perfect.
Consultant
http://www.justin.tv/denshaotoko
For some reason while watching this my mind was yelling "NOOOOOOO!!!"
Have we learned nothing from Sarah Conor?!?
Ah, man, I was so stoked until I saw that gay-ass crane.
JR. College Student
http://npc.talkingincircles.net/
Aw I didn't even notice it until now. lol darn.
Student
Me too
NEET part-time - Technical Support Officer - Network security engineer
http://burugureibi.blogspot.com/
ooh, didn't realise they went to japan too!
Professional Panhandler
http://theinfernoproject.com
I wonder what would happen if the legs snapped...let's hope the pilots have safety harnesses ^^ Would be interesting to see a battle with the mecha beetle.
Pseudo-Graphic Designer, 触手 wrangler, H-Man
http://lightningsabre.blogspot.com/
I can't see the video yet, but from what I'm hearing it's a bit different than the mecha beetle. Now can it be remote controlled like the Kabuto?
JR. College Student
http://npc.talkingincircles.net/
Saw this on Japan probe -- really really cool. I would like to see it move with less people around it though, I want to know how fast it can walk!
CG artist
http://www.kapoueblog.com
Lot of beautiful photos of this event on the french blog : lejapon.fr
http://www.lejapon.fr/blog/index.php?2009/04/19/821-pre-festivites-des-150-ans-de-yokohama-des-creatures-francaises-envahissent-la-ville
government
http://www.unclehos.blogspot.com
niceeeeee.
by the way say the pictures in flickr and i have to say it is really complex and i do think it is the largest 6 legged robot to be built and is fully operational. pity that it's power and hydrolics generator is not integrated into the chasis. if it was, then it would be totally mobile.
i wonder how much does it weights without including the power packs that it is dragging?
in the last pic in flickr the robot is spraying sumting out of its behind what is it?
Ninja / Engineer / Sensei / 魔法少女 (What!?! I can't be, I'm a guy...)
The days of mechas seem to be getting closer and closer...
GIS Tech
http://hamstercorp.blogspot.com
I see Arachnos has managed to find a way out of City of Heroes...
http://vivato.blogspot.com/
Japan gonna have a bug battle soon.
the previous giant beetle vs this giant spider
Drug testing
Yah I had seen that yesterday in another blog, it's pretty huge.
representative and graphic artist
very wild wild west! thinking that the driver should had worn a cowboy hat. lol!
no way! sugoi!!
student
Wooooooooooooooooooow!!!
Young Grasshopper
http://miragestrike.blogspot.com
Big spider is big!
Reminds me of the Reavers in GoW.. ^^;
99th Emperor of the Holy Britannian Empire
http://ccwantsmorepizza.blogspot.com/
who would win the battle of the giant mech insects?
i feel as though they're gonna become aware of themselves and they'll start attacking the city, like terminator. when that time comes, we'll need godzilla
Nurse
all we need now are gundams!
Nendo Exhibitionist
http://www.kodomut.com
I would want a minature version as an RC toy (:
unemployed
http://finehart.com/
Now all we need is a giant Gundam to chase after it. lol:)
Student, Anime artist
http://www.tonee89.deviantart.com
Wow, it's like real life Half-life 2
Anime addict
COOOOOOOOOL! I wants one haha, wonder how much it cost to build.
Student
Woah cool. I wonder if there's going to be a Bug Wars soon, with the beetle and now spider.
Student
Heh, this shouldn't be so unfamiliar for science-minded Canadians. It was featured on the show 'Daily Planet' about a year back.
Doesn't make it any less awesome, though.
Head Lackey and Scape Goat
For the first few seconds of the vid I actually thought the machine was self-propelled. That woulda been epic!
Math Teacher/Tutor
How many people did they need to operate it? I'm counting at least 11 people on that thing, one for each leg I'm assuming and a few people up top.
銀河帝国五〇一軍团 TK/TD 8316 M.E.P.D. Police Sergeant
http://gordonator.com/
plus the crane operator and the driver as well.
Student & Game Designer
http://www.artificialzeromedia.com/
those legs look a lot like that of a strider (hl2)
Your local Otaku Cashier.
Now if only it was a strider instead of a spider.
CG artist, Sunrise Emotion
http://halcyonrealms.com
Totally wicked. How long will the spider be in Yokohama ?
銀河帝国五〇一軍团 TK/TD 8316 M.E.P.D. Police Sergeant
http://gordonator.com/
i'm afraid she's already gone. was in yokohama from 16 to 19th April.
That was just a free exhibition, the real one would last until september.
http://event.yokohama150.org/event/bayside/detail1.html
銀河帝国五〇一軍团 TK/TD 8316 M.E.P.D. Police Sergeant
http://gordonator.com/
thanks for the info. ^^;
Physical Therapist
http://www.flyingpussyfoot.com
Sweet Jesus in a bag!
Now thats awesome!They need to build some other monsters aswell and battle it out in the streets of tokyo
anime + games collector
cool i saw a similiar one over in liverpool.
anime/cosplay events organizer
http://www.cosplay.ph
wow. those are beautiful and a sight to behold.
truly a mecha marvels
That is very cool.
Reminds me of the alien robots in the movie 'War of The Worlds'.
ダメ人間, ひきこもり
the first step to designing a giant robot that can properly walk. maybe something like a 4-legged-robot will come out first though. or wait, why don't they design a guntank? that one doesn't need excessive engineering calculation for stabilizing power to the leg to make the robot stand!!! :)
Just a Passing-Through Otaku, Remember That
http://hobbychaos.blogspot.com
Cooool~
US Navy Sailor
http://punynari.wordpress.com/
That's so cool. Hope they show those off again and I can be there. Tokyo would be awesome. Imagines those spiders walking through Shibuya. ^_^
gigantic spider is that another transformers !!!
http://robototoro.wordpress.com/
Wow I can't believe this was built in Liverpool. It looks like it came straight out of Cyberpunk anime.
Figurine Enthusiast, Uni Student
SUGOIIIIIIIIIIIIII ^^:
Anime Store Owner, artist, Web master
http://www.chucksanimeshrine.com
Holy Crap!! That thing actually walks! Big mechs FTW
Anime Store Owner, artist, Web master
http://www.chucksanimeshrine.com
oh, wait...its got a mechanical support in the back...no matter, awesome ^_^
Student and full-time otaku
Cool. But it's a shame these things still need a pivot for support; would be absolutely awesome if it could completely walk by itself ^^
mouse clicker
japanes thing's always amazing....LOL
I never really liked spiders...
こうこうせい
http://stickymochi.blogspot.com
Agreed. :|
hitman (still in school)
wow!!!! that is ASOME!!!
Photographer
http://www.petecarr.net
I photographed this when it was in Liverpool last year. It was simply incredible. When it was sleeping on the side of a building it did remind me of a Tachikoma. Seeing it wander around the city was something else though. Took a few pictures - http://petecarr.net/personal/la-machine/
IT Engineer
I was in Liverpool whilst it was there and for few days leading up to the event it was being used for it was suspended from the side of the office block directly opposite the station.
Not what you expect to see when getting of a train.
Student
OMG wow that pretty cool something like from a movie
Student, health worker
http://www.bitterbrownieprince.deviantart.com
Amazing! Especially when the smoke is released and it's legs are crawling through.
Not sure I would be too happy to step out of my house and find this one morning, haha.
こうこうせい
http://stickymochi.blogspot.com
Pretty awesome :D
I'd think it would be a bit scary to be at the top... though it's probably perfectly safe. (since they're at the top)
Student
is this spider actually walking by itself or is it supported and pushed by the black ladder thing attached to it ?
I work at the hangar beside the airport
i wish spiderman was there..
schooling of the college type
i think spiderman would get a hardon for that thing, haha.
Engineering ways to take over the world.
That is so cool, now it will be only a matter or time when we have giant Gundams flying around
.NET/Web Developer
http://scrumptious.animeblogger.net
Holy Cow! That thing actually works. Must be a pain to ship that thing.
Can't wait for the next decade or two for a gundam to show up. ^^
Limousine Driver
This is one of the things i love about Japan. Only in Japan would people run TOWARD the giant spider!
schooling of the college type
it's crazy how big that thing is! now we're *this* much closer to a Metal Gear lol
Student, Performer
http://kesenaitsumi89.wordpress.com/
It's weight didn't seemed to be supporting by it's leg....
Student
I think spiders get big enough already, no need to aid the process.