Research Output
The Death and Lives of hitchBOT: The Design and Implementation of a Hitchhiking Robot
  In the early morning hours of 1 August 2015, as it waited for its next ride on a Philly park bench, unknown assailants destroyed hitchBOT. Arms torn from its body, legs broken, gutted of its electronics, it was left discarded in a park, minus its smiley-face LED head. Around the world headlines announced the death of a much-loved robot, children and adults shed tears, haters hated on Philadelphia, cartoonists and musicians paid tribute, journalists wrote obituaries and the publicly minded rallied to support a rebuild. The authors share the story of the life and times of their creation, hitchBOT the hitchhiking robot.

  • Type:

    Article

  • Date:

    28 February 2017

  • Publication Status:

    Published

  • DOI:

    10.1162/LEON_a_01354

  • ISSN:

    0024-094X

  • Funders:

    Historic Funder (pre-Worktribe)

Citation

Smith, D. H., & Zeller, F. (2017). The Death and Lives of hitchBOT: The Design and Implementation of a Hitchhiking Robot. Leonardo, 50(1), 77-78. https://doi.org/10.1162/LEON_a_01354

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