Karakuri Ningyō

A few weeks ago I was doing some research on automata when I happened upon this video and I thought it would be really cool to share it here. The karakuri in this video was made sometime in the mid 1800s by Hisashige Tanaka, the first president of Toshiba group. Because of this, karakuri ningyo are an important precursor of modern Japanese robotics and technology. Apparently many forms of Japanese theater and puppetry were heavily influenced by the movements of these dolls, most of which are still functioning nearly 200 years later.

Some more information about karakuri ningyo:

"Robotic Karakuri Doll Brings the 19th Century Back to Life"

http://www.karakuri.info/about.html

Karakuri ningyo


Tess