Titan the Robot is a robot ... in costume | RobotShop Community

Titan the Robot or Gitex the Robot, which I introduced to you last month, is actually an android physically and electronically manipulated from the inside by a human dancer.

There, the myth has been exposed (except for those who already knew it). At times, this seemed a bit obvious because of how


This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://community.robotshop.com/blog/show/titan-the-robot-is-a-robot-in-costume

Are you sure about that? The joints look much too small for a human to be inside of that (even C3PO had relatively large shoulders and knees), and it doesn’t seem to bend at the same places that a human would. Perhaps this is a remote robot, like PUSH at Disney?

It is a costume, we are fairly sure. The joints are very cleverly concealed though, which makes the beauty of the design

Na verdade vcs estao errados. As primeiras versoes eram “trajes”, mas se vc acessar o site do fabricante (http://www.cyberstein.co.uk/) e ler a histĂłria do robo, verĂĄ que eles querem chegar em um robo android sem necessidade de controles, totalmente automono. No momento, o mais avançado, Ă© controlado por um humano sim, mas de longe, com o cara utilizando um daqueles trajes que “mapeiam” oos movimentos do cara.

vale a pena pesquisar antes de afirmar com “certeza” :wink:

Using the broad definition of robots, Titan is a robot (since it has actuators and sensors that are used to interact with the real world). However the current state-of-the-art in robotics is not at the point where a robot can freely walk among people navigating and not stumbling. The description in the site does not contradict in any way that the operator could be actually inside the robot.

In short, Titan is a robot, much like a real-life Iron Man suit would be a robot.

It’s pretty obvious that it is operated by a person inside of it. You can see black tubes thick enough for the operator’s arms to go through, connecting the mid section to the fore arms. There is also a window in the center of the chest. All of the joints line up with that of a human, and gap between the legs is pretty out of proportion compared to the rest of the suit.

It’s remotely operated.

Here’s how it breaks down:

  1. there IS a human in the suit. No autonomous or remotely operated robot that size would be capable of interacting safely with the public at close quarters. The walking about part is handled by the operator.
  2. the entire upper body section - head, shoulders, chest, arms, hands etc. - are worn on the operators shoulders. There is NO direct “puppetry” operation of the arms - the operators elbows must be by their sides to fit in the suit. The head and arms are entirely actuated, NOT just puppeted.
  3. the operator in the suit CAN select a predefined set of movements for the arms and head to perform, e.g. “walk ahead”, “sing ‘What a wonderful world’”, “do the ‘runnin’ away won’t save ya’ catchphrase”, “sing ‘Lady in Red’ to any suitably attired audience member”. If you see Titan perform more than once, you’ll notice the predictability and repeatability of these programmed routines.

In summary, the lower section is a suit, the upper half is a very cool animatronic worn on the operator’s shoulders, they look out the mirrored chest plate and select what pre-programmed movements they want the robot to do. A large part of the illusion when you see it in person is the bowel-shatteringly loud and convincing sound effects coming from the little scooter he arrives on, synced with the movements.

Simon is actually correct about a lot of the “robot,” but the part about the arms being entirely actuated is incorrect. Look carefully and you’ll see black corrugated tubes coming out the sides, right about where the upper arms would be if you use the mirrored chest piece as a guide to located the operator’s head. The human’s arm enters into the lower arm at the operator’s elbow, and the “robot” upper arm is merely attached to the lower arm in such a way that it moves around with the lower arm. This is a far, far more simple setup than actually making the arm movements fully robotic, and gives the operator much more control over movement. The positions where the human joints are are incredibly well hidden in very clever ways, which is really the most genius part of this costume’s design.

1 Like

What do you mean someone is driving the robot? Does that mean someone is inside of the body or they are using a remote control thing?

Thought this was a suit from the start, this doesn’t take away the fantastic enjoyment factor for the kids. Plus, I love to see Titan all the same, tramendous fun

Its remote controlled,believe me,its a scary thing to see

“Titan the robot is the stage name of a costume created by Cyberstein Robots Ltd. in 2004, It is plastic costume worn by a human performer, not a powered exoskeleton.”
"The “suit” is an 8 foot tall machine that is worn by an actor and controlled partially through body movement and partially through remote control.

The actor inside is standing on several inches of lift boots but his legs do extend through most of the suits legs. The outer portion around the hips and the hinge joints is wider than the actor and serves to make it appear robotic. But the legs are completely human powered which is why it is capable of such precision and fluid movement."
What I DONT understand is, Cyperstein Robots actually built a working prototype robot a couple of years back of Titan but still use the “guy in the suit” version for shows, I assume its because of the high costs of building multiple of these robots and maintaining them.

Titan is a man in a suit, but Atlas from Boston Dynamics is not. (Search for Boston Dynamics Atlas 2015 on youtube) That’s one scary dude. Skynet going online will be the next step
 :slight_smile:

Definitely a human inside to control the leg movements. Until now full robotic humanoid movement is very basic not as agile as Titan. A thick waist indicate a human inside.

I honestly think that it should stay a costume, part of the amusement of the act, in my opinion.

It’s there any future plans in manufacturing titan as a remote controlled you for fans to purchase because my son wants titan in his bedroom and as a guest at his 7th birthday party in 3 wks lol

Titan is 100% a man in a costume. The man used has to meet certain criteria to be able to use the costume (height + build)

I was a redcoat at Butlins and used to have to do this show, and daily I would assist in helping the man put the costume on (they are very strict who can touch the costume due to its delicacy)

There are pressure pads in the costume, which triggers sounds when the knees and arms are moved. The man can see everything, he can see through the mirrored part of the chest. From titans neck upwards it is all robotic. Hope this helps some confused people

You will also see that only one hand is truely articulate. The controls inside are used to control the head and mouth etc. But you are correct in the dancer being inside the body, looking out the mirrored chest piece and the arms going through the black lower tubes.