Juggling machines

This is a list of machines that can perform physical juggling patterns.
Similar to human jugglers, some machines are good at throwing, and some are good at catching. In most cases, the machine is a juggling automaton, which is designed to consistently throw accurately enough that it can maintain a juggling pattern with no sensory feedback. These machines will blindly go through the motions of juggling with unvarying predetermined movements, whether the balls are actually there or not. There are also a few more complex juggling robots which do use cameras, enabling them to make catches even if the throws aren't so accurate.
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== Bounce juggling automatons==
The machines listed in this section all have two cups for hands, and no cameras.
Created by 	Number of balls juggled	Notes 	Links
Claude Shannon 	3 	The first juggling machine was made with an Erector Set in the 1970s, and was designed to resemble W. C. Fields. 	Video
Article
Stefan Schaal and Chris Atkeson 	5 	 	Video
Human Movement Simulation Lab at the University of Stuttgart	3 	 	Video
Jimmy Demello 	3 	This machine bounces balls on a solid, flat surface. Previous bounce juggling machines used a drumhead to bounce on, which may make it easier than normal to get the balls to go where they're supposed to.	Video
Article
==Roll juggling automatons==
The machines listed in this section juggle by rolling balls up a sloped surface, without using cameras.
Created by 	Number of arms	Number of balls juggled	Hand type 	Notes 	Links
Nathan Peterson	2 	7 	Cups, with electromagnets to hold onto the balls 	This machine was made with 3D-printed parts. It can roll balls on an inclined surface in different patterns, including siteswaps. 	4 ball synch video
7 ball video
534 video
Nadar Ponsudhan	2 	3 	Grooved tracks to guide the motion of the balls, and paddles to launch them uphill 	This one uses sensors to trigger a throw whenever an incoming ball rolls past a sensor. Juggles in a reverse cascade. 	Video
Description
Stephen Meschke	2 	5 	"2-dimensional cups" 	 	Video
Shun Onozawa 	8 	16 	Grooved tracks to guide the motion of the balls, and pushing mechanisms to launch them uphill	A computer controls the timing to prevent collisions that might otherwise result from slight asymmetries and differences between the parts of the machine.	Video
==Toss juggling automatons with two arms==
The machines listed in this section all juggle three balls with two cup-hands, without using cameras.
Created by 	Notes 	Links
Sarcos 	"Sarcoman" can also do devil sticks, balance a pole, and bounce a ball on a paddle. This robot can use visual feedback for catching, and possibly also copy the real-time motion-captured movements of a human, but it doesn't appear to use those abilities when juggling.	Video
? 	 	Video
Ernie Palarca 	Juggles in a reverse cascade 	Video
? 	 	Video
Matthew Carlsen 	Instead of moving arms, this machine has launching mechanisms inside the cups. The arms are different lengths to prevent collisions. 	Video
Stephen Meschke 	 	Video
Kai Ploeger, Michael Lutter, and Jan Peters	Uses machine learning instead of being manually designed to throw accurately. The machine is initially told whether each juggling attempt is successful or unsuccessful. Then once it's learned to make accurate throws, it can juggle with no feedback of any kind. 	Video
Drew Aslesen 	 	Video
==Toss juggling automatons with a different number of arms==
The machines listed in this section all have cups for hands, and no cameras.
Created by 	Number of arms	Number of balls juggled	Notes 	Links
Kai Ploeger, Michael Lutter, and Jan Peters	1 	2 	Uses machine learning to learn to throw accurately. Juggles in columns.	Video
Article
Paper
Stephen Meschke 	1 	2 	 	Video
Stephen Meschke 	4 	5 	Juggles in a cascade-shaped domino pattern 	Video
Harrison Low 	1 	2 	Juggles in columns. 	Video
==Toss juggling robots==
The machines listed in this section all use cameras to track the balls in the air and adjust their hand position.
Created by 	Number of arms 	Number of balls juggled 	Hand type 	Notes 	Links
Designed by Martin Bühler, built by Daniel Koditschek and Alfred Rizzi	1 	2 	Paddle 	Called the "Buehgler". Uses two cameras for stereo-vision. 	Video
Article
T. Sakaguchi, S. Sato, and F. Miyazaki 	1 	2 	Cup 	Uses one camera 	Article
Students at the Czech Technical University in Prague 	2 	5 	Cups 	A spring-loaded third arm is used to add a ball to the pattern when starting and when the machine drops.	Video
Webpage
Paul Kulchenko 	1 	2 	Paddle 	Uses seven cameras 	Video
Takahiro Kizaki and Akio Namiki 	1 	2 	3-fingered hand
(Machines with fingers can actively grasp a ball, unlike machines with other types of hands.)	Uses two external cameras 	Video
Webpage
Disney Research 	Uses 1 arm to juggle	Passes 3 balls in a 2-handed shared cascade with a human partner	5-fingered hand 	Uses external cameras 	Video
Paper
Akira Takahashi, Naohiro Komura, and Akio Namiki 	2 	3 	3-fingered hands	Uses stereo-vision 	Video
Webpage
==See also==
*Juggling animator (machines doing virtual juggling patterns)
*Robot (trick)
Category:Jugglers
Category:Lists