Small robot insects looking like and built like centipedes may be released into specific circumstances which require certain tasks to be accomplished.
The new thing about these microrobots is their ability to carry much more than their own weight, which could ultimately lead to them being independent. That means they may be able to carry a power source.
That leads to another challenge: There really aren't any power sources out there at this time which would all them to run much more than about 10 minutes. If that can be overcome, some of the potential tasks they could be sent to do would be more realistic, and done in a efficient time frame.
All microrobots at this time, including these new ones from the University of Washington, are only able to move at a snails' pace of about 3 feet an hour. Some are much slower than that, which could be detrimental to their purpose if time is a factor in their missions.
The big advancement in these little robots is the ability to carry far more than their weight. That provides the potential for a power source to be created which would allow it to operate for much longer periods of time.
Showing posts with label Future Robots. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Future Robots. Show all posts
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Firefighting Robots Fighting London blazes
Firefighting Robots
Remote controlled robots formerly used in combat situations in Iraq are now being used by London firefighters to combat dangerous fires; especially when they find acetylene gas is part of the situation.
Created by defense contractor, QinetiQ, the tree robots will be able to enter into danger areas and safely deal with the gas cylinders.
This is important because even if acetylene gas cylinders have cooled off, they are still a danger to explode, and so the robots can help deal with that situation safely.
Because of that, fire crews have had to stop transport links for up to a period of 24 hours and also evacuate local communities from a danger zone.
What the robots can help with is cooling off the cylinders much more quickly, and then they can be remove safely by the firefighters in a more efficient manner.
one robot is able to find a hot acetylene cylinder, while another can cool it off with water quickly. The final robot can clear debris out of the way and also pick up the cylinder with its claw.
In experimental trials, the robots were able to do the job in under three hours, whereas in other situations it has taken firefighters over 19 hours on average to take care of.
The robots and their controllers will work with London firefighters for the next two years, and will be funded by Network Rail, the Highways Agency and Transport for London.
Firefighting Robots
Remote controlled robots formerly used in combat situations in Iraq are now being used by London firefighters to combat dangerous fires; especially when they find acetylene gas is part of the situation.
Created by defense contractor, QinetiQ, the tree robots will be able to enter into danger areas and safely deal with the gas cylinders.
This is important because even if acetylene gas cylinders have cooled off, they are still a danger to explode, and so the robots can help deal with that situation safely.
Because of that, fire crews have had to stop transport links for up to a period of 24 hours and also evacuate local communities from a danger zone.
What the robots can help with is cooling off the cylinders much more quickly, and then they can be remove safely by the firefighters in a more efficient manner.
one robot is able to find a hot acetylene cylinder, while another can cool it off with water quickly. The final robot can clear debris out of the way and also pick up the cylinder with its claw.
In experimental trials, the robots were able to do the job in under three hours, whereas in other situations it has taken firefighters over 19 hours on average to take care of.
The robots and their controllers will work with London firefighters for the next two years, and will be funded by Network Rail, the Highways Agency and Transport for London.
Firefighting Robots
Monday, July 6, 2009
Robots That Act Like Roaches
Robot Roaches
Miniature robots programmed to simulate cockroaches were able to blend into roach society, according to researchers studying the collective behavior of insects.
Cockroaches usually self-organize into leaderless groups, seeming to reach consensus on where to rest together.
With the option of two similar shelters, most of the group tended to gather under the same one.
Hoping to discover more about this behavior, researchers led by Jose Halloy at the Free University of Brussels designed small robots programmed to act like a cockroach.
The robots did not look like the insects, and at first the roaches ran away from them. After the scientists coated the robots with pheromones that made them smell like roaches, however, the machines were accepted into the group, nesting together with the insects.
Given a choice, roaches generally prefer a darker place, so the robots were programmed to do the same.
When given a choice of a darker or lighter shelter, 75 per cent of the cockroaches and 85 per cent of the robots gathered under the darker one.
Then, to see if the robots had really become part of society and could influence group decisions, Mr. Halloy and colleagues programmed them to prefer shelters with more light.
The result, the lighter shelter was preferred by the mixed group 61 per cent of the time, while the cockroaches alone picked it just 27 per cent of the time.
On the other hand, in 39 per cent of cases the robots, despite being programmed to prefer a lighter shelter, joined the cockroaches under the darker one.
I'm not sure if there's any value in this, but it's interesting to see how the tiny robots function and whether they're programming was adequate to the task.
Robot Roaches
Miniature robots programmed to simulate cockroaches were able to blend into roach society, according to researchers studying the collective behavior of insects.
Cockroaches usually self-organize into leaderless groups, seeming to reach consensus on where to rest together.
With the option of two similar shelters, most of the group tended to gather under the same one.
Hoping to discover more about this behavior, researchers led by Jose Halloy at the Free University of Brussels designed small robots programmed to act like a cockroach.
The robots did not look like the insects, and at first the roaches ran away from them. After the scientists coated the robots with pheromones that made them smell like roaches, however, the machines were accepted into the group, nesting together with the insects.
Given a choice, roaches generally prefer a darker place, so the robots were programmed to do the same.
When given a choice of a darker or lighter shelter, 75 per cent of the cockroaches and 85 per cent of the robots gathered under the darker one.
Then, to see if the robots had really become part of society and could influence group decisions, Mr. Halloy and colleagues programmed them to prefer shelters with more light.
The result, the lighter shelter was preferred by the mixed group 61 per cent of the time, while the cockroaches alone picked it just 27 per cent of the time.
On the other hand, in 39 per cent of cases the robots, despite being programmed to prefer a lighter shelter, joined the cockroaches under the darker one.
I'm not sure if there's any value in this, but it's interesting to see how the tiny robots function and whether they're programming was adequate to the task.
Robot Roaches
Monday, June 8, 2009
Sales of Personal Robots to Surpass $15 Billion by 2015
Personal Robots
A report from GeckoSytems International Corporation projects estimates personal robot sales will be significantly higher than the previously announced figure of $15 billion by 2015.
While even this forecast could be very low, it does show that over fifty thousand new jobs will be created in high paying robotics development and manufacturing within the next four to five years.
The main reason for guessing that the $15 billion estimate was on the lower side is because of a parallel his company draws to the last major recession that happened in the early eighties.
At that time personal computers were seen as a simple, economical way of automating work, reducing manpower, not having to pay additional salaries and still getting the work done.
"The immediate impact of productivity improvements and cost savings drove the PC into markets faster than the adoption in good, less stressed economic times," said Spencer. “That new, high tech, high growth PC industry created hundreds of jobs during that recession.”
The company feels that the same scenario will be replicated during this recession and instead of the static PC’s of those days, companies, hospitals and individuals will instead now have a choice of personal care programmable robots that wash cars, look after old people, and serve drinks and food at restaurants.
“Due to the less than one-year payback for many, if not most, of our mobile service robot solutions, we expect our growth to be driven not only by the present economic downturn's severe cost reduction pressures, but also by pent up demand," said Spencer. “We expect to add more than a hundred new employees in the next year."
The company does agree with the projected forecast that claimed 50,000 jobs will be added by 2015, and says that there are jobs available, or will soon be available, in the following categories: software programmers - Artificial Intelligence, and Human Machine Interaction; Computer, software and electrical engineers - Actionable Situational Awareness and Sensor Fusion; Computer and electrical engineers - Control Systems, Hardware Abstraction, Embedded System Design; Electronic contract manufacturing production facilities - final assembly, calibration, and testing prior to shipment to Value Added Resellers (VARS), Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM’s), dealers, and the rest that make up the supply chain cycle.
Robotics are also being used in microscopic, pin-point solutions, for insertion and navigation of catheters within the human body to rectify differently beating hearts, or arrhythmias.
Personal Robots
A report from GeckoSytems International Corporation projects estimates personal robot sales will be significantly higher than the previously announced figure of $15 billion by 2015.
While even this forecast could be very low, it does show that over fifty thousand new jobs will be created in high paying robotics development and manufacturing within the next four to five years.
The main reason for guessing that the $15 billion estimate was on the lower side is because of a parallel his company draws to the last major recession that happened in the early eighties.
At that time personal computers were seen as a simple, economical way of automating work, reducing manpower, not having to pay additional salaries and still getting the work done.
"The immediate impact of productivity improvements and cost savings drove the PC into markets faster than the adoption in good, less stressed economic times," said Spencer. “That new, high tech, high growth PC industry created hundreds of jobs during that recession.”
The company feels that the same scenario will be replicated during this recession and instead of the static PC’s of those days, companies, hospitals and individuals will instead now have a choice of personal care programmable robots that wash cars, look after old people, and serve drinks and food at restaurants.
“Due to the less than one-year payback for many, if not most, of our mobile service robot solutions, we expect our growth to be driven not only by the present economic downturn's severe cost reduction pressures, but also by pent up demand," said Spencer. “We expect to add more than a hundred new employees in the next year."
The company does agree with the projected forecast that claimed 50,000 jobs will be added by 2015, and says that there are jobs available, or will soon be available, in the following categories: software programmers - Artificial Intelligence, and Human Machine Interaction; Computer, software and electrical engineers - Actionable Situational Awareness and Sensor Fusion; Computer and electrical engineers - Control Systems, Hardware Abstraction, Embedded System Design; Electronic contract manufacturing production facilities - final assembly, calibration, and testing prior to shipment to Value Added Resellers (VARS), Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM’s), dealers, and the rest that make up the supply chain cycle.
Robotics are also being used in microscopic, pin-point solutions, for insertion and navigation of catheters within the human body to rectify differently beating hearts, or arrhythmias.
Personal Robots
Sunday, June 7, 2009
The Rat Robot Psikharpax
Future Robots
Agnes Guillot dreams of one day seeing a giant 50cm white rat called Psikharpax scuttling fearlessly around her lab.
If so, it will be time to scream... But out of joy, rather than fear, for it could be a turning point in the history of robotics.
Psikharpax - named after a cunning king of the rats, according to a tale attributed to Homer - is the brainchild of European researchers who believe it may push back a frontier in artificial intelligence.
Scientists have tried for decades to make a robot that can do some more than make repetitive, programmed gestures. These are fine for making cars or amusing small children, but are of little help in the real world.
One of the biggest obstacles is learning ability. Without the smarts to figure out dangers and opportunities, a robot is helpless without human intervention.
"The autonomy of robots today is similar to that of an insect," snorts Guillot, a researcher at France's Institute for Intelligent Systems and Robotics (ISIR), one of the "Psikharpax" team.
Such failures mean it is time to change tack, argue some roboticist.
Rather than try to replicate human intelligence, in all its furious complexities and higher levels of language and reasoning, it would be better to start at the bottom and figure out simpler abilities that humans share with other animals, they say.
These include navigating, seeking food and avoiding dangers.
And, for this job, there can be no better inspiration than the rat, which has lived cheek-by-whisker with humans since Homo sapiens took his first steps.
"The rat is the animal that scientists know best, and the structure of its brain is similar to that of humans," says Steve Nguyen, a doctoral student at ISIR, who helped show off Psikharpax at a research and innovation fair in Paris last week.
Rat robots are being built in other labs in Britain, the United States and elsewhere. Two years ago, for instance, a team at the ITAM technical institute in Mexico City reprogrammed a Sony Aibo dog using rat-simulated software.
But the European researchers believe that Psikharpax is unique in its bio-mimicry, sophistication of sensors and controls and software based on rat neurology.
Their artificial rodent has two cameras for eyes, two microphones for ears and tiny wheels, driven by a battery-powered motor, to provide movement.
A couple of dozen whiskers measuring around a dozen centimetres stretch out impressively either side of its long, pointed snout.
The patented "vibrissae" seek to replicate a key part of the nervous system in a real-life rat, where whiskers are used to sense obstacles.
Data from these artificial organs goes to Psikharpax's "brain," a chip whose software hierarchy mimics the structures in a rat's brain that process and analyse what is seen, heard and sensed.
For instance, if Psikharpax's eyes sense that it is dark, the software gives a greater weight of importance to data from the whiskers, in the same way that a rat, at night, relies on other sensors to compensate for loss of vision.
But one famous rat quality - the power of smell - is not incorporated in Psikharpax. An artificial nose was originally included in the scheme, conceived by roboticist Jean-Arcady Meyer, but proved too complex in practice.
The goal is to get Psikharpax to be able to "survive" in new environments. It would be able to spot and move around things in its way, detect when it is in danger from collision with a human in its vicinity and spot an opportunity for "feeding" - recharging its battery at power points placed around the lab.
"We want to make robots that are able to look after themselves and depend on humans as least as possible," said Guillot.
"If we want to send a robot to Mars, or help someone in a flat that we don't know, the robot has to have the ability to figure out things out for itself."
Future Robots
Agnes Guillot dreams of one day seeing a giant 50cm white rat called Psikharpax scuttling fearlessly around her lab.
If so, it will be time to scream... But out of joy, rather than fear, for it could be a turning point in the history of robotics.
Psikharpax - named after a cunning king of the rats, according to a tale attributed to Homer - is the brainchild of European researchers who believe it may push back a frontier in artificial intelligence.
Scientists have tried for decades to make a robot that can do some more than make repetitive, programmed gestures. These are fine for making cars or amusing small children, but are of little help in the real world.
One of the biggest obstacles is learning ability. Without the smarts to figure out dangers and opportunities, a robot is helpless without human intervention.
"The autonomy of robots today is similar to that of an insect," snorts Guillot, a researcher at France's Institute for Intelligent Systems and Robotics (ISIR), one of the "Psikharpax" team.
Such failures mean it is time to change tack, argue some roboticist.
Rather than try to replicate human intelligence, in all its furious complexities and higher levels of language and reasoning, it would be better to start at the bottom and figure out simpler abilities that humans share with other animals, they say.
These include navigating, seeking food and avoiding dangers.
And, for this job, there can be no better inspiration than the rat, which has lived cheek-by-whisker with humans since Homo sapiens took his first steps.
"The rat is the animal that scientists know best, and the structure of its brain is similar to that of humans," says Steve Nguyen, a doctoral student at ISIR, who helped show off Psikharpax at a research and innovation fair in Paris last week.
Rat robots are being built in other labs in Britain, the United States and elsewhere. Two years ago, for instance, a team at the ITAM technical institute in Mexico City reprogrammed a Sony Aibo dog using rat-simulated software.
But the European researchers believe that Psikharpax is unique in its bio-mimicry, sophistication of sensors and controls and software based on rat neurology.
Their artificial rodent has two cameras for eyes, two microphones for ears and tiny wheels, driven by a battery-powered motor, to provide movement.
A couple of dozen whiskers measuring around a dozen centimetres stretch out impressively either side of its long, pointed snout.
The patented "vibrissae" seek to replicate a key part of the nervous system in a real-life rat, where whiskers are used to sense obstacles.
Data from these artificial organs goes to Psikharpax's "brain," a chip whose software hierarchy mimics the structures in a rat's brain that process and analyse what is seen, heard and sensed.
For instance, if Psikharpax's eyes sense that it is dark, the software gives a greater weight of importance to data from the whiskers, in the same way that a rat, at night, relies on other sensors to compensate for loss of vision.
But one famous rat quality - the power of smell - is not incorporated in Psikharpax. An artificial nose was originally included in the scheme, conceived by roboticist Jean-Arcady Meyer, but proved too complex in practice.
The goal is to get Psikharpax to be able to "survive" in new environments. It would be able to spot and move around things in its way, detect when it is in danger from collision with a human in its vicinity and spot an opportunity for "feeding" - recharging its battery at power points placed around the lab.
"We want to make robots that are able to look after themselves and depend on humans as least as possible," said Guillot.
"If we want to send a robot to Mars, or help someone in a flat that we don't know, the robot has to have the ability to figure out things out for itself."
Future Robots
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