Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Romeo Robot A Robant For Elder Care
Romeo is a larger and more capable version of the Nao robot, and is now under construction by Aldebaran Robotics (which is based in Paris, not in Taurus). A computer-generated rendering of the 1.4 meter robot, which should be available in the spring of 2011 to researchers, is shown below.
(Romeo robot serves the elders)
Romeo is intended to serve the needs of elderly and disabled individuals right in their own homes. Aldebaran hopes to introduce such innovations as four-vertebra backbone, articulated feet, a partially soft torso, a composite leg exoskeleton, and a new kind of actuator that lets the robot control its limbs in a safer way.
The following comments were made in an interview between Rodolphe Gelen of Aldebaran Robotics and Erico Guizzo of IEEE:
EG: Why build a human-shaped robot?RG: My ideas about this are changing regularly. So I’ll give you my opinion today. I think that a humanoid robot is very useful if you want to have a multipurpose robot. If you only want to have a vacuum cleaner, it’s good enough to have a little cylinder robot. But if you want a robot that can open the refrigerator, grab a bottle of water, pour water into a cup, and take the cup to another room, being a little cylinder is not very helpful. If you want to do plenty of things, then you have to have plenty of robots, or one robot able to do lots of things. There’s also human-robot interaction issues. I think that people will find a humanoid much easier to use and much more fun than a Roomba or a kind of box on wheels robot. Many people don’t want just a slave robot; they want a machine that works like a companion, and so it's helpful if your robot has a certain height and a face that people can look at and talk to in a natural way. That’s why a humanoid shape is interesting. Does it need legs? We’ve discussed that a lot. Legs and wheels both have advantages and disadvantages. We decided to use legs because we think it’s more convenient and adaptable for most situations. And also because it's a big technological challenge. But that's my answer today. It may change tomorrow!
EG: What are some of the things you envision Romeo doing?
RG: We have some scenarios. For example, imagine that Mr. Smith lives alone and has a Romeo in his house. Because Mr. Smith is elderly, he might forget where things are, like his glasses or the remote control of the TV. But the robot can constantly keep track of these objects, using its vision, and it doesn’t forget where they are. So Romeo can assist Mr. Smith to find objects and even go get them for him.
Thoughtful Philip K. Dick was also thinking about helping people with robots. Here's what he says about robants in his 1953 short story The Impossible Planet:
Behind Norton came a withered old woman. Beside her moved a gleaming robant, a towering robot servant, supporting her with his arm. The robant and the tiny old woman entered the control room slowly..."Irma Vincent Gordon," Andrews murmured. He glanced up. "Is that right?"
The old woman did not move.
"She is totally deaf, sir," the robant said.
(offers his supporting arms)
From IEEE Spectrum
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 12/22/2010)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 1 )
Related News Stories - (" Robotics ")
Tactile Skin Supplier Map
'What strange sensitivity! What an amazing development of science was manifested in every move and act and word of this Robot!' - Ray Cummings, 1931.
Robot Bees 3D Printed By Festo
'At first I was struck by the large size of these bees..' - Ernst Junger, 1957.
DIY Robot Scorpion Crushes It
'...it raised its front end off the ground and waved its antennae at them, then raised one armoured claw as if to snip them out of the sky.' - Neal Asher, 2008.
How To Settle An Argument Between Two Robots
'Henry... assumed the curious absent look of a robot talking on the TBR circuits.' - Frederik Pohl, 1954
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Tactile Skin Supplier Map
'What strange sensitivity! What an amazing development of science was manifested in every move and act and word of this Robot!'
Flock Stymied By 'Adversarial Fashion'
'Forget the head atop it, the legs below, feet, arms, hands. It compels erasure.'
Orb Nomad Zero-Emission Electric Aircraft
'That explains how it was so easy for me to remain motionless in midair or to perch on a flagpole in imitation of a giant bird, even in the windy city of Chicago.'
ICE Buys Shock Gloves Like Batman's
What else is the Caped Crusader using?
Factories In The Sky Will Surpass Those Of Earth
'The thirty-odd miles of The Factory’s circumference...'
Sleeper Drones Lie in Wait
'Wandering mines, you took them out on the edge of the desert, set them down and activated them.'
Warfare Goes Underground In Ukraine
'Once in the very first weeks of the war, before everyone had been evacuated from the surface...'
3D Printed Organs From Space
'For a while your colonists will have to come up to the [orbital] Hospital...'
Robot Bees 3D Printed By Festo
'At first I was struck by the large size of these bees..'
DIY Robot Scorpion Crushes It
'...it raised its front end off the ground and waved its antennae at them, then raised one armoured claw as if to snip them out of the sky.'
How To Settle An Argument Between Two Robots
'Henry... assumed the curious absent look of a robot talking on the TBR circuits.'
The Wind Phone Calls Those Who Have Passed On
'Only I heard that!'
Don't Want To Wear A TIght Shiny Bodysuit?
'He looked a good bit like an elderly, fat beetle.'
Light Society: Simulates Earth-Scale Society With A Billion AI Agents
'The king, an old hand in the running of tyrannies, instantly grasped the directions...'
Satyress Centaur Robot Horror Reminds Everyone Of Something
'Fess was very dutiful'
When Colds Threaten You Can't Do This - Or Can You?
'...a hemispherical force field enclosing his head.'
