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
 |
7 Day Old Baby Meets Telepresence Robot Dad
A remote-controlled telepresence robot was used by Army Staff Sgt. Erik Lloyd to see and interact with his family and seven day-old son. The (rather good-looking) camo-enhanced device has a live video uplink and responds to remote control.
(RP-7 telepresence robot impersonates a military man)
This technology has been around for quite a while (see the InTouch Companion: Medical Rounding Robot for a 2004 example), but this is the first time I've heard about it being used by distant dads to interact with their families.
I'm just a tiny bit creeped-out at the prospect of this being the first interaction that a 7 day-old has with his father. However, it presents mostly the face and voice of the father, which is what the child will probably focus on. Also, there's no doubt that it provides a means for the dad to be a part of the stateside family life.
I prefer the more spartan HeadThere Giraffe Telepresence Robot for this particular usage; it has a kind of "mirror, mirror on the wall" look to it that seems more like a display and less like a person.
And if you really wanted to blow the kid's mind, I'd appear as the Robonaut Centaur, because you could use it to actually hold your new son. I can just hear him a year or two later - "My dad has wheels and superpowers - how about your dad?"
Telepresence robotics has a long history in sf; see the telepresence apparatus, a one-hundred year-old reference.
Via DefenseLink, thanks to Moira for the tip.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 4/23/2008)
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 ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Robotics ")
Robots Repair And Modify Themselves
'The overworked leg motor would have to cool down before he could work on it...' Harry Harrison, 1956.
Robot Janitors Get To Work
'A few mechanical cleaning devices crept here and there...'- Philip K. Dick, 1957.
Robots Learn To Install Charged Batteries Into Themselves
This is nothing new for science fiction fans!
Robot Rabbits Entice Pythons
'That little robot rabbit knew what it was talking about...' - JW Groves, 1950.
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
China Steals Strato Airship Design From Google App Engine
'...war-balloons, or, as it would be more correct to call them, navigable aerostats.'
The First Space Warship For Space Force
'Each of the electrical ships carried about twenty men...'
Biohybrid Jellyfish Explore The Ocean
As predicted, and detailed, by science fiction writers!
Should AIs and AI Robots Demand Rights?
'This robot is a creature... It is a manlike being. Therefore, like any other talking, thinking man, he is entitled to a court trial!'
Robot Learns Human Tool Usage By Imitation Learning
'I got one of those new electronic cameras...'
Companion Caregiver ChatGPT Dolls
'Every Artificial Friend is unique, right?'
'Pregnancy Humanoids' From China Replace Moms
'A great many of these synthetic babies were made...'
Man Builds 200 Foot Basement Firing Range
'The basement was huge... carved deep into the rock.'
Russians Create Robot Tank Platoons
'The remotely-operated robot tank is an old idea...'
3D-Printed Exoskeleton Learns From Your Hand
'...small electric motors at the principal joints worked the prosthetic framework by means of steel cables...'
Smartwatch Powered By Slime Mold
'Living protoplasm incorporated into the Ampek F-a2 recording system...'
Unmanned Boats Attack At Sea
'The autofreighter smashed into the boat...'
Carpentopod Walking Table
'Twoflower's Luggage, which was currently ambling along on its little legs...'
Iron Drone Raider Counter-UAV Operations
'You've got an aggressive machine up in the air now.'
SpaceX Rocket Shuttle Point-To-Point On Earth
'He came to as the ship went into free flight, arching in a high parabola over the plains...'
Quaise Uses Beams Of Energy To Dig Geothermal Wells
'The peculiar quality of this light, which gave it its great preeminence over all other penetrating rays...'
