Modern robots are not unlike toddlers: Its hilarious to watch them fall over, but deep down we know that if we laugh too hard, they might develop a complex and grow up to start World War III. None of humanitys creations inspires such a confusing mix of awe, admiration, and fear: We want robots to make our lives easier and safer, yet we cant quite bring ourselves to trust them. Were crafting them in our own image, yet we are terrified theyll supplant us.
But that trepidation is no obstacle to the booming field of robotics. Robots have finally grown smart enough and physically capable enough to make their way out of factories and labs to walk and roll and even leap among us. The machines have arrived.
You may be worried a robot is going to steal your job, and we get that. This is capitalism, after all, and automation is inevitable. But you may be more likely to work alongside a robot in the near future than have one replace you. And even better news: Youre more likely to make friends with a robot than have one murder you. Hooray for the future!
The History of Robots
The definition of robot has been confusing from the very beginning. The word first appeared in 1921, in Karel Capeks play R.U.R., or Rossum's Universal Robots. Robot comes from the Czech for forced labor. These robots were robots more in spirit than form, though. They looked like humans, and instead of being made of metal, they were made of chemical batter. The robots were far more efficient than their human counterparts, and also way more murder-ythey ended up going on a killing spree.
R.U.R. would establish the trope of the Not-to-Be-Trusted Machine (e.g., Terminator, The Stepford Wives, Blade Runner, etc.) that continues to this daywhich is not to say pop culture hasnt embraced friendlier robots. Think Rosie from The Jetsons. (Ornery, sure, but certainly not homicidal.) And it doesnt get much family-friendlier than Robin Williams as Bicentennial Man.
The real-world definition of robot is just as slippery as those fictional depictions. Ask 10 roboticists and youll get 10 answershow autonomous does it need to be, for instance. But they do agree on some general guidelines: A robot is an intelligent, physically embodied machine. A robot can perform tasks autonomously to some degree. And a robot can sense and manipulate its environment.
Think of a simple drone that you pilot around. Thats no robot. But give a drone the power to take off and land on its own and sense objects and suddenly its a lot more robot-ish. Its the intelligence and sensing and autonomy thats key.
But it wasnt until the 1960s that a company built something that started meeting those guidelines. Thats when SRI International in Silicon Valley developed Shakey, the first truly mobile and perceptive robot. This tower on wheels was well-namedawkward, slow, twitchy. Equipped with a camera and bump sensors, Shakey could navigate a complex environment. It wasnt a particularly confident-looking machine, but it was the beginning of the robotic revolution.
Around the time Shakey was trembling about, robot arms were beginning to transform manufacturing. The first among them was Unimate, which welded auto bodies. Today, its descendants rule car factories, performing tedious, dangerous tasks with far more precision and speed than any human could muster. Even though theyre stuck in place, they still very much fit our definition of a robottheyre intelligent machines that sense and manipulate their environment.
Robots, though, remained largely confined to factories and labs, where they either rolled about or were stuck in place lifting objects. Then, in the mid-1980s Honda started up a humanoid robotics program. It developed P3, which could walk pretty darn good and also wave and shake hands, much to the delight of a roomful of suits. The work would culminate in Asimo, the famed biped, which once tried to take out President Obama with a well-kicked soccer ball. (OK, perhaps it was more innocent than that.)
Today, advanced robots are popping up everywhere. For that you can thank three technologies in particular: sensors, actuators, and AI.
So, sensors. Machines that roll on sidewalks to deliver falafel can only navigate our world thanks in large part to the 2004 Darpa Grand Challenge, in which teams of roboticists cobbled together self-driving cars to race through the desert. Their secret? Lidar, which shoots out lasers to build a 3-D map of the world. The ensuing private-sector race to develop self-driving cars has dramatically driven down the price of lidar, to the point that engineers can create perceptive robots on the (relative) cheap.
Originally posted here:
The Complete History And Future of Robots | WIRED
- Robotics - Gizmag [Last Updated On: June 12th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 12th, 2016]
- Download Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio 4 from ... [Last Updated On: June 16th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 16th, 2016]
- Robotics News & Articles - IEEE Spectrum [Last Updated On: June 19th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 19th, 2016]
- Robotics - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [Last Updated On: June 19th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 19th, 2016]
- Robotics News & Articles - IEEE Spectrum [Last Updated On: June 19th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 19th, 2016]
- RIA - Robotics Online - Industrial Robot Automation [Last Updated On: June 19th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 19th, 2016]
- Three Laws of Robotics - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [Last Updated On: June 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: June 25th, 2016]
- Robotics [Last Updated On: July 18th, 2016] [Originally Added On: July 18th, 2016]
- Houston Robotics [Last Updated On: August 12th, 2016] [Originally Added On: August 12th, 2016]
- Home - Illinois Tech Robotics [Last Updated On: August 27th, 2016] [Originally Added On: August 27th, 2016]
- Robotics - Wikibooks, open books for an open world [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2016] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2016]
- JPL Robotics: Home Page [Last Updated On: September 8th, 2016] [Originally Added On: September 8th, 2016]
- ABB Robotics [Last Updated On: September 10th, 2016] [Originally Added On: September 10th, 2016]
- Softbank Robotics | Humanoid robotics & programmable robots [Last Updated On: September 29th, 2016] [Originally Added On: September 29th, 2016]
- Robotics - Wikipedia [Last Updated On: October 20th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 20th, 2016]
- STEM Robotics 101 NXT | STEMRobotics [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Industrial Electronics and Robotics Technician [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Future of Robotics|Robots of the Future|Robot Links [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Industrial Robotics Training | School of Technology [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Robotics | An Open Access Journal from MDPI [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Robotics Technician & Automation Training - Online Course in ... [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Rich Hooper, PhD, PE: Robotics Engineer [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Robotics Toolbox - PeterCorke.com [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- ROBOTC | Robotics Academy [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- How have robots changed manufacturing? | HowStuffWorks [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Professional Development | Robotics Academy [Last Updated On: October 25th, 2016] [Originally Added On: October 25th, 2016]
- Robotics Academy [Last Updated On: December 14th, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 14th, 2016]
- KUKA Robotics | KUKA AG [Last Updated On: December 14th, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 14th, 2016]
- Robotics Engineer - Science Buddies [Last Updated On: December 24th, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 24th, 2016]
- Robotics - reddit [Last Updated On: January 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: January 10th, 2017]
- Preorder Snap Flying Camera | Vantage Robotics [Last Updated On: January 25th, 2017] [Originally Added On: January 25th, 2017]
- Robotics - The Great Courses [Last Updated On: January 25th, 2017] [Originally Added On: January 25th, 2017]
- Belding hosts largest robotics competition in history of event - Greenville Daily News [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- Robohub Digest 01/17: New year, new perspectives and forecasts for the year ahead in AI, machine learning and ... - Robohub [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- Robotics-focused ETFs see big gains, Trump could hasten trend - MarketWatch [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- Robotics competition events help teens express creativity - Monroe Evening News [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- First Tech Challenge: High schools battle in robotics competition - The Journal News | LoHud.com [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- Gemini school robotics team wins in 'FIRST' competition - Chicago Tribune [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- TMRIES to impart robotics education - The Hindu - The Hindu [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- Meridian robotics team gears up for Idaho FRC Regional - KBOI-TV [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- South High wins Volvo's robotics tournament - Herald-Mail Media [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2017]
- Local robotics students headed to World Championship tournament - KOLO [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Oxford Hills robotics club to compete in North American championship - Lewiston Sun Journal [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Panther engineering and robotics team paves pathways to innovation - Clay County Free Press.com (subscription) [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Shopping robots on the march in Ocado - BBC News [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- OHS robotics club dazzles McKinley students - Southernminn.com [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Toyota Industries Acquires Warehouse Robotics Developer - WSJ - Wall Street Journal [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Rehab robotics field promises to return control, mobility to aging population - Arizona State University [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Mount Paran Christian School Robotics Team has engineered their way to State Competition - MDJOnline.com [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- 33C3: Edible Soft Robotics - Hackaday [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Keller students Starstruck on robotics - Fort Worth Star Telegram [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- WPI Robotics Team Has a Mission with Mars | News | WPI - WPI News [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Rethink's Robots Get Massive Software Upgrade, Rodney Brooks So Excited - IEEE Spectrum [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Front Porch: Vision Charter robotics teams perform well at state - Idaho Press-Tribune [Last Updated On: February 9th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 9th, 2017]
- Raspberry Pi-powered arm: This kit aims to make robotics simple ... - TechRepublic [Last Updated On: February 9th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 9th, 2017]
- Roam Robotics' lightweight, inexpensive exoskeleton for the masses - New Atlas [Last Updated On: February 9th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 9th, 2017]
- Rehab robotics field promises to return control, mobility to aging population - ScienceBlog.com (blog) [Last Updated On: February 9th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 9th, 2017]
- Rethink Robotics rethinks its software | ZDNet - ZDNet [Last Updated On: February 9th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 9th, 2017]
- Home-schooled students studying robotics - Valencia County News Bulletin [Last Updated On: February 9th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 9th, 2017]
- Botetourt 4-H Phoenix Robotics team sets sights on success - Roanoke Times [Last Updated On: February 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 10th, 2017]
- Hartland robotics teams take on the FIRST Tech challenge at state competition - Lake Country Now [Last Updated On: February 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 10th, 2017]
- iFuture Robotics cuts manpower needs of warehouses with its mobile robots - YourStory.com [Last Updated On: February 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 10th, 2017]
- Crescent Valley robotics focused on developing freshmen - Corvallis Gazette Times [Last Updated On: February 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 10th, 2017]
- CyPhy, Mitsubishi, and Soft Robotics Join Robo Madness on March 28 - Xconomy [Last Updated On: February 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 10th, 2017]
- Agility Robotics Introduces Cassie, a Dynamic and Talented Robot ... - IEEE Spectrum [Last Updated On: February 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 10th, 2017]
- FIRST Robotics Competition - Wikipedia [Last Updated On: February 10th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 10th, 2017]
- Raptor legs & human hips: Giant leap for walking robots - RT [Last Updated On: February 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 11th, 2017]
- Patriot Robotics Alliance upsets Brentwood Academy Alliances - Clarksville Now [Last Updated On: February 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 11th, 2017]
- South Beach robotics squad advances to super regionals - The Daily World [Last Updated On: February 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 11th, 2017]
- How drones and robotics may shape the future of conflict under President Trump - PRI [Last Updated On: February 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 11th, 2017]
- Personal robotics the next technological revolution: Dr Vivian Balakrishnan - Channel NewsAsia [Last Updated On: February 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 11th, 2017]
- Ford Bets $1B on Startup Founded by Waymo, Uber Vets - ABC News [Last Updated On: February 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 11th, 2017]
- Woodall robotics team competes in Broken Arrow - Muskogee Daily Phoenix [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Students Compete in LEGO Robotics Design Contest in Brooklyn - NY1 [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Essex County Freeholders Honor Livingston Robotics Club Teams - TAPinto.net [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Robotics event offers lesson in teamwork - Lewiston Morning Tribune (subscription) [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Face off: Marion students compete in robotics competition - The Exponent Telegram (press release) (registration) [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Freshman Caldwell team takes first place in Regional Robotics Tournament - Idaho Press-Tribune [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Ford Motor bets $1 billion on robotics startup - Toledo Blade [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Alice Shaw robotics team building invention to save wolves | Local ... - Lompoc Record [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]