Items tagged with robots
There's no question that artificial intelligence and robotics technology will soon become an even more pervasive force in our daily lives. From self-driving cars to robotics dogs that can empty the dishwasher and fetch us a beer, things are looking mighty good for the future. Now, the folks at Google Robotics are making huge strides in developing robots that are less dependent on their human handlers. While today's autonomous robots use reinforcement-learning algorithms that rely more on trial and error (with a lot of human intervention during this process) in a preset virtual environment to navigate obstacles and perform certain tasks, Google researchers have taken things to the next level with...
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How long will human beings be the dominant species on the planet? One scientist argues that the reign of humans is coming to an end. Dr. James Lovelock recently contended that humans will be overcome and replaced by cyborgs. Dr. James Lovelock detailed the fall of humanity and the rise of cyborgs in his most recent publication Novacene. Lovelock is not the first person to argue that cyborgs will take over the earth. Elon Musk has contended that human beings will need to embrace artificial intelligence (AI) if they want to survive. He recently unveiled plans for his "Neuralink", which would literally attach wires to a person’s skull. Lovelock’s perspective is rather unique. He defines...
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Artificial intelligence is a big part of NVIDIA’s presence at GTC 2019 this year, and with that comes a number of robots that leverage the company’s hardware for autonomous operation. While on the floor at GTC, we encountered a number of interesting devices, two of which you’ll see in the video below. One of the robots on display was a quadruped unit that showcases NVIDIA Robot Simulation technology. The simulation software allows developers to test their latest creations in a virtual environment to work out the kinks before deploying them in a production/real-world setting. In the live demo above, you can see the quadruped balancing on a platform that is resting...
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Boston Dynamics has wowed us over the years with the capabilities of its robots. From its humanoid Atlas, to its "robotic dog" called SpotMini -- and everything in between -- Boston Dynamics continues to push the envelope for what's possible with our future robot overlords. Last week, we witnessed Atlas jumping over logs and up a three-step platform using a single leg to "push off". This time around, SpotMini is dancing its ass off to "Uptown Funk". We don't think that the SpotMini's dance moves will put Bruno Mars out of a job anytime soon, but it's no doubt impressive to see this four-legged creature doing the running man and hot-stepping all over the place to...
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NVIDIA is talking up some new AI techniques that well help robots to more efficiently work alongside humans. The research was led by NVIDIA researchers Stan Birchfield and Jonathan Tremblay. The duo was able to develop a deep learning-based system that is said to be the first of its kind that can teach a robot to complete a task simply by observing the actions of a human. NVIDIA says that the research is meant to enhance communications between humans and robots while furthering research that allows people to work alongside robots seamlessly. "For robots to perform useful tasks in real-world settings, it must be easy to communicate the task to the robot; this includes both the desired result and...
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Sometimes, too much technology can be a hindrance to production goals, and Tesla recently found this out the hard way. Tesla, which is well known for its groundbreaking Model S hatchback and Model X crossover electric vehicles, attempted to go full-tilt with robots and automation to reach lofty production goals with its mainstream Model 3. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has now admitted that the company's over-reliance on automation is actually the reason why the Model 3 is behind schedule. Speaking with CBS' Gayle King, Musk admitted, "We had this crazy, complex network of conveyor belts... And it was not working, so we got rid of that whole thing.” "Yes, excessive automation...
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In this latest episode of HotHardware's Two And A Half Geeks, Marco, Paul, and Dave get in the mood for V-Day and also chat about AMD's Raven Ridge Ryzen 5 2400G and Ryzen 3 2200G desktop APUs, a rumored NVIDIA GeForce GTX 2080, Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 performance benchmarks, creepily clever dog robots, a couple of new SSDs from Samsung and Intel and more... Show Notes: 03:01 - AMD Ryzen 5 2400G And Ryzen 3 2200G Review: Raven Ridge Desktop Debuts 19:06 - NVIDIA GeForce GTX 2080 Rocking GA104 Ampere GPU Rumored To Arrive In April 31:23 - Qualcomm Snapdragon 845: Benchmarking A Hot Rod Mobile Chip 41:08 - AMD Threadripper Cryptocurrency Mining: How To Pay For A CPU In Just Months 49:02 - Intel...
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If you grew up playing the MechWarrior franchise of video games, the giant MegaBots robot beatdown that is coming soon will get you excited. MegaBots is a company that sought to pit country-against-country in a battle using giant robots and massive paintballs. The first two teams set to fight it out are the Americans and Japan. This giant robot beatdown was first dreamed up about two years ago. The American company published a video where it challenged a Japanese firm called Suidobashi Heavy Industry in a battle of mechs, and the Japanese team agreed. The last two years has consisted of the two teams building up their robots and looking for a venue that allows giant manned robots to fight...
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It is almost tax season again here in the United States, but in the future, your fellow Americans might not be the only ones giving away a "pound of flesh" to the IRS. Bill Gates believes that robots should also pay their dues. The Microsoft co-founder recently stated in an interview that governments should tax companies that replace human workers with robots. Gates remarked in the interview, “So if you can take the labor that used to do the thing automation replaces, and financially and training-wise and fulfillment-wise have that person go off and do these other things, then you’re net ahead. But you can’t just give up that income tax, because that’s part of how you’ve been funding...
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Starship isn’t just the name of a rocking 80’s band or an interstellar spacecraft -- it is also the name of a new company by former Skype co-founders which intends to improve local deliveries through self-driving, autonomous robots. A friendly little robot could soon be delivering your pepperoni pizza instead of a moody neighborhood teen. Ahti Heinla, a Skype co-founder and CEO at Starship Technologies remarked, “Our vision revolves around three zeroes – zero cost, zero waiting time and zero environmental impact. We want to do to local deliveries what Skype did to telecommunications.” Starship Technologies is getting ready to introduce small, environmentally-friendly, earth-bound delivery robots....
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The robot revolution will just have to wait, at least if Mercedes has anything to say about it. In a refreshing change of pace, Mercedes is handing out pink slips to part of its automated robotic work force, giving those jobs instead to actual human workers. Mercedes is essentially flipping the script on modern trends, and it has good reason to do so. As it turns out, robots can't do quite everything better than human hands can. This is especially pertinent to Mercedes' highly customizable S-Class sedan, which is loaded with options like heated and cooled cup holders, no less than four types of caps for the tire valves, an electrically heated windshield, and many, many more.Markus Schaefer, head...
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Maybe we should cease development of artificial intelligence. Why? View it as a precautionary measure for the day when robots completely replace humans in the workforce. Think about it, do we really want to be bound by mechanical overlords who might one day decide we're more trouble than we're worth? Sounds crazy now, but check back in 100 years to see where things are at. But first things first, robots have to increase their ranks, and Samsung is going to help them do that. With 6.75 billion won (around $14.8 million in U.S. currency) in funding from South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy, Samsung will develop robots capable of handling jobs that currently require fleshy human...
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We all fear the day when humans end up under the mechanical thumbs of our eventual robot overlords, but for now, it's us who still reign over them. Such is also the result of a joint effort involving the Volvo Group and several partners to develop a robot that picks up trash under the supervision of a garbage truck driver. The project is called ROAR (Robot-based Autonomous Refuse handling) and it's being developed by the Volvo Group, Chalmers University of Technology and Mälardalen University in Sweden, Penn State University in the United States, the waste recycling company Renova. What Volvo is trying to demonstrate with ROAR is how, in the very near future, smart machines will be able to assist...
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Sexual fembots don't exist outside of Hollywood movies, but just in case they ever become a reality, robot ethicists (yes, there's such a thing) are already campaigning against having sex with robots. Those who support the "Campaign Against Sex Robots" feel that shagging with a scrap of parts resembling a person is unethical and "will contribute to gender inequalities in society." The campaign was borne out of a research paper by Kathleen Richardson, a senior research fellow in the ethics of robotics at De Montfort University in Leicester, England. In it she points out that there are several initiatives currently in place to develop sex robots. This is a problem, Richardson says, because "the...
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The hitchhiking robot hitchBOT has traversed multiple countries by relying on the generosity of strangers, but its adventuring came to an abrupt and disastrous conclusion shortly after it arrived in the U.S. The place of hitchBOT’s demise turned out to be Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, which apparently doesn’t extend its goodwill to robots. HitchBOT caught more than a ride and ended up headless on the street. HitchBOT, which started as a project at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada, was capable of speaking, though it had a limited vocabulary. The funky-looking robot featured a bucket body, yellow Wellingtons, and a special stand that made it easy to prop it up on the roadside so...
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Just a few days after Steve Wozniak stirred fears with comments about the inevitability of humans becoming pets for superior robots, the Twittersphere has found further “evidence” that humanity’s end is nigh. A robot at an automotive plant in Germany killed a worker this week and the reporter who first covered the news is named Sarah O’Connor. Lop the “O” off her name, and you have the lead character of the original Terminator movie (and its sequel). Now would probably be a good time for sci-fi fans everywhere to take a collective deep breathe and chill the heck out. The Volkswagon employee apparently entered a security cage that is designed to protect humans from the robot while it works. The...
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Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak isn't the only one envisioning a world where artificially intelligent systems rise up and rule over mankind. So Dr. Stuart Armstrong, an academic at the Future of Humanity at Oxford University. According to Armstrong, we're precariously close to creating computers that will ultimately wipe out mankind, though if it comes as any consolation, they'll have good intentions. "Humans steer the future not because we're the strongest or the fastest, but because we're the smartest," Dr. Armstrong told The Telegraph. "When machines become smarter than humans, we'll be handing them the steering wheel." You can take that statement both literally and figuratively. In a literal...
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Foxconn CEO Terry Gou spoke out at a shareholder’s meeting to set the record straight on comments made at the beginning of the year about robots. It turns out that the era of robot-powered factories isn’t quite as near as the head of Foxconn seemed to imply in February and he’s holding the media responsible for misquoting him. “It should be that in five years, the roots will take over 30 percent of the manpower,” Gou told shareholders this week. Reports earlier in the year indicted that Gou expected 70 percent of assembly line work around 2018, which would likely have had a huge impact on jobs for many of the million employees at Foxconn’s factories. Instead, it looks like Foxconn will be relying...
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A group of French and American scientists publishing in the science journal Nature are reporting success in their attempt to develop software that allows damaged robots to quickly overcome many sustained injuries and continue with their tasks. A major problem in robotics has long been the inability of the machines to deal with unexpected circumstances, and in the case of damage suffered in the performing of their duties, they will usually just ignore the problem and thus make the it all the worse. Now, though, with inspiration drawn from nature itself, the scientists — Antoine Cully, Jean-Baptiste Mouret, and Danesh Tarapore of the Marie Curie University in...
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Imagine going to the water's edge, wading into the sea, and dragging out...a blue whale. And not an easy to wrangle (comparatively speaking) baby blue whale either, but a fully grown, mature mammalian beast of the sea. This is the equivalency being offered to describe the astounding power of the oh-so-small MicroTug robot. Designed by engineers David Christensen and Elliott Hawkes at the Biomimetics and Dextrous Manipulation Lab at Stanford University, MicroTugs are tiny robots — some just a measly 9 grams — that are capable of pulling objects that tip the scales at 2000 times their weight. Taking inspiration from nature, MicroTugs borrow from techniques in use by gecko lizards and inchworms....
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Score a win for the robot species, which will soon be joining Foxconn's flesh and blood workers to help assemble Apple's forthcoming iPhone 6 device. So says Foxconn CEO Terry Gou, who announced the plan at a recent shareholder meeting, adding that Apple will become the first company to use the service. Citing a Chinese-language news report, MacRumors says that each robot -- or "Foxbot," as Foxconn is calling them -- will be responsible for assembling about 30,000 iPhone 6 devices. Foxbots, which are currently in their final testing phase, run $20,000 to $25,000 a pop, with Foxconn planning to deploy at least 10,000 of them in its factories. Though that may sound like a lot, Gou says he isn't...
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Google is now the proud owner of Boston Dynamics, an engineering company that specializes in building dynamic robots and software for human simulation. You may have seen some of Boston Dynamics' creations already, especially if you've spent any amount of time browsing YouTube videos -- a 2 minute demonstration of the company's WildCat robot has over 15 million views since being uploaded in the beginning of October. The technology here is very cool. Boston Dynamics has a stable of robots that always seem to defy expectations. They have an incredible sense of balance and, in some cases, absurd speed, all the while staying upright even when they sometimes appear wobbly or looking like they might...
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