| HISTORY OF ROBOTICS |
PAST
Isaac Asimov set up the laws of robotics: 0. A robot may not injure humanity or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm. (This was added after the initial three laws.) 1. A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. 2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. 3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Robots weren’t actually possible until the 1950’s – 1960’s after the transistors and integrated circuits were invented. When electronics became more sophisticated with computers, the robots became smarter. It’s like they got a brain. Movies started to have robots in them.
PRESENT
Today robotics are used at work and at home. Many factories use mechanical deivces to do the work. Automobile factories use so many machines to do the work that people are pretty much used to just supervise or to fix the machines. Robots are used to do the boring tedious work that people don't like to do, like sorting small items.
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Robug III is a robot used to go into dangerous environments, like places that have toxic gases or poisons. It really comes in handy when there is a nuclear accident and it is not safe for humans to be in the area. The robot can carry a camera so we can see what is happening in those dangerous places.
Robotics are also used in hospitals. There are robotic messengers that transport things form one place to another for the medical staff. Special robotic instruments are used during surgery so that delicate procedures can be done that doctors would have a hard time doing. Even some prosthetic arms and legs have little computer chips in them to make them work.
Robotic devices are used to explore unsafe places for humans. A robotic land rover called, "Sojourner" was used on Mars so that we could see the surface of the planet.
Dante II is an eight-legged spider-like robot that walks into volcanoes checking to see if the volcano is about to erupt.
Nomad is a self-guiding robotic vehicle that searches the frozen Antarctic to find meteorites.
Robotuna is a robotic fish that can be used to explore underwater or to keep an eye on our enemies out in the ocean.
In our homes you may see robotic toys and robotic vacuum cleaners. Robotics are fun and very useful in our homes, and they are here to stay.
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FUTURE
Scientists are also trying to perfect the "Skyworker" so that it can do work in space without a human present. These robots would also run the space stations that they actually build or repair.
Spaceworkers
Spacewalkers
Mr. Moravec believes this progression will happen because of Moore's Law. The law says that new microchips will double it's processing power about every 18 months. This is really just a trend, not a law. This trend means computers will continue to get faster and smarter.
Click on the link to see what some police departments are planning on in the future.Video of Future Robotic Police Officer
Check out what is coming soon for people with prostheic feet and ankles.
Prosthetic Ankle
All terrain robots (ATRs)are in the minds of scientists for our future. Maybe in the next ten years these ATRs will be our new search and rescue teams. Large ATRs will carry smaller robots that will fan out over the land to find someone or something. These smaller robots will be more specialized and have cameras, sonar, heat sensors, and motion detectors in them. These robots will work as a team. This project, called Millibot, has begun at the Carnegie Mellon University. Some really small robots (size 5-10 cm) can be used for surveillance and reconnaissance.
As I said, the sky is the limit for the future of robotics. Get ready for an interesting future!
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Robots have only been around for less than 50 years, but people have thought about machines that could do work for them for many years. Even the ancient Greeks and Romans thought about robot-like servants made of clay. In 1495 Leonardo da Vinci created plans for a mechanical man.
Robots are used to do dangerous jobs too. This robot is called, Mini-Andros and it is on the bomb squad. It can pick up objects weighing 15 pounds and put them in a bomb-proof container. It can also break windows, see in the dark, and can defuse a bomb or set bombs off. These robots help to keep people safe, like the police or SWAT teams.
There is no limit to what computers and robots can do in the future. We can only guess what will be invented in the years to come. Some things predicted for the near future are more robotics in space. Scientists want to make the "Sojourner" Mars land rover even better so that it will be able to sense what is around it and change course accordingly.
Hans Moravec, a research scientist says there will be a 4-stage evolution towards robots with human-level intelligence able to do many different tasks. This evolution will progress as computers become more powerful. This power is defined as "millions of instructions per second" (MIPS). He projects that by
the year 2040 robots will be able to speak and understand speach and think creatively. He thinks that robots will be as competent as people by that time. To see his timeline of robotic evolutions click on the link.
