Robot Makers Say World Cup Will Be Theirs By 2050

mindpixel writes "The Scotsman is reporting that the Japanese are very confident they can build a robotic team that will win the World Cup by 2050 using a descendent of the 38cm tall VisiON which operates completely independently of human input, making its own decisions based on information that it perceives with its 360 degree vision, and is able to recognise the football, approach it and deliver a hefty kick. It is also able to identify an opponent and shield the ball in much the same way as a human player does."

Comments

im going to watch that

[Anonymous Coward]

in my flying car !

Sure

[slobber]

Just replace players with tanks and the cup is yours!

What about feigning Injuries??

[TheShadowHawk]

Will the robots also be able to fall down and scream in 'agony' when the opposition barely nicks them in the hope of getting a easy penalty?

Re:What about feigning Injuries??

[SubtleNuance]

If they make them in Italy - yes.

Re:What about feigning Injuries??

[imr]

No, they won't, they're japanese robots.
The italian robots, tho', will fall without anyone in a 1,5m radius.
The argentinian robots will use their hands, and they will have 8 of them.
The german robots will be be very fair ... as long as they win the game, if they are loosing around 15 mns before the end, they will begin to break the other robots legs.
The french robots will have so much cosmetics enhancements because of all the commercials they play in, that they will be barely able to run.
The british team wont have a robot goalkeeper.
The us robots will make everybody laugh but nobody will show it. Despite their advanced design (and the heavy armor of the goalkeeper) their programmation will be terrible. They wont get anything of the game and will err randomly on the field and will even fall when there isnt anybody in a 5 meters radius. Yet the referees will still continue to be really really nice to them since the fifa will still want the us market.
As for Brasil, they won't have any robots but real players and will continue to win.

Re:What about feigning Injuries??

[fedork]

No. US robots will fail because they will forget to convert feet to meters.

Re:What about feigning Injuries??

[mmkkbb]

During the World Cup 2002, there was an editorial cartoon with a little boy watching television:

BOY: LES BLEUS, they...they scored!
HIS DAD: Relax kid, it's only a commercial.

(for the ignorant, the French team, the defending world cup champions, did not score a single goal during the world cup finals!)

Re:But...

[all your mwbassguy a]

theres nothing in the rulebook that says a mule^H^H^H^Hrobot cant play.

Very close already...

[jemenake]

Well, even today, I can build you a one-robot team that will, at least, would never lose.

I needs no batteries or wheels. However, it is 24 feet wide and 8 feet high. If the ball is stiffly inflated, we can actually reduce the size of this robot down to about 23 feet wide by 7.5 feet tall. :)

Re:Very close already...

[davidescott]

Add a canon and you could have a good shot at winning.

As long as they're not white

[Shadow Wrought]

and playing cricket we should be OK.

secret play

[Tablizer]

We'll just slashdot 'em in the final round

Robotic Hooligans by 2051

[Anonymous Coward]

You wait and see ... they'll be droids everywhere getting pissed on cheap petrol

From the article..

[Sonicated]

THE footballers of tomorrow will have the midfield guile of Zinedine Zidane, the finishing ability of Andriy Shevchenko and the staying power of Roy Keane.

Roy Keane? Staying power? World Cup? They sent him home!

And one more thing...

[GeorgeMcBay]

making its own decisions based on information that it perceives with its 360 degree vision, and is able to recognise the football, approach it and deliver a hefty kick. It is also able to identify an opponent and shield the ball in much the same way as a human player does.


And if that doesn't convince you they'll win the World Cup, perhaps you need a demonstration of the man-killing laser beams that shoot out of their eyes, meatbag.

Obligatory Americanism

[NoImNotNineVolt]

The football? I thought they said the World Cup. Don't these foreigners know that footballs are for the Super Bowl and soccer balls are for the World Cup? Sheesh.

Shape Up

[Rie Beam]

"a descendent of the 38cm tall VisiON"

38cm = 14.9606299 inches, or about a foot and two inches

Nothing to fear here. Except maybe leg-humping offenses.

Bah the Clones Will Win!

[Evil W1zard]

By 2050 we will be able to clone a team of David Beckhams with giant mishapen, club feet and a goalie with 6 arms that will own the robot team!

because I can't help it

[bersl2]

The World Cup? I'd say that they've set a pretty high

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!

<ducks>

Re:Umm, rules anyone/

[nyekulturniy]

Can they train a robot to roll on the ground, screaming "My support units!" in hope of drawing a penalty shot?

Maybe the Italian robots.

But the real question is...

[saddino]

...can they design an authentic robotic soccer hooligan? (powered by alcohol of course)

I'm surprised no one has said this yet.

[Xyrus]

All you balls are belong to us!

~X~

Re:Hmmm...

[GreyWolf3000]

Announcer:

And Tux, who's come off of a left paddle injury with tremendous intensity here in the quarterfinals, takes the ball down the field. Score is still tied 0-0 with just twelve seconds on the clock to do it for the second half....He gets past Beastie with an impressive stutter step....HE GETS IN RANGE....THE GOALIE GETS DOWN....DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES?

Let's check our official Netcraft judges panel--and they're going to count it! *BSD is dead!