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Hitachi Unveils Humanoid Robot

Posted by samzenpus on from the almost-human dept.

HunahpuMonkey writes "BBC reports that Hitachi has unveiled a humanoid robot, named Emiew, to compete with Honda's Asimo and Sony's Qrio robots. The robot has a vocabulary of about 100 words and could be trained for practical office and factory use. In addition, it is the fastest robot to date, moving 3.7 miles per hour on wheel feet which resemble the bottom half of a Segway scooter."

7 of 245 comments (clear)

  1. I think the saddest part about this... by ciroknight · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Is that the only companies willing to do any practical research in robotics is car companies because they use robotics on such a daily basis (the building of cars, of course).

    Not only that, robotics is one of the most fun branches of modern computing and engineering, and yet so few engineers actually go into it. It's a shame we aren't meeting up with more robots in real life (Fast foods should be relegated to robotics by now, as the food quality tends to resemble it)...

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  2. What's the big deal about humanoid robots? by Noose+For+A+Neck · · Score: 4, Insightful
    I'm not robotics expert, I'm just an engineering student, but it seems to me that humanoid robots are a sort of marketing victory more than being a genuine breakthrough.

    Most industrial robots I've seen don't need a humanoid form at all, and I can imagine several cases were the humanoid form is actually an impairment to getting work done. Why not go with more structurally efficient designs, like a spider, instead of focusing on bipedal bots for uses requiring ambulation?

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    1. Re:What's the big deal about humanoid robots? by e2d2 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Why not go with more structurally efficient designs, like a spider, instead of focusing on bipedal bots for uses requiring ambulation?

      As long as it has a face I can punch I don't care what shape it comes in.

      But in all seriousness I do agree, the quest for human shaped robots is intriguing. We are obviously not the most able bodied creatures when it comes to our "form factor", our superiority is not in our shape but in our huge monkey brain.

      Maybe it's to out people at ease, but I for one do _not_ welcome our new humanoid robot overlords. It creeps me out when things that don't have a soul start talking to me. Call me crazy.

    2. Re:What's the big deal about humanoid robots? by hauntedspaceship · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Because our environment is designed and optimized for humans. By creating robots that resemble us (same actuators (hands), ability to understand and speak our language, see what we can see), then they already can operate in our environment.

      There is also the idea of robot-human interaction: would you rather interact with Asimo or a spider?

    3. Re:What's the big deal about humanoid robots? by utexaspunk · · Score: 3, Insightful

      because what they want to move toward are all-purpose robots capable of serving in a variety of environments shared with humans. most of these environments are currently designed for humans. obviously the best form factor for maneuvering such an environment and manipulating objects designed for humans would be that of a human.

      that, and they look way cool...

  3. Re:Cog and Kismet by filmmaker · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Your VCR also actually works. It also has an extremely limited and unambitious feature set.

    That's not to say that the Japanese robots aren't major accomplishments; they are. So is a VCR, if you think about it. Just not when you stack it up against the goal of creating true AI, which is what Cog is all about, "humanoid intelligence."

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  4. Actually... by GuyMannDude · · Score: 4, Insightful

    To me, the saddest part about all this is that the only companies willing to do any practical research in robotics are Japanese car companies because they look farther into the future than the next quarterly earnings report. The Japanese car companies are pumping R&D dollars into developing new technologies that will help them in the long run. The American car companies are taking that money and pumping it into bonuses for CEOs so they can buy a new ivory backscracther every year.

    Face it, we just don't have the drive to improve that companies in other countries do.

    GMD

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