Top Tech Voices Podcast — Episode 3: Robotics & IoT

JoRatcliffe said:

Say hello to the first Top Tech Voices podcast of the new year

Hello 

JoRatcliffe said:

What do you think?

An interesting and enjoyable discussion to start the new year off with.

JoRatcliffe said:

Do you prefer robots that look as human as possible or robots that look more like machines?

It's got to be the industrial looking robots for me.

JoRatcliffe said:

Plus, if you could add any kind of robot to your home, what would it be?

Some form of yard bot that can help with the high level maintenance tasks around the house ( tiles, gutters, windows ) as well as generally helping out with the garden (watering, mowing, hedge trimming, digging over), and to assist with the likes of kerbside deliveries, putting the bins out, de-icing etc.

I'm glad you enjoyed, I really liked the tone of this episode. An optimistic and positive look at the present day/future for the most part, which makes a nice change to the sometimes negative perception of AI etc.

I agree, I do like a robot-y looking robot, too! Otherwise there's a risk of a robot falling into the 'uncanny valley', plus, there's no rule that says a robot with two arms and two legs is necessarily the optimal design for clearing gutters and de-icing the car in the morning (all very good uses for a robot!).

JoRatcliffe said:

there's no rule that says a robot with two arms and two legs is necessarily the optimal design

The two arms and two legs humanoid thing is certainly beneficial if the robot has to share existing infrastructure with humans without the need for making lots of adjustments. For many tasks however that form factor is perhaps less than optimal.

True, definitely beneficial for a robot to have two arms and two legs if the robot needs to climb up a ladder maybe

But it takes two empty arms/hands to climb a ladder safely.  If it were made with three arms a robot could safely climb the ladder and carry something with it. 

Good point!

I was thinking even more basic than that. Can it get through standard doorways, up the stairwell, or into a family car. Can it get on public transport like a bus/tram/train/plane and sit down. Can it reach worktops, shelves, cupboards. Can it use basic appliances like fridges, cookers, microwave oven.

All these sorts of things over the years have been designed around the average human form factor.

So if your your plastic pal who's fun to be with ( HHGTTG reference ) has a similar form factor, then can potentially use more of the existing infrastructure straight off.

For a yard bot though I was thinking more along the lines of an articulating and telescoping arm on tracks/rails that could reach without the need for climbing a ladder. The human form factor is less of an issue here as it is likely to reside in a dedicated garden shed when not in use. However, some may want their plastic pal to be able to do both indoor and outdoor chores. 

A robot perhaps also has the advantage that it can use its feet like hands and grip the rung it is standing on like a bird grips the branch it is perched on.

It could also potentially do something interesting with the stiles.

Still need the second robot at the bottom to foot the ladder though. 

A robot perhaps also has the advantage that it can use its feet like hands and grip the rung it is standing on like a bird grips the branch it is perched on.

It could also potentially do something interesting with the stiles.

Still need the second robot at the bottom to foot the ladder though.