Humanoid robot
A humanoid robot is a robot resembling the human body in shape. The design may be for functional purposes, such as interacting with human tools and environments, for experimental purposes, such as the study of bipedal locomotion, or for other purposes. In general, humanoid robots have a torso, a head, two arms, and two legs, though some humanoid robots may replicate only part of the body, for example, from the waist up. Some humanoid robots also have heads designed to replicate human facial features such as eyes and mouths. Androids are humanoid robots built to aesthetically resemble humans.
History
The concept of a humanoid robot originated in many different cultures around the world. Some of the earliest accounts of the idea of humanoid automata date to the 4th century BCE in Greek mythologies and various religious and philosophical texts from China. Physical prototypes of humanoid automata were later created in the Middle East, Italy, Japan, and France.
Greece
The Greek god of blacksmiths, Hephaestus, created several different humanoid automata in various myths. In Homer's Iliad, Hephaestus created golden handmaidens and imbued them with human-like voices to serve as speaking tools or instruments.[1] Another Greek myth details how Hephaestus crafted a giant bronze automaton named Talos to protect the island of Crete from invaders.[2]
China
In the 3rd century BCE, a Taoist philosophical text called the Liezi, written by Chinese philosopher Lie Yukou, detailed the idea of a humanoid automaton. The text includes mention of an engineer named Yan Shi who created a life-size, human-like robot for the fifth king of the Chinese Zhou Dynasty, King Mu.[3] The robot was primarily constructed of leather and wood. It was capable of walking, singing, and moving all parts of its body.[3]
Middle East
In the 13th century, a Muslim engineer named Ismail al-Jazari designed various humanoid automata. He created a waitress robot that would dispense drinks from a liquid reservoir and appear out of an automatic door to serve them.[4] Another automaton he created was used for hand washing to refill a basin with water after being drained.[5]
Italy
In the 1400s, Leonardo da Vinci conceptualized a complex mechanical robot clad in a suit of armor, capable of sitting, standing, and independently moving its arms.[6] The entire robot was operated by a system of pulleys and cables.
Japan
From the 17th to 19th centuries, the Japanese built humanoid automata called karakuri puppets. These puppets resembled dolls and were used for entertainment in theatre, homes, and religious festivals.[7] Karakuri puppets that were used for theater plays were called butai karakuri.[8] Small karakuri puppets found in homes, called zashiki kurakuri, were placed on tables to dance, beat drums, or serve drinks.[8] The puppets used in religious festivals were known as Dashi karakuri, and they served to reenact myths and legends.[9]
France
In the 18th century, French inventor Jacques de Vaucanson created a significant humanoid automaton called The Flute Player. This wooden, human-sized robot was capable of playing various melodies with the flute. It consisted of a system of bellows, pipes, weights, and other mechanical components to simulate to the muscles necessary to play the flute.[10]
Applications
Humanoid robots are now used as research tools in several scientific areas. Researchers study the human body structure and behavior (biomechanics) to build humanoid robots. On the other side, the attempt to simulate the human body leads to a better understanding of it. Human cognition is a field of study which is focused on how humans learn from sensory information in order to acquire perceptual and motor skills. This knowledge is used to develop computational models of human behavior, and it has been improving over time.
It has been suggested that very advanced robotics will facilitate the enhancement of ordinary humans. See transhumanism.
Medical and research
Humanoid robots are a valuable resource in the world of medicine and biotechnology, as well as other fields of research such as biomechanics and cognitive science.[11] Humanoid robots are being used to develop complex prosthetics for individuals with physical disabilities such as missing limbs.[12] The WABIAN-2 is a new medical humanoid robot created to help patients in the rehabilitation of their lower limbs.[12]
Although the initial aim of humanoid research was to build better orthosis and prosthesis for human beings, knowledge has been transferred between both disciplines. A few examples are powered leg prosthesis for the neuromuscularly impaired, ankle-foot orthosis, biological realistic leg prosthesis, and forearm prosthesis.
Humanoid robots can be used as test subjects for the practice and development of personalized healthcare aids, essentially performing as robotic nurses for demographics such as the elderly.[12] Humanoids are also suitable for some procedurally-based vocations, such as reception-desk administrators and automotive manufacturing line workers. In essence, since they can use tools and operate equipment and vehicles designed for the human form, humanoids could theoretically perform any task a human being can, so long as they have the proper software. However, the complexity of doing so is immense.
Entertainment
Humanoid robots have had a long history in the realm of entertainment, from the conception and ideas in the story of Prometheus to the application and physical build of modern animatronics used for theme parks.[11] Current uses and development of humanoid robots in theme parks are focused on creating stuntronics.[14] Stuntronics are humanoid robots built for serving as stunt doubles, and are designed to simulate life-like, untethered, dynamic movement.[14] Several Disney theme park shows utilize animatronic robots that look, move and speak much like human beings. Although these robots look realistic, they have no cognition or physical autonomy. Various humanoid robots and their possible applications in daily life are featured in an independent documentary film called Plug & Pray, which was released in 2010.
Demonstrative
Though many real-world applications for humanoid robots are unexplored, their primary use is to demonstrate up-and-coming technologies.[15] Modern examples of humanoid robots, such as the Honda Asimo, are revealed to the public in order to demonstrate new technological advancements in motor skills, such as walking, climbing, and playing an instrument.[15] Other humanoid robots have been developed for household purposes, however excel only in single purpose skills and are far from autonomous.[15] Humanoid robots, especially those with artificial intelligence algorithms, could be useful for future dangerous and/or distant space exploration missions, without having the need to turn back around again and return to Earth once the mission is completed.
Sensors
A sensor is a device that measures some attribute of the world. Being one of the three primitives of robotics (besides planning and control), sensing plays an important role in robotic paradigms.
Sensors can be classified according to the physical process with which they work or according to the type of measurement information that they give as output. In this case, the second approach was used.[16]
Proprioceptive
Proprioceptive sensors sense the position, orientation, and speed of the humanoid's body and joints, along with other internal values.[17]
In human beings, the otoliths and semi-circular canals (in the inner ear) are used to maintain balance and orientation.[18] Additionally, humans use their own proprioceptive sensors (e.g. touch, muscle extension, limb position) to help with their orientation. Humanoid robots use accelerometers to measure the acceleration, from which velocity can be calculated by integration;[19] tilt sensors to measure inclination; force sensors placed in robot's hands and feet to measure contact force with environment;[20] position sensors that indicate the actual position of the robot (from which the velocity can be calculated by derivation);[21] and even speed sensors.
Exteroceptive
Arrays of tactels can be used to provide data on what has been touched. The Shadow Hand uses an array of 34 tactels arranged beneath its polyurethane skin on each finger tip.[22] Tactile sensors also provide information about forces and torques transferred between the robot and other objects.
Vision refers to processing data from any modality which uses the electromagnetic spectrum to produce an image. In humanoid robots it is used to recognize objects and determine their properties. Vision sensors work most similarly to the eyes of human beings. Most humanoid robots use CCD cameras as vision sensors.
Sound sensors allow humanoid robots to hear speech and environmental sounds, akin to the ears of the human being. Microphones are usually used for the robots to convey speech.
Actuators
Actuators are the motors responsible for motion in the robot.[23]
Humanoid robots are constructed in such a way that they mimic the human body. They use actuators that perform like muscles and joints, though with a different structure.[23] The actuators of humanoid robots can be either electric, pneumatic, or hydraulic.[24][25] It is ideal for these actuators to have high power, low mass, and small dimensions.[25]
Electric
Electric actuators are the most popular types of actuators in humanoid robots.[24] These actuators are smaller in size, and a single electric actuator may not produce enough power for a human-sized joint.[24] Therefore, it is common to use multiple electric actuators for a single joint in a humanoid robot.[24] An example of a humanoid robot using electric actuators is HRP-2.[25]
Hydraulic
Hydraulic actuators produce higher power than electric actuators and pneumatic actuators, and they have the ability to control the torque they produce better than other types of actuators.[25] However, they can become very bulky in size.[24][25] One solution to counter the size issue is electro-hydrostatic actuators (EHA).[25] The most popular example of a humanoid robot using hydraulic actuators is the ATLAS robot made by Boston Dynamics.[25]
Pneumatic
Pneumatic actuators operate on the basis of gas compressibility.[24][25] As they are inflated, they expand along the axis, and as they deflate, they contract. If one end is fixed, the other will move in a linear trajectory. A popular example of a pneumatic actuator is the Mac Kibben muscle.[25]
Planning and control
Planning in robots is the process of planning out motions and trajectories for the robot to carry out.[26] Control is the actual execution of these planned motions and trajectories.[26] In humanoid robots, the planning must carry out biped motions, meaning that robots should plan motions similar to a human.[27] Since one of the main uses of humanoid robots is to interact with humans, it is important for the planning and control mechanisms of humanoid robots to work in a variety of terrain and environments.[27]
The question of walking biped robots stabilization on the surface is of great importance.[28] Maintenance of the robot's gravity center over the center of bearing area for providing a stable position can be chosen as a goal of control.[28]
To maintain dynamic balance during the walk, a robot needs information about contact force and its current and desired motion.[27] The solution to this problem relies on a major concept, the Zero Moment Point (ZMP).[27]
Another characteristic of humanoid robots is that they move, gather information (using sensors) on the "real world", and interact with it.[29] They do not stay still like factory manipulators and other robots that work in highly structured environments.[29] To allow humanoids to move in complex environments, planning and control must focus on self-collision detection, path planning and obstacle avoidance.[29][30]
Humanoid robots do not yet have some features of the human body.[31] They include structures with variable flexibility, which provide safety (to the robot itself and to the people), and redundancy of movements, i.e. more degrees of freedom and therefore wide task availability.[31] Although these characteristics are desirable to humanoid robots, they will bring more complexity and new problems to planning and control.[32] The field of whole-body control deals with these issues and addresses the proper coordination of numerous degrees of freedom, e.g. to realize several control tasks simultaneously while following a given order of priority.[33][34]
Timeline of developments
Year | Subject | Notes |
---|---|---|
c. 250 BC | Automaton | A humanoid automaton is detailed in the Liezi, written by Chinese philosopher Lie Yukou.[3] |
c. 50 AD | Automata | Greek mathematician Hero of Alexandria described a machine that automatically pours wine for party guests.[35] |
1206 | Ismail Al-Jazari described a band made up of humanoid automata which, according to Charles B. Fowler, performed "more than fifty facial and body actions during each musical selection."[36] Al-Jazari also created hand-washing automata with automatic humanoid servants.[5] His programmable "castle clock" also featured five musician automata which automatically played music when moved by levers operated by a hidden camshaft attached to a water wheel.[37] | |
1495 | Leonardo's robot | Leonardo da Vinci designs a humanoid automaton clad in a suit of knight's armor and operated by pulleys and cables.[6] |
1738 | The Flute Player | Jacques de Vaucanson builds The Flute Player, a life-size automaton capable of playing different melodies on the flute.[10] |
1774 | Pierre Jacquet-Droz and his son Henri-Louis created the Draughtsman, the Musicienne and the Writer, a figure of a boy that could write messages up to 40 characters long.[38] | |
1898 | Nikola Tesla publicly demonstrates his "automaton" technology by wirelessly controlling a model boat at the Electrical Exposition held at Madison Square Garden in New York City during the height of the Spanish–American War.[39] | |
1921 | Czech writer Karel Čapek introduced the word "robot" in his play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots). The word "robot" comes from the word "robota", meaning, in Czech and Polish, "labour, drudgery".[40] | |
1927 | Maschinenmensch | The ("machine-human"), a gynoid humanoid robot, also called "Parody", "Futura", "Robotrix", or the "Maria impersonator" (played by German actress Brigitte Helm), one of the earliest humanoid robots ever to appear on film, is depicted in Fritz Lang's film Metropolis. |
1928 | Eric | An electrical robot opens an exhibition of the Society of Model Engineers at London's Royal Horticultural Hall in London, and tours the world.[41] |
1939 | Elektro | A humanoid robot built by the Westinghouse Electric Corporation[42] |
1941-42 | Three Laws of Robotics | Isaac Asimov formulates the Three Laws of Robotics, used in his robot science fiction stories, and in the process of doing so, coins the word "robotics".[43] |
1948 | Cybernetics | Norbert Wiener formulates the principles of cybernetics, the basis of practical robotics.[44] |
1961 | Unimate | The first digitally operated and programmable non-humanoid robot, is installed on a General Motors assembly line to lift hot pieces of metal from a die casting machine and stack them. It was created by George Devol and constructed by Unimation, the first robot manufacturing company.[45] |
1967 to 1972 | WABOT-1 | Waseda University initiated the WABOT project in 1967, and in 1972 completed the WABOT-1, the world's first full-scale humanoid intelligent robot.[46][47] It was the first android, able to walk, communicate with a person in Japanese (with an artificial mouth), measure distances and directions to the objects using external receptors (artificial ears and eyes), and grip and transport objects with hands.[48][49][50] |
1969 | D.E. Whitney publishes his article "Resolved motion rate control of manipulators and human prosthesis".[51] | |
1970 | Zero Moment Point | Miomir Vukobratović proposed a theoretical model to explain biped locomotion.[52] |
1972 | Powered exoskeleton | Miomir Vukobratović and his associates at Mihajlo Pupin Institute build the first active anthropomorphic exoskeleton.[53] |
1980 | Marc Raibert established the MIT Leg Lab, which is dedicated to studying legged locomotion and building dynamic legged robots.[54] | |
1983 | Greenman | Using MB Associates arms, "Greenman" was developed by Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center, San Diego. It had an exoskeletal master controller with kinematic equivalency and spatial correspondence of the torso, arms, and head. Its vision system consisted of two 525-line video cameras each having a 35-degree field of view and video camera eyepiece monitors mounted in an aviator's helmet.[55] |
1984 | WABOT-2 | At Waseda University, the WABOT-2 is created, a musician humanoid robot able to communicate with a person, read a normal musical score with his eyes and play tunes of average difficulty on an electronic organ.[48] |
1985 | WHL-11 | Developed by Hitachi Ltd, WHL-11 is a biped robot capable of static walking on a flat surface at 13 seconds per step and it can also turn.[48] |
1986 | Honda E series | Honda developed seven biped robots which were designated E0 (Experimental Model 0) through E6. E0 was in 1986, E1 – E3 were done between 1987 and 1991, and E4 - E6 were done between 1991 and 1993.[56] |
1989 | Manny | A full-scale anthropomorphic robot with 42 degrees of freedom developed at Battelle's Pacific Northwest Laboratories in Richland, Washington, for the US Army's Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. It could not walk on its own but it could crawl, and had an artificial respiratory system to simulate breathing and sweating.[48] |
1990 | Tad McGeer showed that a biped mechanical structure with knees could walk passively down a sloping surface.[57] | |
1993 | Honda P series | Honda developed P1 (Prototype Model 1) through P3, an evolution from E series, with upper limbs. Developed until 1997.[56] |
1995 | Hadaly | Developed in Waseda University to study human-robot communication and has three subsystems: a head-eye subsystem, a voice control system for listening and speaking in Japanese, and a motion-control subsystem to use the arms to point toward campus destinations.[58] |
1995 | Wabian | A human-size biped walking robot from Waseda University.[58] |
1996 | Saika | A light-weight, human-size and low-cost humanoid robot, was developed at Tokyo University. Saika has a two-DOF neck, dual five-DOF upper arms, a torso and a head. Several types of hands and forearms are under development also. Developed until 1998.[48] |
1997 | Hadaly-2 | A humanoid robot designed in Waseda University which realizes interactive communication with humans. It communicates not only informationally, but also physically.[58] |
2000 | ASIMO | Honda creates its 11th bipedal humanoid robot, able to run.[56] |
2001 | Qrio | Sony unveils small humanoid entertainment robots, dubbed Sony Dream Robot (SDR). Renamed Qrio in 2003.[59] |
2001 | HOAP | Fujitsu realized its first commercial humanoid robot named HOAP-1. Its successors, HOAP-2 and HOAP-3, were announced in 2003 and 2005, respectively. HOAP is designed for a broad range of applications for R&D of robot technologies.[60] |
2002 | HRP-2 | A biped walking robot built by the Manufacturing Science and Technology Center (MSTC) in Tokyo.[61] |
2003 | JOHNNIE | An autonomous biped walking robot built at the Technical University of Munich. The main objective was to realize an anthropomorphic walking machine with a human-like, dynamically stable gait.[62] |
2003 | Actroid | A robot with realistic silicone "skin" developed by Osaka University in conjunction with Kokoro Company Ltd.[63] |
2004 | Persia | Iran's first humanoid robot, was developed using realistic simulation by researchers of Isfahan University of Technology in conjunction with ISTT.[64] |
2004 | KHR-1 | A programmable bipedal humanoid robot introduced in June 2004 by a Japanese company Kondo Kagaku. |
2005 | PKD Android | A conversational humanoid robot made in the likeness of science fiction novelist Philip K Dick, was developed as a collaboration between Hanson Robotics, the FedEx Institute of Technology, and the University of Memphis.[65] |
2005 | Wakamaru | A Japanese domestic robot made by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, primarily intended to provide companionship to elderly and disabled people.[66] |
2005 | Actroid | The Geminoid series is a series of ultra-realistic humanoid robots developed by Hiroshi Ishiguro of ATR and Kokoro in Tokyo. The original one, Geminoid HI-1, was made at its image. Followed Geminoid-F in 2010 and Geminoid-DK in 2011.[67] |
2006 | Nao | A small open source programmable humanoid robot developed by Aldebaran Robotics, in France. Widely used by worldwide universities as a research platform and educational tool.[67] |
2006 | RoboTurk | Designed and realized by Dr Davut Akdas and Dr Sabri Bicakci at Balikesir University. This Research Project Sponsored By The Scientific And Technological Research Council Of Turkey (TUBITAK) in 2006. RoboTurk is successor of biped robots named "Salford Lady" and "Gonzalez" at university of Salford in the UK. It is the first humanoid robot supported by Turkish Government.[68] |
2006 | REEM-A | The first fully autonomous European biped humanoid robot, designed to play chess with the Hydra Chess engine. The first robot developed by PAL Robotics, it was also used as a walking, manipulation, speech and vision development platform.[69] |
2006 | iCub | A biped humanoid open source robot for cognition research.[70] |
2006 | Mahru | A network-based biped humanoid robot developed in South Korea.[71] |
2007 | TOPIO | A ping pong playing robot developed by TOSY Robotics JSC.[72] |
2007 | Twendy-One | A robot developed by the WASEDA University Sugano Laboratory for home assistance services. It is not biped, as it uses an omni-directional mobile mechanism.[73] |
2008 | Justin | A humanoid robot developed by the German Aerospace Center (DLR).[74] |
2008 | KT-X | The first international humanoid robot developed as a collaboration between the five-time consecutive RoboCup champions, Team Osaka, and KumoTek Robotics.[75] |
2008 | Nexi | The first mobile, dexterous, and social robot, makes its public debut as one of TIME magazine's top inventions of the year.[76] The robot was built through a collaboration between the MIT Media Lab Personal Robots Group,[77] UMass Amherst and Meka Robotics.[78][79] |
2008 | Salvius | The first open source humanoid robot built in the United States is created.[80] |
2008 | REEM-B | The second biped humanoid robot developed by PAL Robotics. It has the ability to autonomously learn its environment using various sensors and carry 20% of its own weight.[81] |
2008 | Surena | It had a height of 165 centimetres and weight of 60 kilograms, and is able to speak according to predefined text. It also has remote control and tracking ability.[82] |
2009 | HRP-4C | A Japanese domestic robot made by National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, shows human characteristics in addition to bipedal walking.[83] |
2009 | SURALP | Turkey's first dynamically walking humanoid robot is developed by Sabancı University in conjunction with Tubitak.[84] |
2009 | Kobian | A robot developed by Waseda University can walk, talk, and mimic emotions.[85] |
2009 | DARwIn-OP | An open source robot developed by ROBOTIS in collaboration with Virginia Tech, Purdue University, and University of Pennsylvania. This project was supported and sponsored by NSF.[86] |
2010 | Robonaut 2 | A very advanced humanoid robot by NASA and General Motors. It was part of the payload of Shuttle Discovery on the successful launch February 24, 2011. It is intended to do spacewalks for NASA.[87] |
2010 | HRP-4C | National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology demonstrate their humanoid robot singing and dancing along with human dancers.[88] |
2010 | HRP-4 | National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology demonstrates the humanoid robot HRP-4 which is known for performing very natural movements similar to humans.[89] |
2010 | REEM | A humanoid service robot with a wheeled mobile base. Developed by PAL Robotics, it can perform autonomous navigation in various surroundings and has voice and face recognition capabilities.[90] |
2011 | Auriga | Robot developed by Ali Özgün HIRLAK and Burak Özdemir in 2011 at University of Cukurova. Auriga is the first brain controlled robot, designed in Turkey. Auriga can service food and medicine to paralysed people by patient's thoughts. EEG technology is adapted for manipulation of the robot. The project was supported by Turkish Government.[91] |
2011 | ASIMO | In November, Honda unveiled its second generation Honda Asimo Robot. The all new Asimo is the first version of the robot with semi-autonomous capabilities.[92] |
2012 | COMAN | The Advanced Robotics Department in Italian Institute of Technology released its first version of the COmpliant huMANoid robot (COMAN) which is designed for robust dynamic walking and balancing in rough terrain.[93] |
2012 | NimbRo | The Autonomous Intelligent Systems Group of University of Bonn, Germany, introduces the Humanoid TeenSize Open Platform NimbRo-OP.[94] |
2013 | TORO | The German Aerospace Center (DLR) presents the humanoid robot TORO (TOrque-controlled humanoid RObot).[95] |
2013 | On December 20–21, 2013, DARPA Robotics Challenge ranked the top 16 humanoid robots competing for the US$2 million cash prize. The leading team, SCHAFT, with 27 out of a possible score of 30 was bought by Google.[96] | |
2013 | REEM-C | PAL Robotics launches REEM-C, the first humanoid biped robot developed as a robotics research platform 100% ROS based.[97] |
2013 | Poppy | The first open-source 3D-printed humanoid robot. Bio-inspired, with legs designed for biped locomotion. Developed by the Flower Departments at INRIA.[98] |
2014 | Manav | India's first 3D printed humanoid robot developed in the laboratory of A-SET Training and Research Institutes by Diwakar Vaish (head Robotics and Research, A-SET Training and Research Institutes).[99] |
2014 | Pepper robot | After the acquisition of Aldebaran, SoftBank Robotics releases a robot available for the public.[100] |
2014 | Nadine | A female humanoid social robot designed in Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and modelled on its director Professor Nadia Magnenat Thalmann. Nadine is a socially intelligent robot which returns greetings, makes eye contact, and remembers all the conversations it has had.[101][102] |
2016 | Sophia | A humanoid robot developed by "Hanson Robotics", Hong Kong, and modelled after Audrey Hepburn. Sophia has artificial intelligence, visual data processing and facial recognition.[103] |
2016 | OceanOne | Developed by a team at Stanford University, led by computer science professor Oussama Khatib, OceanOne completed its first mission, diving for treasure in a shipwreck off the coast of France, at a depth of 100 meters. The robot is controlled remotely, has haptic sensors in its hands, and artificial intelligence capabilities.[104] |
2017 | TALOS | PAL Robotics launches TALOS,[105] a fully electrical humanoid robot with joint torque sensors and EtherCAT communication technology that can manipulate up to 6 kg payload in each of its grippers.[106] |
2018 | Rashmi Robot | A multilingual realistic humanoid robot was launched in India by Ranjit Shrivastav having emotional interpretation capabilities [107] |
2020 | Vyommitra | A female-looking spacefaring humanoid robot being developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation to function on-board the Gaganyaan, a crewed orbital spacecraft.[108] |
2020 | Epi | Epi, a humanoid robot, was developed by the Cognitive Science Robotics Group at Lund University. Epi was designed for use in developmental robotics experiments, and therefore has a functionality focussed on allowing study of cognitive development. The robot is controlled by the Ikaros system.[109] |
2020 | Robot Shalu | Homemade Artificially Intelligent, Indian Multilingual Humanoid Robot, made-up of waste materials, that can speak 9 Indian and 38 foreign languages (total 47 languages), developed by Dinesh Kunwar Patel, Computer Science teacher, Kendriya Vidyalaya Mumbai, India. Shalu can recognize a person and remember them, identify many objects, solve mathematical problems, give horoscopes and weather reports, teach in a classroom, conduct a quiz, and do many other things.[110] |
2022 | Ameca | In January 2022 Engineered Arts Ltd gave the first public demonstration of their humanoid robot Ameca.[111] |
2022 | pib | pib, the smart 3D printable humanoid robot, was launched in April 2022 by isento GmbH in Nuremberg, Germany.[112] |
2022 | Optimus | On October 1, 2022 Tesla unveiled version 1 of their humanoid robot Optimus.[113] |
2022 | Omeife | Omeife is African first humanoid robot Homemade created by Uniccon Group of Companies, a Nigeria growing technology startups that offers eclectic, innovative technology solutions to businesses and government agencies across Africa. It is a 6-foot-tall female, African humanoid that speaks African languages and is programmed to have a deep understanding of African culture and behavioural patterns.[114] |
In science fiction
A common theme for the depiction of humanoid robots in science fiction pertains to how they can help humans in society or serve as threats to humanity.[115] This theme essentially questions whether artificial intelligence is a force of good or bad for mankind.[115] Humanoid robots that are depicted as good for society and benefit humans are Commander Data in Star Trek and C-3PO in Star Wars.[115] Opposite portrayals where humanoid robots are shown as scary and threatening to humans are the T-800 in Terminator and Megatron in Transformers.[115]
Another prominent theme found in science fiction regarding humanoid robots focuses on personhood. Certain films, particularly Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049, explore whether or not a constructed, synthetic being should be considered a person.[116] In the films, androids called "replicants" are created indistinguishably from human beings, yet they are shunned and do not possess the same rights as humans. This theme incites audience sympathy while also sparking unease at the idea of humanoid robots mimicking humans too closely.[117]
See also
References
Citations
- Gera, Deborah Levine (2003). Ancient Greek ideas on speech, language, and civilization. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-925616-0. OCLC 52486031.
- University, Stanford (2019-02-28). "Ancient myths reveal early fantasies about artificial life". Stanford News. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- Needham, Joseph (1991). Science and Civilisation in China: Volume 2, History of Scientific Thought. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-05800-1.
- @NatGeoUK (2020-08-01). "Medieval robots? They were just one of this Muslim inventor's creations". National Geographic. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- Rosheim, Mark E. (1994). Robot Evolution: The Development of Anthrobotics. Wiley-IEEE. pp. 9–10. ISBN 0-471-02622-0.
- Moran, Michael E. (2006-12-01). "The da Vinci Robot". Journal of Endourology. 20 (12): 986–990. doi:10.1089/end.2006.20.986. ISSN 0892-7790. PMID 17206888.
- Law, Jane Marie (1997). Puppets of nostalgia : the life, death, and rebirth of the Japanese Awaji ningyō tradition. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-02894-X. OCLC 35223048.
- Brown, Steven T. (2010). Tokyo cyberpunk : posthumanism in Japanese visual culture. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-230-10360-3. OCLC 468854451.
- Frenchy Lunning (2008). Limits of the human. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 978-0-8166-6968-4. OCLC 320843109.
- "Living Dolls: A Magical History Of The Quest For Mechanical Life by Gaby Wood". the Guardian. 2002-02-16. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- Siciliano, Bruno; Khatib, Oussama (2019), Goswami, Ambarish; Vadakkepat, Prahlad (eds.), "Humanoid Robots: Historical Perspective, Overview, and Scope", Humanoid Robotics: A Reference, Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, pp. 3–8, doi:10.1007/978-94-007-6046-2_64, ISBN 978-94-007-6046-2, S2CID 240065030, retrieved 2021-10-25
- Ogura, Yu; Aikawa, H.; Shimomura, K.; Kondo, H.; Morishima, A.; Lim, Hun-ok; Takanishi, A. (2006). "Development of a new humanoid robot WABIAN-2". Proceedings 2006 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, 2006. ICRA 2006. pp. 76–81. doi:10.1109/ROBOT.2006.1641164. ISBN 0-7803-9505-0. S2CID 16382715.
- Hall, Loura (11 June 2015). "NASA Looks to University Robotics Groups to Advance Humanoid Robot". NASA.
- "Stuntronics – Disney Research". la.disneyresearch.com. Retrieved 2021-10-25.
- Behnke, Sven (2008-01-01). "Humanoid Robots - From Fiction to Reality?". KI. 22: 5–9.
- Magdy, Khaled (2020-08-01). "What Are Different Types Of Sensors, Classification, Their Applications?". DeepBlue. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- Siegwart, Roland; Nourbakhsh, Illah; Scaramuzza, Davide (2004). Introduction to Autonomous Mobile Robots (Intelligent Robotics and Autonomous Agents series) second edition (PDF). MIT Press. pp. Chapter 4. ISBN 0262015358. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-08-27.
- "How does the balance system work?". Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital. Archived from the original on 2021-10-23. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- Nistler, Jonathan R.; Selekwa, Majura F. (2011-01-01). "Gravity compensation in accelerometer measurements for robot navigation on inclined surfaces". Procedia Computer Science. Complex adaptive sysytems. 6: 413–418. doi:10.1016/j.procs.2011.08.077. ISSN 1877-0509.
- "Types of Tactile Sensor and Its Working Principle". ElProCus - Electronic Projects for Engineering Students. 2016-05-12. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "Content - Differential calculus and motion in a straight line". amsi.org.au. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "Shadow Robot Company: The Hand Technical Specification". Archived from the original on 2008-07-08. Retrieved 2009-04-09.
- "Actuators - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics". www.sciencedirect.com. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- Hashimoto, Kenji (2020-11-16). "Mechanics of humanoid robot". Advanced Robotics. 34 (21–22): 1390–1397. doi:10.1080/01691864.2020.1813624. ISSN 0169-1864. S2CID 225290402.
- Stasse, O.; Flayols, T. (2019), Venture, Gentiane; Laumond, Jean-Paul; Watier, Bruno (eds.), "An Overview of Humanoid Robots Technologies", Biomechanics of Anthropomorphic Systems, Springer Tracts in Advanced Robotics, Cham: Springer International Publishing, vol. 124, pp. 281–310, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-93870-7_13, ISBN 978-3-319-93870-7, S2CID 13702914, retrieved 2021-10-25
- Khatib, Oussama (1994-09-01). "Towards integrated robot planning and control". IFAC Proceedings Volumes. Fourth IFAC Symposium on Robot Control, Capri, Italy, September 19–21, 1994. 27 (14): 351–359. doi:10.1016/S1474-6670(17)47337-X. ISSN 1474-6670.
- Fu, Chenglong; Shuai, Mei; Xu, Kai; Zhao, Jiandong; Wang, Jianmei; Huang, Yuanlin; Chen, Ken (2006-07-28). "Planning and control for THBIP-I humanoid robot". 2006 International Conference on Mechatronics and Automation. Vol. 2006. pp. 1066–1071. doi:10.1109/ICMA.2006.257773.
- N, Bazylev Dmitry; Alexandrovich, Pyrkin Anton; A, Margun Alexei; A, Zimenko Konstantin; Sergeevich, Kremlev Artem; D, Ibraev Denis; Martin, Čech (2015-06-01). "Approaches for stabilizing of biped robots in a standing position on movable support". Scientific and Technical Journal of Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics. 97 (3): 418–425. doi:10.17586/2226-1494-2015-15-3-418-425. ISSN 2500-0373.
- Raković, Mirko; Savić, Srdjan; Santos-Victor, José; Nikolić, Milutin; Borovac, Branislav (2019). "Human-Inspired Online Path Planning and Biped Walking Realization in Unknown Environment". Frontiers in Neurorobotics. 13: 36. doi:10.3389/fnbot.2019.00036. ISSN 1662-5218. PMC 6558152. PMID 31214011.
- Du, Guanglong; Long, Shuaiying; Li, Fang; Huang, Xin (2018). "Active Collision Avoidance for Human-Robot Interaction With UKF, Expert System, and Artificial Potential Field Method". Frontiers in Robotics and AI. 5: 125. doi:10.3389/frobt.2018.00125. ISSN 2296-9144. PMC 7805694. PMID 33501004.
- Yamane, K.; Murai, A. (2018). "A Comparative Study Between Humans and Humanoid Robots". In Ambarish Goswami; Prahlad Vadakkepat (eds.). Humanoid Robotics: A Reference. pp. 1–20. doi:10.1007/978-94-007-7194-9_7-1. ISBN 978-94-007-7194-9. S2CID 65189332.
- "Robots with high degrees of freedom face barriers to adoption". Collaborative Robotics Trends. 2019-10-02. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- Khatib, Oussama; Sentis, Luis; Park, Jaeheung; Warren, James (2004-03-01). "Whole-Body Dynamic Behavior and Control of Human-like Robots". International Journal of Humanoid Robotics. 10: 29–43. doi:10.1142/S0219843604000058.
- Dietrich, Alexander (2016). "Whole-Body Impedance Control of Wheeled Humanoid Robots". Springer Tracts in Advanced Robotics. 116. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-40557-5. ISBN 978-3-319-40556-8. ISSN 1610-7438. S2CID 30137359.
- Hero of Alexandria; Bennet Woodcroft (trans.) (1851). Temple Doors opened by Fire on an Altar. Pneumatics of Hero of Alexandria. London: Taylor Walton and Maberly (online edition from University of Rochester, Rochester, NY). Retrieved on 2008-04-23.
- Fowler, Charles B. (October 1967), "The Museum of Music: A History of Mechanical Instruments", Music Educators Journal 54 (2): 45-9
- Ancient Discoveries, Episode 11: Ancient Robots. History Channel. Archived from the original on 2014-03-01. Retrieved 2008-09-06 – via YouTube.
- "Robot History at iiRobotics: The Robot Shop". Archived from the original on 2006-05-22. Retrieved 2005-11-15.
- "Nikola Tesla". HISTORY. 13 March 2020. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- "MegaGiant Robotics". megagiant.com. Archived from the original on 2007-08-19. Retrieved 2005-11-15.
- Fell, Jade (2016-10-20). "Britain's first robot brought back to life by the Science Museum". eandt.theiet.org. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- "Elektro the Moto-Man Had the Biggest Brain at the 1939 World's Fair". IEEE Spectrum. 2018-09-28. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- US, Christoph Salge,The Conversation. "Asimov's Laws Won't Stop Robots from Harming Humans, So We've Developed a Better Solution". Scientific American. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Wiener, Norbert (1948). Cybernetics: Or Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine. United States: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. ISBN 0-262-23007-0.
- "The Robot Hall of Fame - Powered by Carnegie Mellon University". www.robothalloffame.org. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- "Humanoid History -WABOT-". www.humanoid.waseda.ac.jp. Archived from the original on 1 September 2017. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
- Zeghloul, Saïd; Laribi, Med Amine; Gazeau, Jean-Pierre (21 September 2015). Robotics and Mechatronics: Proceedings of the 4th IFToMM International Symposium on Robotics and Mechatronics. Springer. ISBN 9783319223681. Retrieved 3 May 2018 – via Google Books.
- "Historical Android Projects". androidworld.com. Archived from the original on 2005-11-25. Retrieved 2005-11-15.
- Robots: From Science Fiction to Technological Revolution, page 130
- Duffy, Vincent G. (19 April 2016). Handbook of Digital Human Modeling: Research for Applied Ergonomics and Human Factors Engineering. CRC Press. ISBN 9781420063523. Retrieved 3 May 2018 – via Google Books.
- Resolved motion rate control of manipulators and human prostheses DE Whitney - IEEE Transactions on Man-Machine Systems, 1969
- "Exoskeletons History - part 4". www.mechatech.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "Electric Dreams - Marc Raibert". robosapiens.mit.edu. Archived from the original on 8 May 2005. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2005-10-19. Retrieved 2005-11-15.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - "Honda|ASIMO|ロボット開発の歴史". honda.co.jp. Archived from the original on 2005-12-29. Retrieved 2005-11-15.
- "droidlogic.com". Archived from the original on January 22, 2008.
- Hashimoto, Shuji; Narita, Seinosuke; Kasahara, Hironori; Shirai, Katsuhiko; Kobayashi, Atsuo; Takanishi, Atsuo; Sugano, Shigeki; Yamaguchi, Jin'ichi; Sawada, Hideyuki; Takanobu, Hideaki; Shibuya, Koji (2002-01-01). "Humanoid Robots in Waseda University—Hadaly-2 and WABIAN". Auton. Robots. 12: 25–38. doi:10.1023/A:1013202723953. S2CID 1580353.
- "QRIO: The Robot That Could". IEEE Spectrum. 2004-05-22. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "Research & Development". Archived from the original on 2008-05-09. Retrieved 2008-05-21.
- "Humanoid Robotics". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
- "TUM - Lehrstuhl für angewandte Mechanik: Zweibeinige Laufmaschine JOHNNIE". Archived from the original on 2006-06-15. Retrieved 2007-12-07.
- "新サイトへ". kokoro-dreams.co.jp. Archived from the original on 2006-10-23.
- "Humanoid Robot - Dynamics and Robotics Center". Archived from the original on 2016-09-19. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
- "PKD Android". pkdandroid.org. Archived from the original on 2009-10-01. Retrieved 2019-01-29.
- "NEWS wakamaru". Archived from the original on 2007-07-01. Retrieved 2007-07-02.
- "Aldebaran Robotics". Archived from the original on 2010-06-14. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
- Dr Davut Akdas, "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-07-13. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link), RoboTurk, - Eduard Gamonal. "PAL Robotics — advanced full-size humanoid service robots for events and research world-wide". pal-robotics.com. Archived from the original on 2012-01-04.
- "iCub.org". Archived from the original on 2010-07-16. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
- Erico Guizzo. "Humanoid Robot Mahru Mimics a Person's Movements in Real Time". ieee.org. Archived from the original on 2012-10-20.
- Roxana Deduleasa (5 December 2007). "I, the Ping-Pong Robot!". softpedia. Archived from the original on 2 February 2009. Retrieved 5 May 2009.
- 早稲田大学 理工学部 機械工学科 菅野研究室 TWENDYチーム. "TWENDY-ONE". twendyone.com. Archived from the original on 2012-12-21.
- "Der Mensch im Mittelpunkt - DLR präsentiert auf der AUTOMATICA ein neues Chirurgie-System". DLR. Archived from the original on 2014-04-29. Retrieved 2015-12-09.
- "Welcome to KumoTek Robotics: Interactive Educational and Service Based Robots". Archived from the original on 2010-01-06. Retrieved 2009-09-05.
- "Best Inventions Of 2008". Time. 2008-10-29. Archived from the original on 2012-11-07.
- "Personal Robots Group". Archived from the original on 2010-04-14.
- "Meka Robotics LLC". Archived from the original on 2011-01-02.
- "Overview". Archived from the original on 2010-04-19. Retrieved 2010-04-27.
- Yumpu.com. "January 17, 2013 PDF Edition - Wilbraham-Hampden Times". yumpu.com. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- Eduard Gamonal. "PAL Robotics — advanced full-size humanoid service robots for events and research world-wide". pal-robotics.com. Archived from the original on 2012-03-09.
- "Iran Unveils Its Most Advanced Humanoid Robot Yet". IEEE Spectrum. 2020-02-13. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "HRP-4C - ROBOTS: Your Guide to the World of Robotics". robots.ieee.org. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "humanoid robot project". sabanciuniv.edu. Archived from the original on 2010-04-22. Retrieved 2009-12-03.
- "Japanese Humanoid Robot, Kobian, Walks, Talks, Crys and Laughs (VIDEO)". The Inquisitr News. 24 June 2009. Archived from the original on 2011-11-23.
- "Darwin-OP - ROBOTS: Your Guide to the World of Robotics". robots.ieee.org. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "Say Hello to Robonaut2, NASA's Android Space Explorer of the Future". Popular Science. 5 February 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-02-07.
- "How to Make a Humanoid Robot Dance". 2 November 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-11-07.
- "HRP-4 - ROBOTS: Your Guide to the World of Robotics". robots.ieee.org. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- Eduard Gamonal. "PAL Robotics — advanced full-size humanoid service robots for events and research world-wide". pal-robotics.com. Archived from the original on 2011-03-13. Retrieved 2012-02-21.
- "'Türkler yapmış arkadaş' dedirttiler". MILLIYET HABER - TÜRKIYE'NIN HABER SITESI. 14 January 2012. Archived from the original on 6 January 2015.
- "Honda Global | ASIMO". global.honda. Archived from the original on 2021-11-05. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "COmpliant HuMANoid Platform (COMAN)". iit.it. Archived from the original on 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2018-12-17.
- Schwarz, Max; Pastrana, Julio; Allgeuer, Philipp; Schreiber, Michael; Schüller, Sebastian; Missura, Marcell; Behnke, Sven (2013). "Humanoid TeenSize Open Platform NimbRo-OP". RoboCup 2013: Robot World Cup XVII. Springer. pp. 568–575. ISBN 978-3-662-44467-2.
- "DLR - Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics - Toro". www.dlr.de. Retrieved 2019-06-17.
- "Home". theroboticschallenge.org. Archived from the original on 2015-06-11.
- "REEM-C - ROBOTS: Your Guide to the World of Robotics". robots.ieee.org. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "Meet Poppy, the open source / open hardware humanoid robot inspiring innovation in labs & classrooms ! « IEEE SCV RAS Chapter". site.ieee.org. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- Menezes, Beryl (28 January 2015). "Meet Manav, India's first 3D-printed humanoid robot". www.livemint.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-29. Retrieved 2015-09-30.
- "Pepper - ROBOTS: Your Guide to the World of Robotics". robots.ieee.org. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- J. Zhang J, N. Magnenat Thalmann and J. Zheng, Combining Memory and Emotion With Dialog on Social Companion: A Review, Proceedings of the ACM 29th International Conference on Computer Animation and Social Agents (CASA 2016), pp. 1-9, Geneva, Switzerland, May 23–25, 2016
- Berger, Sarah (2015-12-31). "Humanlike, Social Robot 'Nadine' Can Feel Emotions And Has A Good Memory, Scientists Claim". International Business Times. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
- Parviainen, Jaana; Coeckelbergh, Mark (2021-09-01). "The political choreography of the Sophia robot: beyond robot rights and citizenship to political performances for the social robotics market". AI & Society. 36 (3): 715–724. doi:10.1007/s00146-020-01104-w. ISSN 1435-5655. S2CID 228900508.
- "How did a Stanford-designed 'humanoid' discover a vase from a Louis XIV shipwreck?". montereyherald.com. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
- TALOS: A new humanoid research platform targeted for industrial applications
- "TALOS Humanoid Now Available from PAL Robotics". IEEE Spectrum. 2017-03-07. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- "Ranchi man develops humanoid robot Rashmi, Indian version of 'Sophia'". Hindustan Times. 2018-08-02. Retrieved 2020-02-21.
- "Gaganyaan mission: Meet Vyommitra, the talking human robot that Isro will send to space".
- Johansson, Birger; Tjostheim, Trond; Balkenius, Christian (2020-03-25). "Epi: An open humanoid platform for developmental robotics". International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems. 17 (2). doi:10.1177/1729881420911498. S2CID 216450172.
- Jagran Josh (5 Feb 2021). "KV Teacher turns Innovator, Develops Social Humanoid Robot 'Shalu' that can speak 9 Indian, 38 Foreign Languages". Jagran Prakashan Limited. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
- "The humanoid robot, Ameca, revealed at CES show". www.bbc.co.uk. 2022-08-01. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
- online, heise (25 April 2022). "Pib: Humanoider Community-Roboter für jeden". Make (in German). Retrieved 2023-02-13.
- "Optimus". www.forbes.com. 2022-10-01. Retrieved 2022-11-30.
- "Omeife". www.africa.com. 2022-10-25. Retrieved 2022-11-19.
- Mubin, Omar; Wadibhasme, Kewal; Jordan, Philipp; Obaid, Mohammad (2019-03-22). "Reflecting on the Presence of Science Fiction Robots in Computing Literature". ACM Transactions on Human-Robot Interaction. 8 (1): 1–25. doi:10.1145/3303706. ISSN 2573-9522. S2CID 75135568.
- Boissoneault, Lorraine. "Are Blade Runner's Replicants "Human"? Descartes and Locke Have Some Thoughts". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2021-11-05.
- Ho, Chin-Chang; MacDorman, Karl F.; Pramono, Z.A. Dwi (2008). "Human Emotion and the Uncanny Valley: A GLM, MDS, and Isomap Analysis of Robot Video Ratings" (PDF). 2008 3rd ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2008-08-22.
Sources
- Asada, H. and Slotine, J.-J. E. (1986). Robot Analysis and Control. Wiley. ISBN 0-471-83029-1.
- Arkin, Ronald C. (1998). Behavior-Based Robotics. MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-01165-4.
- Brady, M., Hollerbach, J.M., Johnson, T., Lozano-Perez, T. and Mason, M. (1982), Robot Motion: Planning and Control. MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-02182-X.
- Horn, Berthold, K. P. (1986). Robot Vision. MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-08159-8.
- Craig, J. J. (1986). Introduction to Robotics: Mechanics and Control. Addison Wesley. ISBN 0-201-09528-9.
- Everett, H. R. (1995). Sensors for Mobile Robots: Theory and Application. AK Peters. ISBN 1-56881-048-2.
- Kortenkamp, D., Bonasso, R., Murphy, R. (1998). Artificial Intelligence and Mobile Robots. MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-61137-6.
- Poole, D., Mackworth, A. and Goebel, R. (1998), Computational Intelligence: A Logical Approach. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-510270-3.
- Russell, R. A. (1990). Robot Tactile Sensing. Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-781592-1.
- Russell, S. J. & Norvig, P. (1995). Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach. Prentice-Hall. Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-790395-2.
Further reading
- Carpenter, J., Davis, J., Erwin‐Stewart, N., Lee. T., Bransford, J. & Vye, N. (2009). Gender representation in humanoid robots for domestic use. International Journal of Social Robotics (special issue). 1 (3), 261‐265. The Netherlands: Springer.
- Carpenter, J., Davis, J., Erwin‐Stewart, N., Lee. T., Bransford, J. & Vye, N. (2008). Invisible machinery in function, not form: User expectations of a domestic humanoid robot. Proceedings of 6th conference on Design and Emotion. Hong Kong, China.
- Williams, Karl P. (2004). Build Your Own Human Robots: 6 Amazing and Affordable Projects. McGraw-Hill/TAB Electronics. ISBN 0-07-142274-9. ISBN 978-0-07-142274-1.
External links
- Humanoid Robots' jobs in Japan
- Ulrich Hottelet: Albert is not happy - How robots learn to live with people, African Times, June 2009