When you think of “robot,” what do you envision? Does your robot walk upright like “C3PO” or roll like “R2D2?” Does your robot have a rigid mechanical face or an expressionistic soft face? Does it pick up objects or does it function as a robotic vacuum? Perhaps your intelligent system works in the medical field or in robotic welding. Since there are a number of different uses for robotics and automation, it’s reasonable to assume there are many, many robot design options. To begin thinking about how these complex machines move, we need to look to physics, science, math and engineering.
One of the primary components used in robotic automation is the actuator, which converts stored energy into movement. Most actuators are electric motors (brushed and brushless DC motors, to be exact), although chemical and compressed air actuators exist as well. Stepper motors rotate in easy-to-control motions, commanded by a controller rather than a sensor. Piezo or Ultrasonic motors use rapidly vibrating piezo-ceramic elements, which ultimately cause motion. Air muscles work with compressed air, behaving similarly to human muscles which contract and expand. Elastic nanotubes are in experimental stages right now but appear promising, holding high levels of stored energy.
Locomotion is a key component of robotics and automation. Some prototypes roll on one to four wheels. For instance, NASA’s “Robonaut” and “Urbie,” Carnegie Mellon University’s “Ballbot,” not to mention characters like George Lucas’s “R2D2″ and The Jetson’s “Rosie,” all roll around. However, several robots like Honda’s “ASIMO,” can walk. The Anybot “Dexter Robot” can jump and MIT Leg Laboratory has developed complex robots that can trot, run, pace and bound. Even still, some robots, like those used in the military, are best suited for flight. Snaking motion robots have been used to save construction workers who were buried in a wreck. Essex University devised robotic fish for research purposes too. There is a place for every type of locomotion in industrial robotics.
For some, human interaction is the most important aspect of robotics and automation. Researchers are working on speech recognition so humans and robots can communicate effectively with one another. Computers often have a difficult time understanding the variations in human speech, which fluctuates according to accent, volume, tone and acoustics. The best robotics software can recognize speech up to 160 words per minute with 95% accuracy. Systems are also being designed to understand and repeat gestures, which could aid in teaching robots how to cook or in giving directions. The most complex humanoid robot has its own personality, meaning that it uses expressions, sounds and body language to convey several particular emotions. Whether humans want their robot companions to mimic them or not is still debatable, but, regardless of whether it’s mass-produced or not, the field of robotic automation seeks to create the single-most realistic humanoid robot possible as a feat of modern engineering.
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