[p2p-research] Photos: International Robot Exhibition 2009

[Paul D. Fernhout]

Some pictures of what is going on in robotics in an exhibition ongoing right 
now in Japan:
http://pinktentacle.com/2009/11/photos-international-robot-exhibition-2009/
"Hundreds of robots have gathered at the International Robot Exhibition 
(IREX) now underway at Tokyo Big Sight. Here are a few photos from the 
event, which runs until November 28. "

Link:
  http://www.nikkan.co.jp/eve/irex/english/index.html

The picture of the Motoman doing Lego led me to find this:
"*NEW* Robohand Grippers mounted on MotoMan Robot"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qg_Z6nOgp0U

It looks like it uses a "compliance device" and not true force feedback?
http://www.destaco.com/products.asp?loc=&lang=&products=Robotic%20Tooling&Category_1=Compliance+Devices

But in any case, pretty impressive it can do Lego assembly and disassembly. 
It would probably need special tools to handle small pieces. And I expect it 
is not visually servoing? But the other picture from 2009 shows a jumble of 
Lego next to the robot, so maybe that one can?

Here is a related item with Motoman robots doing woodworking:
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lk1qfs1yq58&feature=related

OK, well, farming is already gone for most jobs. Manufacturing including 
woodworking is clearly is on its way out too as far as most jobs.

So, what new services can we invent that people don't need? :-)

An entry point into videos from iRex 2009:
   "IREX 2009 - Robot lightsaber dance"
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G09aHF7-P5o

A different Lego building robot with a variety of tooling, and then a 
variety of other robots in that video:
   "IREX 2009: A lego-building robot and more from Tokyo"
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jyyji2E_EgU&feature=channel

This video explains the visual servoing being done by some high speed arms 
at the end:
   "IREX 2009: Robot award winners on show"
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZLG9X1Hxao&feature=channel

Tokyo University is demonstrating a powerd exoskelaton that can let people 
lift twice as much (could be useful for nurses?):
   "IREX 2009 - Tokyo University of Science demos a new musclesuit"
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLM5MNnrpJs&feature=channel

This robot uses a human-like hand to move sushi and soft food:
   "Sushi Robot and Patisserie Robot : DigInfo"
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBcfpeiM-lg&feature=channel

More robot technology for food preparation and serving:
   "Robot Chef"
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNSKMGurrPI&NR=1

"Latest Humanoid Robot" for home assistance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CETUmThm8Rg&feature=related

Even without full AI, how long before nursing can be done through 
teleoperation with nurses not needing to leave home to see patients or to 
work in nursing homes? That might cut down on spreading disease. And the 
robots could do some tasks automatically when the nurses pointed them at the 
task, so perhaps one nurse could do the work of several nurses and aids.

What can't robotics and AI do? Run our nuclear weapons systems? :-)
   "Colossus, The Forbin Project" (A cautionary tale)
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7Rq-PEW5qM

The default, as I see it is war, school, and prison, provide an endless need 
for "services". That's a very straightforward way to keep our economy 
working as-is while mainstream economists continue to deny the inevitable. 
:-( We can raise the compulsory school age to thirty, create expanded 
credentialism before you can do anything, expand our war effort across the 
globe, and have one tenth of the population guard much of the rest. That is 
a very straightforward solution to all the economic problems posed by 
robotics, and I'm very sad to say that, if you look at the trends in the 
USA, that has been *exactly* the course the USA has been pursuing to deal 
with the threat of abundance. :-(

Time to think a lot harder about "Heterodox Economics". :-)
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heterodox_economics

Also, I can assume almost all those robots are proprietary not open source. 
At least there are a few open projects:
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open-source_robotics

--Paul Fernhout
http://www.pdfernhout.net/
http://www.beyondajoblessrecovery.org/