R2 - Robotics

The assigned article was quite interesting, and outlined the various types and functions of robotics. I'm somewhat of a novice when it comes to computer programming, and the applications of these technologies interest me more than the technologies themselves. Though this article does not cover it in any detail, I am most interested in the human-robotic interfaces, and "intelligent" robots that can learn from repetitive experiences with people. Most of the applications outlined in this article are simply reactionary systems or robots that are programmed and perform a certain task repetitively. The intelligent systems that can predict situations, and proactively control them are the most impressive to me. That is bordering on the line of creating an artificial persona, changing the robotics community from computers to human-like machines.

In addition to the assigned reading, I read was Architectural Robotics, Inevitability by Mark Gross and Keith Green. (http://delivery.acm.org/10.1145/2070000/2065335/p28-gross.pdf?ip=144.118.54.23&acc=ACTIVE%20SERVICE&CFID=78557115&CFTOKEN=29230484&__acm__=1326824831_eb9730bc9f7ddca80e29cb7f77cc4abc_ These professors at CMU and Clemson, respectively, are focusing on the applications of robotics in the field of architecture and building design. They proposed new cutting edge ideas and identified problems with current and emerging technologies that need to be addressed in order to create a "perfect" built environment. Gross has a mock up prototype of an electronic staircase in his lab. As the staircase senses movement at the foot/ankle level, it produces stairs to accommodate the movement. As the person moves on and leaves the step, it retracts back into a wall until someone else comes along. This has the potential to save lots of space by eliminating the need for permanent staircases. In addition to new cutting edge technologies, they identify currently available technologies that need to be better controlled, such as automatic day lighting shades in office spaces that react to the sunlight and inhabitants in the room. They identify problems with the current sensors and configuration methods. As a cloud passes overhead, the shades may go up, and then immediately go down again when the sun resurfaces. Simple annoyances like this are actually quite complex to adjust on the coding level. Again, the thing that interests me most about this article is the mention of human-robotic interactions. The people who are currently working on these technologies are much more inclined to manually override and adjust settings in order to help the technology learn and adapt. However, if these ideas make it to the mainstream computer market, the average person is not going to want to interact with the system on a constant basis. That is why it is important that, not only should the system perform well and "learn" to accommodate the building occupants, but it must do this with minimal interaction. This presents a problem, and moves into a rather ambiguous field of sensing human emotions. It is no longer just a "Is it hot?" "Yes" "Turn on the AC" system anymore, but turns into a proactive system that must read people when we cannot fully do that ourselves. The article is somewhat limited on how this will happen, perhaps because there aren't really answers at this point yet, but I'm quite interested to see what technology is developed to help incorporate these human-robotic interactions into future building design and operation.