Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: brunix!uunet!usc!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!bronze!btaplin@silver.ucs.indiana.edu
From: Brad Taplin <btaplin@silver.ucs.indiana.edu>
Subject: Re: MIT Insect Robots
Message-ID: <1992Jun8.075950.12341@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu>
Organization: Indiana University
Date: Mon, 8 Jun 1992 07:59:43 -0500
Lines: 28

It has recently been written (regarding humanoid robots):
>I don't believe that any of this is impossible per se' but the 
>practicality is certainly in question. And not just by me. If there
>was a valid reason to replace a man with an intelligent machine and
>it was economically attractive, there would be smart machines
>everywhere by now.

Not necessarily. I agreed with your earlier points regarding the
difference between programming and evolution in MIT's insects, but
there are clearly tasks that might be handled by a person-sized
intelligent machine better than by humans. Nuclear clean-up, or
Mars terraforming come to mind. The key, I agree, is whether it's
economically attractive. Well, that depends. Electric cars weren't
so until the need began to be perceived by a wide market. Now GM
and others are developing several models. If the chips and related
technologies advance to the point, perhaps driven by promises of
future profit, that such robots are both possible and affordable,
we'll see variations. Have we lost the idea of capital investment?

The Japanese car companies maintain profitability partly by making
their production lines robot-controlled and able to handle fifty
different models, refitting on the fly. This primitive example of
the all-purpose robot has certainly paid off for them, and I'll
bet someone in Matsushita has plans for humanoid robots in about
a century or so. If only Americans could think that far ahead...
-- 
btaplin@silver.ucs.indiana.edu or simply btaplin@ucs.indiana.edu will
appreciate your intelligent suggestions, anecdotes, comments & offers.
