Professionals such as robots

These are real robots, tailored to real job ... Reviews, pictures & videos.

Barber

The Panasonic's robot barber role is to wash customers' hair. Equipped with 16 fingers with sensors, it replicates perfectly the action of the hands of a proffessional. A kind of scanner first assesses the size of the head to better position them.
It obeys the instructions of the client about his its preferences.It has a memory so it can store individual preferences for reuse at a further session.

This robot is not really meant to hair salons, but rather to hospitals and hospices where it helps provide care for patients or disabled.
It will then reach the general public and help the elderly and disabled at home.

Clown

Robot Titan was presented at Gitex 2009 in Dubai by Cyberstein Ltd, a British company that leases the robot as an attraction for exhibitions..
This giant and scary robot dances and sings (in a rattle noise) and speaks to the public... This robot is designed to perform exhibition and goes from festival to festival to impress the public, and especially children.
In this other video it interprets Louis Armstrong and make its show.

Cook

Motoman, cook robot

Motoman SDA 10 is of a robot to do everything he can cook, assembler in a factory, or play music ... This cook full receives commands and performs all operations of preparation: mix, cut, assembled, cooked and returns foods before placing them on a platter.
Its 15 degrees of freedom and multi-axis enable it to perform all movement that a man could do. Like a computer, SDA uses 10 different programs to perform various tasks, as shown by the video which shows how to assemble or replace a cook in a fast food restaurant where he cooked Okonomiyakis.
The robot is particularly effective in the tasks of moving objects. But it is one of the most universal current robots.

The Robot Ramen from AISEI, is a chef robot based in restaurants in Japan including FUA-Men restaurant in Nagoya. Based on the exploitation of this robot, the name is a contraction of "Fully Automated raMen". It is a fully equipped robot cook. It needs a minute and 40 seconds to prepare and cook a ball.The Robot cutting slices begins to appear in the kitchens of restaurants in China, where the dishes used to put everything into slices. 3000 copies have been sold to date (August 2012), as for 1500 dollars per unit, it was much more economical than the human staff and we must say that the task of making slices is rather tedious and does not make vocation .
But the question that arises is why a robot humanoid - or semi-humanoid because it has just a trunk - and not a simple machine? These robots have an arm and eyes, in fact sensors, and are more flexible and better able to adapt to their task, as you can see on the video to the right.

The Squse specializes in sushi, it has only one arm but it is accurate and efficient to knows how to vary the pressure in his artificial fingers to take food without crushing them. What explains this video ...

SDA 10 shows the movements it can accomplish.

In this video, DIA 10, another model of Motoman, handling packaging.

Another robot from the same enterprise works as a bartender.

This experimental robot is designed to teach the art of cooking. It can correct his mistakes and improve.

Soon we will enter a restaurant while being sure not to wait before being served! These robots are providing new opportunities: the ability to have restaurants open 24 h/24 and 7 days 7 and anywhere!

Dustman

The project Dustbot (robot trash) wants to implement a collection of robots to handle the health of the city, collecting trash and check the
quality of the environment… A first experience has been implemented in Italy with two fully autonomous robots that are responsible for managing the street. The model used is responsible for collecting garbage at the request of residents and provide information on air quality, among others. It contains several bins for glass, paper and plastic. Once completed, it moves itself to collectors like the garbage truck.
Italians imagine to equip the city of Naples, which suffers a chronic problem of garbage collection.

There are different Dustbot models, to collect garbage (The Dustcart which we see on the photo at right), clean the streets with brushes or play the role of sweeper and pick itself garbage. The robot use a GPS to get around. They are connected to a local network that manages a fleet of machines and assigns them missions by sending messages containing SMS  orders they recognize.

Farmer

Agricultural machinery existed since the time of the Gauls, but for more delicate tasks, such as strawberries picking, one must still resort to human labor ... that it is hard to find because it is a thankless task. This is an area of ongoing experimentation, but even more interesting perspectives are possible. This is why the Institute of Agricultural Machinery in Japan attacked the delicate agricultural tasks such as growing and harvesting of strawberries that require knowledge to assess the condition of fruit ripening.

This led to the manufacture of a robot that recognizes a fruit among the leaves and judge they are mature based on their color. It can then move its claws to pick them carefully. The particular interest of a robot in this area is that it can work at night (with lights) and provides truly fresh fruits on the market next day!
Once went into production it will allow growers to save millions of dollars if the size of theiir operation is important. The robot takes only 9 seconds per fruit.
The institute tested the robot on strawberries, and then will move to other fruits and vegetables such as tomatoes and grapes where color plays an important role.

A laboratory of MIT, CSAIL (Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory) has created a fully experimental farm cultivated by robots, which communicate electronically with tomatoes.
Potted plants are equipped with sensors sending signals to robots who will know when it needs water or nutrients. This first experience prepares to larger projects in which robots can act on large operation to combat parasites. In this other farm, they are robots who do the milking, which lend themselves readily.

Another video: How almonds are harvested.

Link The rise of the robot farmer. There so many gains to come from these tiny machines... For the farmers and for ecology.

Lumberjack

This six-legged vehicle moves without destroying shrubs or crush small animals, thanks to his slow gait. It also helps to overcome obstacles, and access to otherwise inaccessible areas. This is currently a prototype of the company Plustech.
This is not really a robot, but rather an intermediate vehicle which locomotion is automatic and the direction given by man.

The Triton Sawfish also is a ROV (Remotely operated underwater vehicle) whose role is to cut trees in submerged areas.

Musician

After the trumpeter robot playing plays Over the rainbow and the runner robot, Toyota goes further in the dexterity with a new Partner Robot, the violinist. It was presented at the exhibition in Shanghai in the Japan block and played in particular a China tune, Mo Li Hua (Jasmine Flower). It is not a specialized robot running a program like could be a street organ playing of punch cards, but a being having varying abilities, which can hold multiple roles within the home. Japan relies heavily on robots to assist seniors to daily chores.

The Quartet Band from Toyota also plays four instruments and HRP-2 plays drum.

Painter

robot painter

As shown in the video above, the robotic arm of Tresset Patrick is able to draw a face. It uses a face detection technique called Gabor filter. This can also work well with a picture on a screen. Then different techniques of computer vision software allow it to draw a picture ...

In conclusion, using a such form detection program, which can store and reproduce them, and by associating it with a humanoid robot and the program of body movements management such that of Hatsune Miku, a singer or dancer robot can be realized of which she gives us an idea in a virtual form.

Personal assistant

Romeo is a project of robot with a human size and shape, from several national French organizations that will be built by Aldebaran Robotics. To accomplish the Romeo project, 10 million euros have been invested by these agencies with partners, a list that includes INRIA and Aldebaran, Cap Digital, DGCIS, Ville de Paris.
The aim of this initiative is the same as that put forward by Japanese manufacturers: make a helper who can help the elderly and disabled in daily life. As their proportion tends to increase with time, it will become increasingly expensive to put staff at their disposal.
The robot should be able to bring items and help people moving. It can understand what is expected of it, discern emotions on a human face. It will respond to voice and can talk to clarify its duties. His appearance must be human, and obviously be closer to that of Nao than Terminator.
It could make use of the work on Meka HCRL made for the same purpose.
The projections provide a first model of less than five feet that would be available in 2010. In 2011 a second model will be tested with patients of the Vision Institute, suffering from a loss of autonomy.

Aldebaran will build on this work to achieve a commercial model that would be available in 2015. The model unveiled December 15, 2010 is measuring 1.40 m. and weighs 40 kilos (see image right). It has 37 degrees of freedom, and humanoid hands capable to manipulate objects.But its price will be around 250 000 euros.

Pump attendant

It's like says the website of its inventor and manufacturer, Nico Van Staveren, the first robot capable of supplying fuel in your tank... The customer must have a RFID sticker containing information about his vehicle. The robot needs them to choose the type of fuel and to properly aim the robot arm. In the station, a screen shows the driver exactly where he should stop. Then the robot takes care of everything. He opens the tank, fills it with the correct quantity, closes it...

The first Tank Pitstop was installed in the Netherlands, to Emmerloord last year and since that time, it provides daily gasoline to motorists. Strangey, Staveren had the idea to build his own robot while watching a video about robots farmers who milk cows automatically, and this with technologies that have long existed.
This robot is also very safe when it detects motion in the vicinity, like a child who is approaching, it immediately stops and retracts his arm. It has the advantage that an attendant can operate day and night, and possibly in difficult working conditions. Good news for motorists. It could also help the development of electric vehicles with an equivalent engine to change the batteries.
The robot attendant costs US $ 90 000. According to the inventor who owns a gas station the robot has increased productivity by 20% per hour per pump.

Scientist

For the first time in the history of mankind, and also that of robotics, a robot conducted a series of experiments that lead to scientific discovery, without the assistance of a human!
Aberystwyth University and University of Cambridge in Great Britain gave him the Biblical name of Adam. Adam is a machine made of scientific instruments including articulated arms and four computers, its "brain". It has a database on genetics.
Adam made himself 20 hypotheses and then proceeded to verify experimentally, experiments at 1000 per day. This led to a discovery that increases human knowledge and will be published in scientific journals. The hypothesis in question is that three genes that it has identified encode an enzyme involved in producing a lively acid, lysine.

Two other projects are underway. The robot Eve should be able to invent new drugs, and another robot will be tasked with observing systems and deduce the laws behind them.

Teacher

In South Korea, these are now robots that teach English to children ... It solves a problem especially in foreign language learning, as thousands of foreign teachers are costly to the ministry of education in this country and in addition, it is hard to fill posts in rural areas. The project started in the city of Daegu with a first group of 29 robots with the aim to generalize the experience to all schools, and in all subjects.
It plans to install 8400 in kindergartens by 2013. The telepresence robot in the video is called Engkey. It poses questions to students and interprets their responses. There is a real person, living in a different country connected to the machine. But the evolution is in the removal of any human intervention.

Waiter

Twenty-One, robot server

A robot that serves meals, is what is lacking in canteens and nursing homes. A student at the University of WSAD prepares a salad while at his side a robot is cooking toasts, as you can see in the picture below.This robot is the size of a human and has sufficient strength to support a person, but with the delicacy and precision needed to handle fragile objects such as a straw.
Professor Shigeki Sugano think this robot will be on sale in 2015 and he may well play a useful role in the community. To the first to meet it issues will arise surely seeing his head in shape of a question mark!

In Thailand, the robot waiter seems a specialty. The new model Yumbo is already ordered by a chain of restaurants. Can this be generalized? I guess the restaurant customers, if they are in no hurry and concerned as is the case in restaurants for corporate employees, would like a little humanity when going to the restaurant ... But one can envisage a sharing of tasks between robots for simple and necessary things like transportation and cleaning, and humans for customer relations.

In-home service can also use the metal bipeds or better yet, flying objects topped with provision in the cargo bay. This is already a reality, Tacocopter offers delivering tacos by unmanned mini-helicopter ... You can order from any smartphone. Soon the pizza ... This kind of service is really possible only in a small town, because of the risk to passersby of that aviation activity.

A more original solution again by a London restaurant is to serve clients by drones. They are of course remotely driven. It really sounds interesting if the deck is far from the kitchen!

Window cleaner

A robot capable of moving on walls and other vertical surfaces was presented by SRI May 23, 2008 at the Robotics Conference of the IEEE in California. The electroadhesive robot is like a lizard. Multiple applications, are possible with this bioloid with electro-static spikes to grip. In the military and police, surveillance, intervention.
And in the civil construction and maintenance, including painting, cleaning of surfaces. Inspection of buildings, bridges and other structures.

It's an electro-static effect that produces accession of two surfaces with electric field. Two electrodes of different polarity generate an attraction. A soft surface holds these electrodes that switch almost instantly to allow movement. The robot reaches the speed of one kilometer per hour and can climb a stage in 9 seconds. The SRI robot can move on vertical surfaces of very different texture: wood, glass, metal, a brick wall, a wet surface. Surfaces can be smooth or rough and even dusty.

All kinds of robots can take advantage of this mode of travel, tiny or bigger. There are plans in the future development of this technology to equip people who could move to the surface of buildings ...

Worker

Robots are at work ... View of the factory producing cars by Hyundai in action. Fascinating is it not? Maybe I have a Corsican soul, I like to see machines working for me!
We can compare with the Honda factory, also entirely robotic.

Baxter, Henry Ford the inventor of the assembly line would have dreamed of it, is a universal robot designed to perform repetitive tasks in the factory. Created by an engineer from MIT for the Rethink Robotics society, it is able to do what we were never able to get into this field. Americans see him as a means to repatriate production plants in the U.S. since it can replace the poorly paid workers from the East. Indeed, it is capable of transporting, counting, positioning, transforming objects and can acquire new software to expand its capabilities.
The latest version replaces a skilled worker for less than one year of his salary.
New video of Baxter.

ABB Flexpicker is a robot for sorting and packaging. We admire the speed at which it operates. In four seconds it can move 14 objects or it can move 3 kilos in seven tenths of a second.
It is supposed to play successfully the game of Milton-Bradley, a board game like chess rather complex. See Flexpicker stacking pancakes.

Adept Quatro wants to be the world's fastest packing robot and performs 300 cycles per minute. He has 4 arms (Flexpicker has 3), can carry a load of 2 kg. Demonstration of motion: accuracy and extension.

ABB IRB20 is the smallest industrial robot unskilled. It weighs 25 kg for a height of 50 cm and can carry a load of 3 kg.
It stands for varied works in confined spaces.

More robots workers...

See also