Tom Branna, Editorial Director03.28.21
Rosie the Robot won't be a reality for quite some time, say robotics experts. Although machines like iRobot have been vacuuming homes for nearly two decades, the more complex tasks remain out of reach. That's because safety remains a chief concern among automation executives.
Five years ago, Boston Dynamics gave consumers a glimpse of the future by releasing a somewhat chilling video demonstrating its robot walking through snow-covered woods, and pundits suggested that robots would soon be doing much more than picking up lint from wall-to-wall carpets.
What's the holdup? Safety, says Marc Raibert, chairman and former CEO of Boston Dynamics.
"The more complicated the robot, the more safety concerns. If you have a robot in close proximity to a person, and anything goes wrong, that's a risk to that person," Raibert told The Washington Post.
Things have gone terribly wrong on the job. In 2015, a 22-year-old man was killed while helping set up a stationary robot at a Volkswagen plant in Germany. The robot pushed him against a metal plate and crushed him. In another case that year, a robot's arm malfunctioned, and it hit and crushed a woman's head in a Michigan auto plant.
If these accidents can happen in a factory setting, imagine what migh happen when grandma comes to visit your fully-automated home?
Five years ago, Boston Dynamics gave consumers a glimpse of the future by releasing a somewhat chilling video demonstrating its robot walking through snow-covered woods, and pundits suggested that robots would soon be doing much more than picking up lint from wall-to-wall carpets.
What's the holdup? Safety, says Marc Raibert, chairman and former CEO of Boston Dynamics.
"The more complicated the robot, the more safety concerns. If you have a robot in close proximity to a person, and anything goes wrong, that's a risk to that person," Raibert told The Washington Post.
Things have gone terribly wrong on the job. In 2015, a 22-year-old man was killed while helping set up a stationary robot at a Volkswagen plant in Germany. The robot pushed him against a metal plate and crushed him. In another case that year, a robot's arm malfunctioned, and it hit and crushed a woman's head in a Michigan auto plant.
If these accidents can happen in a factory setting, imagine what migh happen when grandma comes to visit your fully-automated home?
