Mirsad Capric - Group C

Article – Humanoid Robots

April 26, 2004

 

Humanoid Robots: Face of the Future?

 

            We have seen the movies such as AI and Bicentennial man which show main characters who are suppose to be human in everyway imaginable except that they are not. They may talk, move, and feel human; however, they are not made of skin and blood, but chips and wires. In my article the author discusses future advancements in humanoid robotics; mainly the K-bot, which can recognize and respond by mimicking human facial expressions.

            The K-bot was created at the University of Dallas by David Hanson. The K-bot is equipped with cameras in its eyes to recognize humans. The K-bot also uses an “electroactive polymer with 24 artificial muscles”[1] to created the 28 facial expressions it is capable of mimicking. Some of the facial expressions it is capable of is the basic smile, frown, look of love, and more. In the future, Hanson hopes to expand on his K-bot by adding voice via a speaker. Hanson also plans on implementing a more advanced version of artificial intelligence so that the K-bot will know how to respond to a person’s human emotion. Hanson believes that the K-bot will not just be a show of handy robotics but also may serve a medicinal purpose. The K-bot may help people get over their fear of public speaking or communication by interacting with the K-bot.

            Can you actually see yourself confiding in a robotic head? If you were nervous before an interview or a big meeting would you actually sit and talk to the K-bot and feel comforted and calm since you have had the practice of speaking with the humanoid robot? Some people may actually find this beneficial; I, however, do not. It may be because I have done research on this type of robotics for the past semester; however, I feel many people feel the same as I do. A robot cannot replicate the innocence and absolute heartfelt emotion a human can. Although, it can serve as an interesting companion/toy. I know I have a lot of fun conversing with the online chat-buddy, Al on www.ai.com. However, I could never replace one of my friends with Al!

 

Work Cited

Duggan, Alan. Humanoid robots: the face of the future? IOL, 10 Apr. 2003. 22 Apr. 2004.

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=116&art_id=iol1049986747188A536&set_id=1