NASA and GM Take a Giant Leap Forward in Robotics

[binyam73]

that was inspiring and i cant wait to become like 1 of u guys i want to change the world to the better :)

[grozmo1]

The full potential of this technology is mind boggling!!

[jaymanchu]

A robot to help astronauts, that's So 2001!

[canadian7233]

funny in ten years kids wont be able to dream of being astronauts, jobs will be taken by robots just like GM plants

[RainbowVoiceCarrie]

@canadian7233 ..is like ud say microvawesll take cheap cooks job..well, almost. dunno how bout you but I dont think that well progress 2 that point where theres no in 2 control such useful TOOL-any near. maybe its just that Im stupid/what but u know how its..

think this partially loosing time/partially amazing -d say: Not That Giant Leap But, Well, A Leap. truth is that some it's parts r pleasable quite good! I get its benefits, althought m not that much positive about this anyway, I dont agree.

[canadian7233]

@RainbowVoiceCarrie I agree there alot of benifits, and they outweigh the cons of this, thats forsure. You cant replicate the human touch with a machine in anyway, shape or form though, but these robots will play a key part in our continued discovery of the universe

[ssj5ggta]

hey i got an idea combine R2 and Watson from jeopardy

[kingraider7]

yeah... to bad this cost more then alot of people are worth

[CarlTubeMedia]

I've seen this movie!

surrogates!

-Oh my, technology is exciting

[mccay35f]

Has vowed to continue the hunt for Sarah Connor.

[grando111]

bullshit

[xzaz2]

For GM its.... yhe GM... that was the company that... you know yhe you know...

[HotFuzz456]

If you were to take the Stig's helmet off I'm pretty sure Robonaut would be underneath

[mrd999]

It's interesting to see the various feats performed by the robot, but I'd like to know what kind of choices the robot is making. How much of these maneuvers is simply preprogrammed, and how much is being directed? Obviously there is some amount of direction taking place, but how much? How are 'commands' created and issued?

[ezfla]

rise of the machines

[sijotakane]

ロボットへの愛が感じられない

[MrSurfsAlot]

what's up woth the brown face and white body?

[AgrivatedKillah]

@MrSurfsAlot robonaut has vitiligo, do not judge.

[camarosbob]

How does this robot compare with ASIMO from Honda?

[sopor11081981]

Please, open the door, HAL.

[Delisle4]

I'm surprised George Lucas allowed them to use the name R2?

[gameplayer951]

didn't imagine that this would be one of the many robots that are gonna rule the world! :D lol

awesome machine, nonetheless! :D

[roidroid]

nyasa enjonrrrs

:3

[OnceSolem]

But the big question is - can it form simple things like knives and stabbing weeapons ? :o

[LazarouMonkeyTerror]

I for one welcome our robot overlords...... Incredible machine though with 1000s of applications in places where humans fear to tread. Let's hope it doesn't lead to mass lay-offs of human workers though.

[TheAlexisTVShow]

awesome!! cant wait to see when robots start doing space walks

[Dayneist]

very nice! the hands are amazing! can't wait to see it in action!

[victorinoxical]

My goodness, the articulation of those hands are beautiful... and my goodness how some of you think that this is pointless. this robot has the potential for great things!

[bighands69]

Hi Victorinoxical

I agree with what you have said 100%.

Its not just that the robot has great potential but the technology and research will also lead to a whole field of new technologies.

These technologies could be used at local level to create production centre's that would not cost the local community any money.

Making money obsolete.

[Futurist2029]

"Making money obsolete"

That's what I'm talking about! Money is the reason why so many people fall short of their dreams. All this socioeconomic bullshit is a product of our own greed and ignorance. Robots can free us from the mundane chores of today's society and open us up to the prospects of knowledge for the sake of knowledge and the true pursuit of happiness, free from economic hardships. Thank you for such a bright post :)

[ChronicMist]

imagine what robots will be in 10-20 years? LOL. can't even imagine what will be in 50-100 years, if we are still here :)

[CosmosPrivateer]

@victorinoxical

They took our jobs.

[kizkoool]

Seems like General Motors is on a prestige communication plan to make us forget that their cars are shitty oil suckers !

[trekgeek1]

Anyone who thinks this stuff is a waste of time would do well to research the space program. Much of what we know about the earth and many technologies you use are from these programs. If you say it is useless, you don't know anything about what they do.

[Dirtfire]

@trekgeek1 I don't think a lot of the things we use are FROM the space programs per-se, but rather that NASA is often the first to put certain technologies and discoveries to use.

[trekgeek1]

@Dirtfire

I would venture to say that necessity is the mother of invention. Space travel requires novel solutions and cutting edge technologies which spill over into the commercial sector. So in a sense, I agree with you.

[Baxxter101]

awesome.

[threebranch2000]

lol...

GM could easily get Japanese robot technology. Because Japan is a part of America.

[TyrannosaurusReks]

@threebranch2000 Japan is part of Eurasia, dude.

[randomenvelope]

1, nothing I haven't seen before

2. halo 3 >:]

[kittysnakebite]

he is soooo cute!!

the robo dude I mean....he kinda looks like he came form halo 3

[Batu731]

"it", not "he"

[FrostyWithAMullet]

DAmn son!!! you see them biceps when he curled that 20!!.

JEALOUS!!!

[Dslater417]

So this is why GM fired so many people, to pay for this pointless robot, hurray!!!

[wotan150]

Instead of programming the robots actions, they should instead use a human with gloves or even an entire outfit wired with sensors, so that the robot will mimic his actions.

[Sempertacsil]

@wotan150 or they just outfit some guy w/ robotic exoskeleton to give the human super strength

[jbibby2007]

That actually is being done. The Robonaut1 has these abilities and it has recently been added to R2. We call it teleoperation.

[PunkDizzle]

@jbibby2007 Surely we don't want to limit our robot overlords by teaching them using human limitations. Program it, program it to be better than feeble organic matter.

[HotFuzz456]

@wotan150 then you could have the person on the ground....hell you could have the entire Shuttle crew in a ground-based cockpit

[TehSmellulare]

It's writes better than I can! :[

...and it curls 20's! Let's see Asimo do that!

[geodesicks]

They should collaborate with Boston Dynamics and stick this upper body onto their PETMAN legs.

T1.

Oh hell yeah!

[TBAGMrFiskIt]

Just what do you think you're doing, Dave?

[jbibby2007]

The big difference between R2 and Asimo is the dexterity of the hands. R2 can manipulate tools and and control flexible materials. That might seem easy for you and me, but for a robot mainting control of a flexible object is very difficult. The sensing ability in just the hands is far superior. This gives it the ability to give feedback for automating tasks that can not be done by any other robot.

[So1Beam]

OK, that is an important capability, sadly the video focuses on other things.

I would like to see more advanced paper handling and maybe the task of attaching a thermo blanket to a wall.

Or, the stitching together of a torn solar panel. =)

[EpiDemic117]

@jbibby2007 Asimo is still a better robot and is more important to us than this fugly thing GM made that hasn't even been used yet in the ISS (Canadarm is still the robotic king for space!).

[Boxmonkey69]

That last picture shows how they've done an amazing job programming it to reach out for more bailout money.

I wonder if R2 will be joining the UAW?

[So1Beam]

Yeah, calling this robot a giant leap forward makes NASA look either ignorant or delusional.

Landing on the moon was a Giant Leap!

This Robot is still way behind Asimo.

[HomeMuvees]

Expensive crash test dummy

[DavidSontz]

GM builds space robots now? Every GM car I have owned since 1992 has fallen apart or left me stranded on the sides of roads and malls in the freezing cold. Now that the federal government owns GM I would assume the quality will be worse. maybe they can train the robot to do Timmy Geithner's taxes for him. Have we not learned anything from Battlestar Galactica? The Cylons....

[randomvidz94]

@DavidSontz that robot is gonna stall on its first mission !! i wonder if they got AAA up there .

[DavidSontz]

exactly, more money out the window. Maybe they will find Osama in space

[Meejoe27]

No evidence of a giant leap forward here.

The hands are pretty good, possibly an incremental increase, but a giant leap?

A giant leap from Asimo, MULE and other advanced robots is what i was expecting, something that i haven't seen a robot do before. this seems like they are still playing catch up with the Japanese and are 10 years behind.

[polymath86]

:)

Great job! This is awesome!

"The future IS now."

[edwardsgirl0222]

woohoo!!! go daddy!!!! (marty Linn)