These 8 Technologies Could Make Robots Better
Robots are collections of technologies. Which technologies meant for other industries will find their way into robots soon?
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Robots are evolving quickly.
Every week it seems, we could read another story about how a new robot is going faster, is smarter, or is doing something better than it did just a year ago. But the interesting thing about robots is that while we focus on how fast they walk or how much like humans they move, they are really just collections of applications.
While it is easy to look at our collection of Ten Robots You'd Be Happy to Call Master and see them as "Baxter" or "Larry," each one relies on a bundle of technology that exists separate from the robotics industry. In this month alone, several major technological breakthroughs have happened that, while not necessarily intended for robots, will surely be applied there one day.
We thought it would only be fitting to talk about what's "under the hood" of these robots and what you can expect to go under there in a short time.
If you think about a robot, you need a few things.
We often concentrate on the shape, size, or means of locomotion, but no robot is a robot without a power source, sensors to see the world (think Internet of Things here), and processing power to execute its programming. One of the biggest hurdles with robots these days is the number of them that still need a safety tether. Getting off the tether is more complicated than it seems. It requires shrinking a lot of components and making sure a robot can work as a self-contained unit.
We've got eight technologies that will help robots get off the tether, with better, smarter, and longer functioning. You won't see any of these tomorrow. They're all new, so before you see them in robots, you'll see them in other industrial applications where they don't need to be so miniaturized. But all represent a major leap in what robots will be able to do. And they each solve a specific problem.
Check them out and see the future of robots from a brand new perspective. Did we miss a piece of technology that could bring robotics to the next level? Help us keep the conversation going in the comments box below.
Robots need to see. But unlike you and me, seeing the visual spectrum is the least of their worries. During the week of April 6, two different technologies were announced at two different universities on two separate continents that both bring the Star Trek Tricorder closer to reality. The University of Tel Aviv created a smartphone camera-sized sensor (larger prototype pictured) that allows them to analyze the chemical compounds of an object from a distance. They can "scan" the object and compare it to an existing database to see what the object is made of. The researchers see major uses in the consumer electronics, and automotive industry. I assume that if it can fit into a smartphone, it can easily fit into the sensor array of all robots allowing them to help in all sorts of industrial applications, mining, and inspection.
At the University of Southampton, they've created a device about to go into a three-year clinical trial that works like a Star Trek medical tricorder. It is a handheld device that allows for same-day diagnosis of many diseases. It would allow doctors to perform tests on protein samples without sending them to the lab which can takes days for a result. It basically can replace some blood and urine tests. The exact types of diseases it can detect and tests it can perform will likely to continue to grow. Another benefit is that it will allow for continuous monitoring of a test subject. Because of the length of time it takes to do these tests in a lab it often means single tests over the course of a few days. Obviously, this will start as a handheld device for medical professionals, but it makes perfect sense for this to be added to robots especially in elder care or hospice where robots are starting to make an impact.
MIT has created magnatometers that are 1,000 times more energy efficient than current versions. This could lead to hand-held or smaller devices to measure magnetic fields to search for guns in an airport, detect minerals in the ground, or even to make tiny medical-imaging devices. The thing that probably would make people the happiest is no more airport security lines. Instead of the big metal detectors at the airport, you could just outfit roaming security robots with the ability to detect weapons. Equally important would be rescue and medical robots with the ability to take what essentially amounts to an MRI without the massive tube. The fact that they are 1,000 times more energy efficient means they could run on batteries or the limited power sources of a robot without disrupting operations.
One major problem robots have in getting off the tether is electricity. Moving a robot around takes a lot of power and current battery technology doesn't have a lot of capacity. Carrying the battery itself sometimes makes the robot bigger (and heavier) than it would have to be otherwise. Stanford has made a breakthrough in aluminum batteries that will allow for faster charging, longer-lasting, cheaper, safer, and flexible batteries. Let's break all of that down. The batteries will bend and fold so you can sneak them into all sorts of small places, which works great for robots (and consumer electronics). They don't catch on fire like lithium-ion batteries which is a bonus if you are a robot working in dangerous places. A typical lithium battery can last about 1,000 recharge cycles. These batteries will go 7,500 charge cycles. And while it can take hours to charge a lithium-ion battery, it takes about a minute to charge these batteries. Right now, the only thing holding them back is getting the right voltage -- they're a little low still. Getting a robot more juice and being able to recharge it faster while taking up less weight and space is an obvious win. Plus, your smartphone will like it, too.
Here's a perfect example of a technology not made at all for robots that could do so much to help them. A company called SunVault has introduced a supercapacitor designed to help homes and industry store solar power. The battery, made of graphene, can hold enough energy to power a house, and it fits in the same space as a computer tower. It is designed to compete with batteries like those made as Tesla's new super factory in Nevada. The current price of those batteries is $500 per kWh with the expectation that they can get down to $150 per kWh. These can be made for $100 per kWh and have no toxic chemicals. How about a solar-powered robot that can carry a battery that is no bigger than the size of a computer tower, but holds enough charge to power a house? That's one way to cut the tether.
Another way to work out the power problem in robots is to not use as much power. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute have created a nanoparticle coatings for wires that reduces heat in wires and reduces energy usage. This also protects robots from fire which is especially nice for robots in safety and defense that often have to deal with more extreme environments. Energy reduction varies by temperature and many other factors, but for robots that suffer from power issues, this could really help.
If making life-like robots is your Holy Grail, this technology is for you. Purdue University has developed a method for inkjet printing flexible electronics. The first use for this technology is probably for wearable, stretchable, electronic clothing and other wearables. It can also be made for robots that can squeeze through tight spaces. Or to just make robots with conductive "skin" that move a little bit more like you and me. It makes use of nanoparticles which get sprayed out just like ink in a traditional printer. This is just speculation on my part, but I'd also like to think this could really help the prosthetic and bionics market and help people who lose a limb have a more life-like look and feeling from their prosthetic.
We're a long way away from computers that work like the human brain -- which I will note is far more efficient than normal digital computers -- and even after this announcement we still are. But researchers at Northwestern have announced that they've created memristors which mimic the way the brain remembers. They can remember the amount of current that has gone through them even if they lose power. This is one of the keys to creating a "brainy computer." The human brain can do extremely complex computations with very little energy usage. This might be one of the keys to achieving that. Of course, don't hold your breath on this one just yet. However, this is just one of dozens of major steps to get us to robots that think as powerfully and efficiently as we do.
All of that represents just a week or two of scientific announcements. And none of those announcements are specifically designed for robots, but I hope I've made the case for how they can help robots make a big leap. It feels like robots haven't advanced much recently because we're still working on some of the basics, but huge boosts in improving sensing capability, power so they can range farther afield, shape and computing capacity make the future look bright. Which of these leaps are you hoping robots will take soon? Tell us in the comments.
All of that represents just a week or two of scientific announcements. And none of those announcements are specifically designed for robots, but I hope I've made the case for how they can help robots make a big leap. It feels like robots haven't advanced much recently because we're still working on some of the basics, but huge boosts in improving sensing capability, power so they can range farther afield, shape and computing capacity make the future look bright. Which of these leaps are you hoping robots will take soon? Tell us in the comments.
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