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Hello, mechanical helpmates of the future
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THE bartenders, elderly care workers and house cleaners of tomorrow are the nuts and bolts of emerging technology today.
Human-like robots are being developed for industrial and services sectors, and the possibilities are endless.
That was obvious at the World Robot Conference exhibition in a snowy Beijing last week, where long queues of real humans formed to see the latest innovations in their mechanical counterparts. People from all walks of life – seniors, parents with children and technology aficionados – had plenty to grip their imagination.
“When I heard about the exhibition on TV, I just had to come, said a man surnamed Ge, 60, who traveled almost two hours to get to the conference hall. “Maybe health care droids will be taking care of me someday.”
Ge and other visitors were awed by robots functioning as waitresses, flutists, badminton players, teachers and explosive removal specialists. They were charmed by Geminoid F, the replica of a sexy Asian woman who could move her eyes, sing and talk.
In its push to modernize production, China has identified robotics as a major area of growth as labor shortages and rapidly rising wages afflict some industries. President Xi Jinping sent a letter of congratulations to the exhibition, a rarity for an industrial conference.
Industrial robots are an arm of the national policy promoting smart manufacturing and technological innovation.
Once the province of industrial use, robots are now being developed to operate in service realms related to social needs like elderly care and daily life, such as restaurant workers.
Sales of robots in China are set to almost triple by 2018, defying a slowdown in the wider economy. Annual robot sales will jump to 150,000 by 2018 from 57,000 in 2014, according to a recent report from the German-based International Federation of Robotics.
China, the world’s second-largest economy, still has far lower robot penetration than other big industrialized economies, with just 36 robots per 10,000 manufacturing workers. That compares with 478 in South Korea, 315 in Japan, 292 in Germany and 164 in the United States.
Small wonder that the robotics industry gets a ticked box in the draft version of China’s new five-year plan, the policy document that guides national economic development.
Beauty Humanoid
talking with visitors
Geminoid F, a human-like robot or “humanoid,” resembles a beautiful Asian woman with a pretty face and dark locks. She communicated with visitors via a human-sounding voice, body language and eye-to-eye contact during the exhibition.
Her developer, Hiroshi Ishiguro, is from Osaka University. He demonstrated another humanoid called Yangyang at a Shanghai-based firm in April.
An entry-level humanoid costs about US$2,000, according to Ishiguro.
Service robots
The exhibition featured innovations such as vehicles with automated “gun turrets” for serving drink and food serving; an robot playing the flute, a robot selling drinks behind a bar and devices with online educational content and cute shapes.
Robots seem destined to play a major role in the future intelligent society, improving production and everyday life, industry officials said during the conference.
People will be served by robots in retailing, educational services and health care sectors, exhibitors said.
But service robots need more technological development to measure up to the demands of consumers, analysts said.
An educational robot device, with interactive user-face and online content, sells for 2,498 yuan (US$390). At the exhibition, it attracted many onlookers but few buyers.
“We don’t want another advanced toy in the name of robotics,” said a young mother at the conference.
Special robots
Compared with service robots, special robots at the exhibition appeared more practical though they bear no resemblance to humans.
Armed attack robots and bomb-disposal robots were on display in the booth of HIT Robot Group, a newly formed venture between the Harbin Institute of Technology and the Harbin city government. They are expected to be deployed in the military and anti-terrorism sectors.
Also at the exhibition, Shanghai Jiao Tong University displayed a six-foot robot with special mechanical and vibration technologies, which can be used in complicated environmental situations and emergency rescue.
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