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Post by Shadow on Dec 16, 2005 6:59:58 GMT -5
New Scientist# 15:58 13 December 2005 # NewScientist.com news service # and AFP The world's first walking humanoid robot is set to make its office debut in 2006 as a receptionist, Honda announced on Tuesday. The latest version of Honda’s Asimo robot will be starting its new job in April at a Honda office in Wako in Saitama prefecture north of Tokyo. The prototype, unveiled in Tokyo, can guide guests to a meeting room, serve coffee on a tray and push a cart with a load of up to 10 kilograms, says Honda. Compared with its predecessor, the new model has doubled its running speed to six kilometres (3.7 miles) per hour and can now run in a circle and zigzag. "The level of Asimo's capability was just good enough to entertain people on the stage in the past, but the new Asimo can work at places closer to us," says Satoshi Shigemi, the Honda official in charge of the robot's development. "The new Asimo can perform the task of a receptionist or information guide automatically," Shigemi told a news conference. "Honda is aiming to create a humanoid robot that can help people and live together with people."
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Post by Doc on Dec 17, 2005 3:49:22 GMT -5
New Scientist# 15:58 13 December 2005 # NewScientist.com news service # and AFP The world's first walking humanoid robot is set to make its office debut in 2006 as a receptionist, Honda announced on Tuesday. The latest version of Honda’s Asimo robot will be starting its new job in April at a Honda office in Wako in Saitama prefecture north of Tokyo. The prototype, unveiled in Tokyo, can guide guests to a meeting room, serve coffee on a tray and push a cart with a load of up to 10 kilograms, says Honda. Compared with its predecessor, the new model has doubled its running speed to six kilometres (3.7 miles) per hour and can now run in a circle and zigzag. "The level of Asimo's capability was just good enough to entertain people on the stage in the past, but the new Asimo can work at places closer to us," says Satoshi Shigemi, the Honda official in charge of the robot's development. "The new Asimo can perform the task of a receptionist or information guide automatically," Shigemi told a news conference. "Honda is aiming to create a humanoid robot that can help people and live together with people." I see lost jobs. Secretaries and assistants out of work. I imagine that it could be 50 years before it's a solid, smooth, dependable tecnology though.
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Post by Shadow on Dec 17, 2005 12:49:30 GMT -5
I may be off the mark but at the rate technology is progressing 50 years might be overestimating. Barring anything dramatic happening in the world at large I would guess closer to twenty. Consider how much PC's have advanced in the last 20 years. My first computer had a whole 5K of onboard memory and used a common cassette tape for a storage medium.
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