"robot" news and stories

Our future robot masters aren't ready to take over the world just yet, but they're definitely interested in keeping us puny humans fit and healthy (possibly as a future slave-labor force). Enter Autom, a wide-eyed talking robot that keeps your food intake and workouts in check with the press of a few buttons.

Autom, which made an appearance at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, works like this: Check in with your robo-pal once a day, answer a series of questions, and follow its coldly logical advice.

Of course, like any well-mannered robot, Autom breaks the ice with a little small talk about the weather before asking you to log your meals and how much time you spent exercising that day. The robot has a built-in food database (pulled from the comprehensive Calorie King web site), which makes it easier to keep track of your caloric intake. Once you've logged everything, Autom will offer some basic advice along the lines of "drink eight glasses of water a day."

We'd like to second Saturday Night Live 'Weekend Update' correspondent Seth Meyers from last Saturday -- "Because that's what the Chinese should be working on, ways to make their ten-trillion people unnecessary." -- and add that every rising actor, writer, artist and second-job-er in America would appreciate if those little electronic workers stayed right where they are.

According to the AP, "More than a dozen robots operate in the restaurant" -- Dalu Robot, billed as the first robot-staffed eatery in the country -- "as entertainers, servers, greeters and receptionists. Each robot has a motion sensor that tells it to stop when someone is in its path so customers can reach for dishes they want."

First-time patron Li Xiaomei told the AP: "They have a better service attitude than humans," who can be "temperamental or impatient, but they don't feel tired, they just keep working and moving round and round the restaurant all night." That may be true, but there's no chip for witty comebacks to the customers. Or flirting back. Not that we do that sort of thing.

It's practically impossible for me to decide what I like best about this video: The fact that it features both cloth coffee filters (sustainable!) and a hand coffee grinder (retro!), that the robot appears to let the coffee bloom before starting the proper brew, our little friend's deadpan expression, or the two-second outtake where the poor gal pours coffee all over the counter before a set of friendly human hands sets it right.

Actually, this little automated lady looks like she seriously knows what she's doing -- storing coffee in an air-tight container, grinding fresh, making coffee to order... She's a barista-bot after my own heart -- even if she's more likely to rust than over-caffeinate.

A robot that serves beer? Hopefully this development turns out more like Rosie from The Jetsons than Arnold in Terminator.

I found an Associated Press video introducing the world to the Japanese beer brand Asahi's friendly new bartender on the Clip Syndicate. Believe it or not, it's not Asahi's first bartending robot. As reported on Slashfood in 2006, Asahi has taken stabs at beer serving robots in the past, but this is definitely their most sophisticated model (at least that the public knows about!)

Check it our for yourself. The video starts after the jump.

Your dream could soon become a reality, if ReadyBot has anything to say about it. A group of scientists banned together to answer a challenge question: How many common and household commercial tasks can a two-armed, moderate-dexterity simple robot perform?

The answer: plenty. to see ReadyBot in action, click on the video, which is set to music similar to that of 50s Sears infomercials. So far, the Bot can raise and lower itself; grab, move, and tip dishes; and squeegee and wash countertops. Between this and a Roomba, just think of the possibilities! Your very own version of The Jetsons' Rosie (though it always irked me that she had female traits - ReadyBot will hopefully remain gender-neutral).

As you watch the clip, you'll notice that it moves fairly slowly, but the Bot scientists claim that this is intentional, and that it is intended to do work when people are at work or out of the house, so the lack of speed shouldn't be an issue.

Their ultimate goal? To program ReadyBot to complete approximately 80% of typical kitchen tasks (loading the dishwasher, washing dishes, etc) and then make it available for mass production. The scientists also claim that the price won't be too prohibitive, but we'll believe it when we see it.

In the meantime, one can only dream...