It’s become one of the more famous lines of the entire Star Wars epic. Uttered by Obi-Wan Kenobi, “These are not the droids you are looking for.” He was referring to the robots that serve humanity (or whatever capable sentient species) in the fictional Star Wars universe.
In our non-fictional reality, we already have robots that are doing jobs that once belonged to humanity. We’ve had that for years. But now I believe we are about to enter a new era of robotics. Investment dollars that were once earmarked for Tier 4 research and development for heavy equipment, can now be funneled into creating autonomous iron. In other words: robot earthmovers.
It’s become one of the more famous lines of the entire Star Wars epic. Uttered by Obi-Wan Kenobi, “These are not the droids you are looking for.” He was referring to the robots that serve humanity (or whatever capable sentient species) in the fictional Star Wars universe. In our non-fictional reality, we already have robots that are doing jobs that once belonged to humanity. We’ve had that for years. But now I believe we are about to enter a new era of robotics. Investment dollars that were once earmarked for Tier 4 research and development for heavy equipment, can now be funneled into creating autonomous iron. In other words: robot earthmovers. [text_ad] We already have a certain degree of machine control. Add engineer/designer Madeline Gannon to the mix. She has created what she calls “Quipt.” It is gesture-based control software in which robots can interact more fluidly with human handlers. Gannon says, “Putting a film camera onto an industrial robot gives a director precise, complex, and repeatable camera moves. Putting a loader onto an industrial robot gives a construction worker a way to move heavier quantities of materials. Putting a light onto an industrial robot gives a photographer more precise control of a scene's ambiance. While these are somewhat mundane use cases, they tease out some of the biggest challenges for bringing industrial robots outside of the factory: because they are blind to the world, they are very dangerous to use; because they need highly technical skill to program, they are very difficult to use.” So she developed Quipt to make it safer and easier. https://foresternetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/GX_bug_web.jpgMadeline the Robot Tamer from Pier 9 on Vimeo.
There have been six episodes since Obi-Wan used the “Force” to drive the Stormtroopers away from himself, Luke, R2D2, and C3PO.
I wonder how long it will be, without using the “Force,” until we finally do have the droids we’re looking for.
