This news in particular caught my eyes.. this concept gives you kind of plug-n-play type of concept. Here are some of the key pros/cons I am thinking about:
If this can be build to almost human specs on understanding human instructions and can be packed with all the bells and whistles of self driving car in humanoid fashion, I don't see why it can't be as successful as any other cool car model..
- Con: Only I could think is that it will take away one passenger capacity (take away your driver seat) when operating the vehicle.. after this, I think, there are just pros..
- Flexibility: Not only you can continue using your existing beloved car with this Motobot but also fold and pack it to trunk if you want to enjoy your car yourself on some scenic route or just without any major traffic or if you just want to clear your head!!
- Personalization: You can personalize this motobot not only physically (well cultured chauffeur or sexy babe..blond / brunette.. or whatever your imagination may be...) but more importantly, you can customize it to your driving habits. You may use it as your personal assistant for everything you need. You may use as your talking buddy and bounce your ideas while in car or just ask it to focus on driving while you blast your music or show..
- Portability: Move from one car to another without thinking.. even leverage it for your rental cars? also, use it send it back to home to drop off your kids or to take your spouse to office.. as long as it is certified to drive alone.. depends on it's driving privileges..
- Regulatory: Licensing - Since you will own this particular motobot, you can take it to DMV get it approved and get Driving License or attach it to your Driving License.You take full responsibility for this thingy.. As long as firmware major release remains same.. this is certified and licensed by DMV. Just like human's aging and retest by DMV, you get it to DMV every two/five years for certifications.. How about car pool lane eligibility? I guess, we have to live without that for now..
- Security: Physical - Leave it in car in extreme weather to monitor your car and surroundings. Cyber - much more easier to bring it to test or regulatory labs to test for any bugs/virus etc.. You can limit its communication to outside world.. if you are really paranoid about security and this poor thing will just do what it does best.. drive your around..
If this can be build to almost human specs on understanding human instructions and can be packed with all the bells and whistles of self driving car in humanoid fashion, I don't see why it can't be as successful as any other cool car model..
Yamaha, SRI test-run robot project
By Kevin Kelly
MENLO PARK — Move over, Siri, and make way for Motobot. The Menlo Park-based research institute responsible for creating Apple’s digital personal assistant is now partnering with Yamaha Motor Co. to develop Motobot, a humanoid robot intended to beat one of the world’s fastest motorcycle racers.
In conjunction with a team from a local Yamaha research lab, SRI International’s robotics department is building Motobot, which they intend to exceed ninetime world champion MotoGP rider Valentino Rossi’s best lap time by the end of 2017. That news came during a recent announcement of the Yamaha-SRI partnership at the CES Robotics Conference in Las Vegas.
It may sound like — and may partly be — a publicity stunt, but since late 2014, SRI has been working with Yamaha Motor Ventures & Laboratory Silicon Valley, both of which have offices close to one another in Menlo Park, on developing a robot that could help increase rider safety. Consider it a high-tech diagnostic tool for motorcycles that just happens to look like a cyborg.
Also, consider it a bit of kismet.
When Yamaha called on SRI for help in late 2014, the Stanford research offshoot just happened to be proposing a similar system to the Pentagon, one that would become DARPA’s Alias program, an in-cockpit automation system intended to augment rather than replace the human pilot. It took just eight months from the time SRI signed on to help build Motobot for the team to deliver a working prototype to the Tokyo Motor Show last fall.
“The idea of having a humanoid robot operating a system designed to be used by flesh-and-bone humans without modifying that system at all was at the forefront of our thinking,” said Thomas P. Low, associate director of robotics at SRI. “There were some technologies we had worked on before that were really enabling (but we) started with a clean sheet of paper.”
Motobot allows motorcycle developers to test vehicles at their extremes without having to worry about the safety of a rider. Unlike a crash-test dummy that tests the impact of a collision on a vehicle’s occupants, Motobot is designed to test the limits of an unmodified vehicle. In more than 300 tests thus far, Motobot has never caused a motorcycle to crash.
According to Motobot founder Hiroshi Saijou, besides safety improvements, the robot could stretch the limits of design and performance, possibly making motorcycles ride more smoothly even as they achieve faster speeds.
“If we can use robots, we can do more aggressive things,” said Saijou, CEO and managing director of Yamaha Motor Ventures.
The team is looking far beyond just faster and safer motorbikes. When finalized, according to the researchers, the Motobot could be used to test agricultural and factory vehicles.
“Imagine a large agricultural harvester or tractor is doing a zigzag pattern over many acres and has to avoid obstacles,” Saijou said, “but it’s largely repetitive work and may be suited more for a robot than a human being.”
He also envisioned “a customized autonomous vehicle” that on large factory floors could move 10 mph and, like a drone, be programmed to avoid stationary obstacles.
“This pushes the limits of what’s possible, so this is a very moonshot type of program,” said Philip von Guggenberg, SRI’s director of business development.
Yamaha has been in the business of making motorcycles since it was founded 60 years ago, but over the past 20 has moved into developing industrial robots and an unmanned helicopter system. SRI has been at the forefront of robotics research and development for the past 40 years, having been responsible for the first telerobotic surgery system and “Shakey,” the first mobile robot with the ability to perceive and reason about its surroundings. More recently, the research institute has been working on “extremely agile, physically aware humanoids” and lightweight wearable robotics, according to Lowe. SRI was also responsible for the first computer mouse, the first ARPANET (pre-Internet) transmission and the first assigned Web domain names.
The Yamaha and SRI researchers said they plan to continue the partnership beyond Motobot. So look for more locally grown breakthroughs in the future.
As Amish Parashar, Yamaha Motor Ventures’ director of strategic business development, put it at CES: “I think there are bold projects and I think working on these bold projects is supremely important. ... For the entire industry, if we push projects just a little bit forward, the state of the art gets advanced just a little bit and all of us benefit.”
The Motobot is shown during an undated test run in Alameda. The project to develop Motobot, a humanoid robot that sits atop an unmodified MotoGP cycle, is a partnership between SRI International and Yamaha Motor Co.
