The field of robotics is advancing at an astounding rate, and before we know it, people will have to start competing with machines for jobs as we face a new industrial revolution. Just like Big John, we will have to either outwork or outsmart these machines, and neither is going to be an easy task. Will we learn to work along side these robots? Or will we be forced to adapt to a world where humans no longer perform "low skill" or "low talent" jobs?
This is Baxter,
and it's eyeing your job, knowing it can probably do it better...
Baxter is one of the first "general purpose" robots, and it's so easy to teach new skills that even your boss can do it. Instead of programming Baxter to perform a new task, one can simply "train" it how, like you would any other employee. Developed by Rethink Robotics, Baxter is incredibly adorable, too, starting around just $15,000. If that combination of versatility and affordability doesn't scare the hell out of you, you must own a business that could benefit from a little automation. For anyone working in a job where repetition is the name of the game, Baxter will be a no-brainer replacement. Baxter excels at jobs like factory assembly lines, warehouse packing and loading, and even things like serving drinks!
What makes Baxter tick?
Intera Studio makes it easy to add new tasks or tweak existing ones directly from your PC!
The first thing you might notice about Baxter is that creepy, mouthless face. That face is a built-in PC with a 3rd generation Intel i7 processor, 4 gigs of RAM, a 128gig SSD hard-drive, camera, and infrared sensors. This allows Baxter to observe the world using Rethink's Intera software platform.
Each of Baxter's arms have a maximum reach of almost 4 feet, and 7 degrees of freedom, giving it about the same range of motion as a human. The arms are force sensitive, letting it "feel" its way through a task, and they are completely safe to work next to people, unlike traditional automation robots that are usually kept behind big cages that take up a lot of precious space on the factory floor and are a hazard for anyone working nearby. Baxter also only weighs 165 lbs. without its pedestal, which is barely more than I weigh, making it incredibly easy to move or change stations on the fly.
Baxter is already in the workforce.
In a Ted Talk back in 2013, the founder of Rethink Robotics, Rodney Brooks, introduces Baxter with what I personally see as a tad bit of naive optimism, explaining how people will be working with robots, and not being replaced by them. This can be both true and false, as the determining factor of that conclusion would be the end-user of these automation robots.
A robot will never complain about working long hours without breaks. They don't need paychecks. If there's an accident on the job, a robot will never need to go to the hospital, or file a worker's compensation claim. A robot only needs a set of instructions and a steady supply of electricity. If you owned a business that could benefit from any of these "problems" that arise from human employees, why would you hire someone and pay them anything above minimum wage, when you could spend a little more up front to get a "trouble free" employee that would save you an incredible amount of money in the long run?
Baxter can already perform a whole slew of jobs, including machining, loading/unloading, metal fabrications, molding operations, and even doing product tests, something that has always been fairly expensive to implement on an automated level. Here's a short video of Baxter at work for various companies, performing many different tasks:
Sawyer needs a job too...
Big things come in small packages, and Sawyer is no exception. This robot only has one arm, but what it lacks in quantity, it more than makes up for with quality. Sawyer's arm can reach a couple inches further, and has embedded cameras that allow it to see and adapt to the task at "hand".
Speaking of hands, Rethink has created a "quick-switch" system called "ClickSmart" that allows a user to change Sawyer's gripper in mere seconds, and with no tools required. The ClickSmart Plate automatically detects what gets connected to it, and knows how to control it. The "gripper kits" themselves are fully customizable, allowing users to build their own hands for Sawyer to be able to complete the exact task they need performed. The video below shows Sawyer in action, watching it perform these mundane tasks that people used to get paid for is awe inspiring to some, and scary to others.
Automation robotics will definitely change the face of production. How it changes is still up to humans... for now. What do you think? Will we see a future where robots and humans work side by side? Or will humans be confined to creative work, and tasks that require more intelligence or dexterity?
Thank you for reading this edition of What the Tech?!?, if you enjoyed it, consider Resteeming it so your followers might read about these robots as well! If you really enjoyed it, I think you know what to do ;)
