Robots are going to rule the world!

How many of us watched “i Robot” featuring Will Smith back in 2004, and was freaked out upon the thought of futuristic robots dominating the world? Well, less than a decade later, there is a chance of this happening at a place close to home—At the University of Ottawa.

The director of this project, Professor Emil Petriu, is a computer engineer at the University of Ottawa. He has been working on a robot that will mimic human facial expressions and sensory processes which will be useful not only in areas such as nursing, but could also act as a companion.

Dr.Petriu claims that as our society is becoming more and more disconnected, this awesome robot is going to meet the needs of physical companionship without the complications of human relationship. Maybe robots will be the new dogs—A man’s best friend.

Model of a robot based on drawings by Leonardo da Vinci. Photo by Erik Möller.

From the early sketchings of Leonardo da Vinci’s (1452 – 1519) humanoid robot in 1495 to the tea serving karakuri dolls built by Japanese craftsman Hisashige Tanaka (1799-1881), we have definitely come a long way in terms of robot building. But are these technological advances really a helpful alternative to improving the social relationships among human beings, or are they simply encouraging the growing gap between human interactions?

Tea Serving Karakuri. Photo by PHGCOM.

While the idea of robots being integrated into our society seems cool, but how many of us can actually adapt to this change? Dr. Petriu has apparently already thought of a solution to this problem.

“We are using biology as our source of inspiration. Human beings are most comfortable interacting with devices that move and respond the same way we do,” says Dr. Petriu. His team of scientists are using a coding system that will program the artificial skin over the robot’s skull so the expressions will appear familiar and authentic. Dr. Petriu also mentions, “It’s critical that they should have a warm, fuzzy feeling or they don’t feel human.” How is an artificial machine going to give a warm and fuzzy feeling, you ask? Apparently, they will match the temperature of the human skin by embedding white tubes that circulate hot water in the robot’s skin. Why didn’t I think of that?

If this is unimaginable to you, the Japanese scientists at the Tsukuba Center of the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology have already created and is test running their version of the nurse robot, Actroid-F, as seen in the video below. (Apologies about the language not being in English, but the demonstration is self-explanatory.)

All in all, this seems pretty creepy to me. What do you think?

To find out more, read the abstracts of Dr. Emil Petriu‘s published articles relating to this project here, here, and here. (Hover over the links to see what it’s about.) The full article on CBC News can be found here.