More Robots, yeah!!
The weekly technology column from those good people at Plymouth’s Orange Crate
Although Orange Crate still haven’t received any donations towards hiring a ASIMO robot to make our tea, I’m not going to be discouraged - here is the second instalment of our look at famous advances in robotics.
Most of you have probably heard of Deep Blue. He wasn’t much of a looker, and it could be argued that he wasn’t technically a robot, but he certainly had the edge in the brain department over most of his contemporaries. Developed by IBM throughout the 1990s as part of a parallel computing project, the final version was released in 1997 and became famous for beating reigning chess champion Garry Kasparov 3 ½ – 2 ½ in a six game match. Kasparov subsequently accused IBM of cheating and demanded a rematch – his request was denied.
As of June 1997 Deep Blue was the world’s 259th most powerful supercomputer, and although this doesn’t sound that impressive it meant it could search to a depth of up to 40 potential moves (or plies) in the future. Having a purpose built chess-playing programme this powerful built into it must have given still given Deep Blue a strong position. So did IBM really need to cheat, even against the reigning champion? Sounds like sour grapes from Kasparov to me…
On the other end of the scale, take a look at Actroid-DER2 pictured above. Designed by Korkoro Company Ltd ( the animatronics division of ‘Hello Kitty’ makers Sanrio), she is the culmination of three years of robotic development. Her purpose is to be employed to greet and direct customers in a variety of situations, such as at conventions, office complexes, or museums. Although the most current model still must be fixed to the floor, the range and lifelike nature of her movements are almost disconcertingly realistic. And there have also been rumours about further developments which will allow Actroid to interview patients, possibly even in a medical environment.
What’s more, as of last month, you can hire Actroid for a five day period for ¥400,000 Japanese (around £1,500) plus variable choreography fees. That’s much more of a bargain than ASIMO, maybe we should look at investing in one of these instead…
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Has this information been useful?
June 6th, 2008
