Elenco Robotics User Manual
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...researchers at robotics labs around the world are studying
the way people and robots interact. If people are to teach
machines, they ask, what would be the best way? And if
machines are to serve people, washing dishes and sending
faxes, what kind of robotic behavior will people be
comfortable with? How should the robot appear?
...training, the robot moves beyond simple imitation. Once
the robot has learned a task, it is able to perform it even
under different circumstances.
“In a task that involves making phoocopies, the
robot can get to the copy machine even if there’s a
stack of boxes in the way, or if the door to the copy
room is closed.”
Cinthya Breazeal and her colleagues at the Artificial
Intelligence La at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
have spent countless hours talking to Kismet, a robot that is
programmed to recongnize basic emotions in a human voice
and can respond through mechanically driven movements
of its eyes and mouth.
For years, the researchers have treated Kismet as if it were a
baby, at times shaking a stuffed toy in front of it or speaking
lovingly to it. Last year, Breazeal and a colleague reported
that Kismet could tell from the tone of and instructor’s voice
whether it was being praised, scolded or comforted. By
refining Kismet’s responses, the researchers hope to enable it
to develop new behaviors through social interaction.