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Showing posts with label Robotics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Robotics. Show all posts
12/13/15
Technology: Sex, love and robots: is this the end of intimacy? - by Eva Wiseman
The world is ending. The sports fields are empty, the science labs
closed. No babies have been born for years. Cut to a split screen of
human and robots kissing passionately. “They’re trapped!” says the
narrator, voice like gravel.
“Trapped in a soft, vice-like grip of robot lips.” Words slam against the screen, a warning. “Don’t. Date. Robots.”
Except Futurama’s 2001 episode “I Dated a Robot”, with its post-apocalyptic world of silvers and blues, wildly overestimated how long it would take before this fear became flesh. It’s November 2015, and in Malaysia, where humidity is at 89% and it is almost certainly still raining, David Levy, a founder of the second annual Congress on Love and Sex with Robots, is free to talk on the phone – he is less busy than planned. “I never expected to end up here,” he says. I hear a shrug.
The Congress on Love and Sex with Robots was meant to begin on 16 November, but was deemed illegal days after Levy arrived from London. “There’s nothing scientific about sex and robots,” inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar told a press conference, explaining why. “It is an offence to have anal sex in Malaysia [let alone sex with robots].”
“I think they thought people would be having sex with robots or some strange thing like that,” Levy’s co-founder Adrian David Cheok said afterwards, explaining that they had planned a series of academic talks about humanoid robotics. But some strange thing like that, some strange thing like a human having sex with a robot, is what Levy, Cheok and others are predicting is almost our reality. They have seen the future of sex, they say, and it is teledildonic.
Sex, love and robots: is this the end of intimacy? | Technology | The Guardian
“Trapped in a soft, vice-like grip of robot lips.” Words slam against the screen, a warning. “Don’t. Date. Robots.”
Except Futurama’s 2001 episode “I Dated a Robot”, with its post-apocalyptic world of silvers and blues, wildly overestimated how long it would take before this fear became flesh. It’s November 2015, and in Malaysia, where humidity is at 89% and it is almost certainly still raining, David Levy, a founder of the second annual Congress on Love and Sex with Robots, is free to talk on the phone – he is less busy than planned. “I never expected to end up here,” he says. I hear a shrug.
The Congress on Love and Sex with Robots was meant to begin on 16 November, but was deemed illegal days after Levy arrived from London. “There’s nothing scientific about sex and robots,” inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar told a press conference, explaining why. “It is an offence to have anal sex in Malaysia [let alone sex with robots].”
“I think they thought people would be having sex with robots or some strange thing like that,” Levy’s co-founder Adrian David Cheok said afterwards, explaining that they had planned a series of academic talks about humanoid robotics. But some strange thing like that, some strange thing like a human having sex with a robot, is what Levy, Cheok and others are predicting is almost our reality. They have seen the future of sex, they say, and it is teledildonic.
Sex, love and robots: is this the end of intimacy? | Technology | The Guardian
7/15/15
China - Robotics: First unmanned factory takes shape in Dongguan City
The first unmanned factory in Dongguan, a city of southeastern China's Guangdong province, lays out a vision of future manufacturing: all the processes are operated by computer-controlled robots, computer numerical control machining equipment, unmanned transport trucks and automated warehouse equipment.
The technical staff just sits at the computer and monitors through a central control system.
At the workshop of Changying Precision Technology Company in Dongguan, known as the "world factory", which manufactures cell phone modules, 60 robot arms at 10 production lines are polishing the modules day and night. Each line has an automatic belt and three workers who are just responsible for checking lines and monitoring.
A few months ago, it required 650 workers to finish this process. A robot arm can replace six to eight workers, now there are 60 workers and the number will be reduced to 20 in the future, according to Luo Weiqiang, general manager of the company.
This is the first step of the "robot replace human" program. In the next two years the number of robots will be increased to 1,000 and 80 percent process will be conducted by robots, said Chen Qixing, president of the company.
Compared with many skilled workers, these robots are new hands. But they made far more and better products than well-trained workers and experts. Data shows that since the robots came to the factory, the defect rate of products has dropped from over 25 percent to less than 5 percent and the production capacity from more than 8,000 pieces per person per month increased to 21,000 pieces.
This company is only a microcosm of Dongguan, one of the manufacturing hubs in China. The City plans to finish 1,000 to 1,500 "robot replace human" programs by 2016.
With the implementation of "Made in China 2025" strategy, a growing number of "unmanned workshops or factories" will come out.
The technical staff just sits at the computer and monitors through a central control system.
At the workshop of Changying Precision Technology Company in Dongguan, known as the "world factory", which manufactures cell phone modules, 60 robot arms at 10 production lines are polishing the modules day and night. Each line has an automatic belt and three workers who are just responsible for checking lines and monitoring.
A few months ago, it required 650 workers to finish this process. A robot arm can replace six to eight workers, now there are 60 workers and the number will be reduced to 20 in the future, according to Luo Weiqiang, general manager of the company.
This is the first step of the "robot replace human" program. In the next two years the number of robots will be increased to 1,000 and 80 percent process will be conducted by robots, said Chen Qixing, president of the company.
Compared with many skilled workers, these robots are new hands. But they made far more and better products than well-trained workers and experts. Data shows that since the robots came to the factory, the defect rate of products has dropped from over 25 percent to less than 5 percent and the production capacity from more than 8,000 pieces per person per month increased to 21,000 pieces.
This company is only a microcosm of Dongguan, one of the manufacturing hubs in China. The City plans to finish 1,000 to 1,500 "robot replace human" programs by 2016.
With the implementation of "Made in China 2025" strategy, a growing number of "unmanned workshops or factories" will come out.
Read more: First unmanned factory takes shape in Dongguan City - People's Daily Online
4/6/14
Technology - Netherlands is working on national robotics program - Hannover Messe Trade Fair April 7-11 - 2014
The Netherlands is working on a national program to increase the
use of robots and automation in industry, the Financieele Dagblad said.
A report entitled Smart Industry and drawn up by the economic affairs ministry, employers' organisation FME and the TNO research institute will be presented at the Hannover Messe Trade Fair
The report will form the basis of a more in depth action plan to be finalized later this year.
EU-Digest
A report entitled Smart Industry and drawn up by the economic affairs ministry, employers' organisation FME and the TNO research institute will be presented at the Hannover Messe Trade Fair
The report will form the basis of a more in depth action plan to be finalized later this year.
EU-Digest
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