Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




ROBO SPACE
Literal Android: Google develops robots to replace people in manufacturing, retail
by Staff Writers
Moscow (Voice of Russia) Dec 09, 2013


AILA, or Artificial Intelligence Lightweight Android, presses switches on a panel it recognizes during a demonstration at the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence GmbH stand at the 2013 CeBIT technology trade fair on March 5, 2013 in Hanover, Germany. (AFP Photo / Carsten Koall). Image courtesy AFP.

Now that the mystery surrounding the elusive Google barges in the San Francisco Bay reported last month has been brought to light, the Silicon Valley giant is announcing another new endeavor: robots.

Yes, robots. Speaking to the New York Times for an article published this week, Google exec and former Android CEO Andy Rubin revealed that the search engine company's next big project is predictably another space-age effort that, if history is any precedent, is sure to transcend the realm of science fiction and soon be as commonplace as, say, the cell phone.

"His last big bet, Android, started off as a crazy idea that ended up putting a supercomputer in hundreds of millions of pockets," Google CEO Larry Page told USA Today this week. "It is still very early days for this, but I can't wait to see the progress."

According to Wednesday's article in the Times, Rubin and company are indeed exploring with robotics, and not exactly starting from scratch, either. Google has rather secretly acquired seven new technology companies during the last six month, the paper's John Markoff reported, and in doing so have added the names of some rather impressive robotics professionals to their portfolio.

Don't freak out just yet, though: Google isn't necessarily assembling an army of robo-overlords. Markoff reported that while Google isn't saying much about what they're working on, it will be a project not aimed at consumers. Instead, Google is expected to use their new robotics teams to dabble in manufacturing in order to compete with another big internet name that so-far has been largely unscathed by Google wrath on the web: Amazon.

Only last week, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced preliminary plans to rely on unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, to deliver packages to customers in select US markets. And while the jury is still out on whether or not Amazon will be able to pull that feat off, acquiring some a slew of robotics experts and putting them under one of the most valuable companies in the world will likely give Google an advantage, or at least, a fighting change, at revamping the way it does business as well.

"Google's robotics ambitions and Bezos's drone PR should be a reminder to investors that they are not only investing in the trend lines of the current financials, but in the future vision and broad ambitions of these companies," Ben Schachter, an analyst at Macquarie, wrote in a note to clients sent Wednesday and cited USA Today. "Amazon and Google clearly are going to invest in projects that may not bear fruit for 5-10 years, if at all."

Speaking to the Times, Rubin said that time was a factor and was hoping to work with enough runway to fully realize the project in around ten years' time.

Of course, what exactly they do with their robots is still something to be discovered. Even if Google doesn't want to use new tools to tackle consumers directly, the sort of technology they're efforting presents itself with an array of opportunities.

"They aren't going for the consumer market," Gary McMurray, the associate director of industry at Georgia Tech's Institute for Robotics and Intelligent Machines, told ABC News. "They can use their robots for marketing, or they can go for something in manufacturing."

"Google is a very forward-thinking company," said McMurray. "I think [this initiative] fits in with what they're trying to do as a company."

Among the companies recently acquired by Google, according to the Times, are Schaft of Japan and Industrial Perception of the United States, who've recently dabbled in developing humanoid robots and a computer vision system with robotic arms, respectively. Google has also recently acquired robot makers Meka, Redwood and Bot and Dolly, as well as two design firms that specialize in high-tech products.

"The seven companies are capable of creating technologies needed to build a mobile, dexterous robot," Markoff wrote.

Source: Voice of Russia

.


Related Links
Google
All about the robots on Earth and beyond!






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








ROBO SPACE
Robot herder brings the cows in for milking in Australia
Sydney (UPI) Nov 15, 2013
A four-wheeled robot known as Rover has been successfully tested as a cattle herder in Australia, easily moving a herd from a field to a dairy, researchers say. The cows, accepting the presence of the robot, were not fazed by it and the herding process was calm and effective, a team from Sydney University said. University engineers adapted Rover from a robot already being used to ... read more


ROBO SPACE
Silent Orbit for China's Moon Lander

China's most moon-like place

LADEE Instruments Healthy and Ready for Science

China launches first moon rover mission

ROBO SPACE
Rover results include first age and radiation measurements on Mars

Mars lake may have been friendly to microbes: NASA

One-way ticket to Mars: space colonists wanted!

Martian Laser Surpasses 100,000 Zaps

ROBO SPACE
Space exploration can drive the next agricultural revolution

Global patent growth hits 18-year high

Facebook joins NYU in artificial intelligence lab

LAS Tower Complete in Preparation for Orion's First Mission

ROBO SPACE
China moon rover enters lunar orbit: Xinhua

Turkey keen on space cooperation with China

China space launch debris wrecks villagers' homes: report

Designer: moon rover uses cutting-edge technology

ROBO SPACE
New crew to run space station in March

Russian android may take on outer space operations at ISS

Repurposing ISS Trash for Power and Water

Russian spacecraft with advanced navigation system docks with ISS

ROBO SPACE
Russian Proton-M rocket launches Inmarsat-5F1 satellite

Basic build-up is being completed for Arianespace's Soyuz to launch Gaia

Third time a charm: SpaceX launches commercial satellite

Arianespace's role as a partner for the US satellite industry

ROBO SPACE
Hot Jupiters Highlight Challenges in the Search for Life Beyond Earth

Astronomers find strange planet orbiting where there shouldn't be one

Hubble Traces Subtle Signals of Water on Hazy Worlds

Astronomers detect water in atmosphere of distant exoplanets

ROBO SPACE
SST Australia: Signed, Sealed and Ready for Delivery

Scientists build a low-cost, open-source 3D metal printer

An ecosystem-based approach to protect the deep sea from mining

Study shows how water dissolves stone, molecule by molecule




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement