Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Human Teaches Robot Ping Pong, Then Challenges It
Can robots learn from humans interactively and cooperatively? In the following video, roboticist Katharina Muelling generously imparts her ping pong expertise to a Barrett WAM arm robot equipped with her team's mixture of movement primitives (MoMP) algorithm, then plays against the robot.
(Robot learns ping pong from roboticist video)
In this paper, we presented a new framework that enables a robot to learn basic cooperative table tennis. To achieve this goal, we created an initial movement library from kinesthetic teach-in and imitation learning. The movements stored in the movement library can be selected and generalized using a mixture of movement primitives algorithm. As a result, we obtain a task policy that is composed of several movement primitives weighted by their ability to generate successful movements in the given task context. These weights are computed by a gating network and can be updated autonomously.The setup was evaluated successfully in a simulated and real table tennis environment. We showed in our experiments that both (i) selecting movement primitives from a library based on the current task context instead of using only a single demonstration and (ii) the adaptation of the selection process during a table tennis game improved the performance of the table tennis player. As a result, the system was able to perform a game of table tennis against a human opponent.
(Learning to Select and Generalize Striking Movements in Robot Table Tennis)
In his 1960 short story Callahan and the Wheelies, Stephen Barr describes robots that can learn by watching humans; in this case, they learn to recharge themselves.
To get some idea of how robotics progresses, see this 2009 video showing Katharina Muelling teaching the ping pong learning robot. See also this video showing how a robot chef learns by demonstration.
Read more about Katharina Muelling; via New Scientist.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 10/31/2012)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 1 )
Related News Stories - (" Robotics ")
DIY Robotic Content Farming
'The chief wheeled to the master machine and pressed a button.' - Schachner and Zagat, 1931.
Vero Robotic Dog With Vacuum Cleaner Feet
'Out of warrens in the wall, tiny robot mice darted.'
Boy Makes Biomimetic Turtle Robot
't came out into plain view. Darkington glimpsed a slim body and six short legs of articulated dull metal.'
Origin F1 Humanoid Robot's Facial Skin
'I could look down at that face of carefully molded synthetic rubber, tinted the exact shade of the doctor's living flesh.' - Rog Philips, 1950.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Prufrock-MB2 Ready In Nashville
'It sounds to me as though you had invented a kind of metal earthworm.'
DIY Robotic Content Farming
'The chief wheeled to the master machine and pressed a button.'
Reflect Orbital Sunlight On Demand
'I don't have to tell you about the seven two-mile-diameter orbital mirrors that circulate around the satellite, making it habitable.'
The Amazing Lightfoot Electric Scooter With Solar Assist
'The steel tortoise gave MacKinnon a feeling of Crusoe- like independence.'
Fully Electric, Fully Automated Vegetable‑growing Agribots
'...then back to their work, though little enough it was on these automatic cultivators.'
Vero Robotic Dog With Vacuum Cleaner Feet
'Out of warrens in the wall, tiny robot mice darted.'
AI Operates An Excavator
'So far as I could see, the thing was without a directing Martian at all.'
US Army IBEX Exoskeleton Walks Troops Out Of Danger
'The suit stands up and starts walking, gripping me round the calves and waist, taking the bulk of my weight off my throbbing feet.'
Boy Makes Biomimetic Turtle Robot
't came out into plain view. Darkington glimpsed a slim body and six short legs of articulated dull metal.'
Elon Musk Wants Data Centers In Space
'Internally it’s made up of millions of components, but the most important ones are the thinking and memory parts of the Mind proper.'
Origin F1 Humanoid Robot's Facial Skin
'I could look down at that face of carefully molded synthetic rubber, tinted the exact shade of the doctor's living flesh.'
Grok And The City Fathers From 'Cities In Flight' By James Blish
'Chris, the City Fathers are not interested in your welfare; I suppose you know that. They're interested in only one thing: the survival of the city.'
Why Not Move A Warehouse District?
'Did you never see a moving house before?'
Will An AI Found A New Religion?
'You must decide how you will worship Me.'
Terraformer Industries Make Methane
'Drake was the young spatial engineer he employed to terraform the little rock...'
I Need An Outdoor Spherical Display
'Usually a spherical display hovered in the centre...'
