Microsoft Researchers Use ChatGPT to Control Robots, Drones

Seems very novel, but makes sense, pics at the link below, shows the approack,

Microsoft Researchers Use ChatGPT to Control Robots, Drones

PC Magazine, Michael Kan,  in PCMag, February 21, 2023

Microsoft scientists are controlling robots and aerial drones with OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot. The researchers used ChatGPT to simplify the process of programming software commands to guide the robots, because the artificial intelligence model was trained on massive datasets of human text. They initially outlined in a text prompt the various commands the model could use to control a given robot, which ChatGPT used to write the computer code for the robot. The researchers programmed ChatGPT to fly a drone and have it perform actions, as well as to control a robot arm to assemble the Microsoft logo from wooden blocks.

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San Francisco Now Says No to Armed Robots

Mentioned the earlier decision here a week ago, and predicted it would NOT last in SF's policing environment.  It has now quickly been reversed.  

San Francisco decides killer police robots aren’t such a great idea

Explosive robots were approved for the SFPD arsenal, then the protests started.

By Ron Amadeo - 12/7/2022, 1:26 PM  in ArsTechnica

The robot police dystopia will have to wait. Last week the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to authorize the San Francisco Police Department to add lethal robots to its arsenal. The plan wasn't yet "robots with guns" (though some police bomb disposal robots fire shotgun shells already, and some are also used by the military as gun platforms) but to arm the bomb disposal robots with bombs, allowing them to drive up to suspects and detonate. Once the public got wind of this, the protests started, and after an 8–3 vote authorizing the robots last week, now the SF Board of Supervisors has unanimously voted to (at least temporarily) ban lethal robots.  ... ' 

San Francisco to allow police 'killer robots'

 Depending on the definition, doubt this. 

San Francisco to allow police 'killer robots'   in the BBC

By Ben Derico & James Clayton,  BBC News, San Francisco

San Francisco's ruling Board of Supervisors has voted to let the city's police use robots that can kill.

The measure permits police to deploy robots equipped with explosives in extreme circumstances. Dr Catherine Connolly, from the group Stop Killer Robots, said the move was a "slippery slope" that could distance humans from killing.The city's police - the SFPD - told the BBC they do not currently operate any robots equipped with lethal force. They said though that there may be future scenarios in which lethal force could be used by a robot.

A spokesperson for the police said "robots could potentially be equipped with explosive charges to breach fortified structures containing violent, armed, or dangerous subjects".They also said robots could be used to "incapacitate, or disorient violent, armed, or dangerous suspects who pose a risk of loss of life".

Advocates for the measure said it would only be used in extreme situations. Opponents, however, say the authority could lead to further militarisation of the police force.

The measure passed, with an amendment on Tuesday specifying that officers could only use robots wielding deadly force after employing alternative de-escalation tactics. The board also stipulated that only a limited number of high-ranking officers could authorise its use. This type of lethal robot is already in use in other parts of the United States.

In 2016, police in Dallas, Texas, used a robot armed with C-4 explosive to kill a sniper who had killed two officers and injured several more. The SFPD said the department does not currently own any robots outfitted with lethal force, but said the measure might be needed in the future.  "No policy can anticipate every conceivable situation or exceptional circumstance which officers may face. The SFPD must be prepared, and have the ability, to respond proportionally," a spokesperson said.

The federal government has long dispensed military grade equipment, camouflage uniforms, bayonets and armoured vehicles to help local law enforcement.  But a California state law passed this year now requires city police forces to inventory military-grade equipment and seek approval for their use. Dr Catherine Connolly, from the campaign group Stop Killer Robots, said the move could "make humans more and more distant from the use of force and the consequences of the use of force". She also said the measure could make it "easier to make decisions to use lethal force in the first place".

Amazon Launches Warehouse Robot That Can Do Human Jobs

ACM TECHNEWS

Amazon Launches Warehouse Robot That Can Do Human Jobs  By Financial Times, November 11, 2022

Amazon has rolled out a new warehouse robot in order to automate more jobs as the company seeks to reduce logistics costs.  The company said the Sparrow robotic arm is the first robot that can "detect, select, and handle individual products in our inventory," jobs once performed only by warehouse employees.  The robotic arm identifies and picks up small objects with the help of computer vision technology and suction cups.

Amazon, which has developed 700 new robotics-related job "categories," said Sparrow will "benefit" employees by allowing them to focus more on less-repetitive warehouse tasks.

Joe Quinlivan, Amazon’s vice-president of global robotics, wrote in a blog post, “Robotics technology enables us to work smarter — not harder — to operate efficiently and safely.” ... 

From Financial Times

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Tesla Humanoid Robotics

 Was asked to comment on this, on status, direction and effort involved.  Pointers? 

Tesla is borrowing Autopilot team for Optimus humanoid robot project  in Electric

Fred Lambert - Sep. 20th 2022 3:14 am PT

The CEO has said that the Tesla Bot project has become a priority.

Tesla’s approach to selling Autopilot, and now its Full Self-Driving (FSD) package features before they are ready, is creating some pressure to deliver, but Tesla has missed several timelines already.

CEO Elon Musk has talked about Tesla turning its fleet into 1 million “robotaxi” vehicles by the end of the year, but the goal has now changed to expanding its FSD Beta program, which is still far from being able to perform a robotaxi service.

Many customers are getting impatient to the point that some have filed a class action lawsuit against Tesla over its claims about Autopilot and the FSD package.

Some were also worried that Tesla was spreading itself thin when adding its Optimus humanoid robot project to its plate, and Musk even said that the robot has become a “top priority” at Tesla.

Tesla planned to leverage its work on computer vision for self-driving to use in the robot, which raised concerns considering the automaker has yet to deliver on its self-driving promises despite selling the feature to customers.

Now when an owner asked Musk about a fix in Autopilot on Twitter last night, the CEO seems to suggest that it would have to wait because the Autopilot team is working on Optimus:

Note, Autopilot/AI team is also working on Optimus and (actually smart) summon/autopark, which have end of month deadlines., The deadline at the end of the month for Optimus is the Tesla AI Day 2, during which the company is expected to unveil its first working prototype of the robot.

Tesla apparently also plans to unveil an updated version of its “Smart Summon” and Autopark features at the vent.  Is Tesla spreading itself too thin with this robot project? Should Tesla focus on delivering on its self-driving promises? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

Sticky Mini Robots at Work?

 Intriguing approach

Robot made of sticky tape and metal powder could crawl on your organs

Tiny robots made of metallic powder stuck to plastic tape and controlled by magnetic fields could one day crawl inside internal organs and repair injuries

TECHNOLOGY 15 July 2022

By Matthew Sparkes   in NewScientist

Robots made from sticky tape and dust can morph into various shapes under the direction of a magnetic field. They may one day be able to crawl into computers to fix broken circuits or even inside the human stomach to apply therapeutic patches to gastric ulcers.

Soft robots that have no batteries, motors or electronics and that are powered and controlled from a distance by light or magnets are a popular field of research. But there are barriers to overcome before they can be used in practical applications, including the need for a cheap manufacturing process.

Zhang Li at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and his colleagues discovered that a magnet-controlled robot can be created easily and at low cost using sticky tape onto which non-sticky wax has been printed in a specific pattern. When powder containing microparticles of magnetic neodymium-iron-boron is applied to the tape, it sticks to the exposed sections but not to the wax overlay – a little like a stencil. The wax is then dissolved in ethyl acetate solution to leave an accurately shaped magnetic robot.

Zhang says that the process could be easily automated and that tiny robots could eventually be printed in long rolls, just like newspapers coming off a printing press.  ... ' 

Big Robots in Dallas Airport

7 foot tall?    Already intimidating.  See the link to the SCOT system for more details.

7-Foot-Tall Robots Watch for Unmasked Travelers, Curbside Loiterers  By The Dallas Morning News, April 15, 2022

Two seven-foot-tall robots have been deployed at Dallas Love Field Airport in Dallas, TX, to assist and monitor passengers.  The Security Control Observation Tower (SCOT) robotic kiosks from Robotic Assistance Devices can help travelers navigate the airport, ensure passengers are wearing masks, and call airport security and operations if necessary.

The goal of the deployment is to determine whether robotic assistants can supplement airport operations efficiently.   Said Love Field's Lauren Rounds, "The units currently make scheduled and detection-based announcements directed toward our passengers and visitors. Some of these focus on reducing vehicular congestion at our curb using license plate recognition and increasing federal mask compliance using facial recognition technology, while others provide standard information."

From The Dallas Morning News

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Do Robots Make us Happier?

Not sure they are meant to.   Do calculators make us happier?  Computers? The Internet?   No they just give us the option for some assistive benefit ...  which includes happiness.     Like exploring the idea of happiness given to us by robots.   The exploration is good. 

Robots Save Us Time — But Do They Make Us Happier?  by Ashley Whillans , Emanuel de Bellis , Fabian Nindl and Tobias Schlager in HBR

HBR Staff/Duet Postscriptum/Stocksy/Nednapa Chumjumpa/Getty Images

As of 2019, more than 14 million Americans owned a robotic vacuum cleaner. Robotic lawn mowers tend to our yards, robotic suitcases follow us through the airport, and smart cooking machines prepare ingredients and implement entire recipes. Some autonomous products even play with and clean up after our pets. These tools are meant to improve people’s lives, relieving them of chores and making them happier as a result — and while some do this, other’s don’t. How can business leaders ensure that their companies are developing products that people actually feel good about using?

As consumer psychologists, we have accumulated a great deal of evidence that spending money to outsource disliked tasks — such as by paying for a housecleaner — can improve happiness, lower stress, and improve our romantic relationships (even during the pandemic). But as technology develops, we have begun outsourcing not only to humans, but to machines as well.  ... "

Wal-Mart as Labs for Human-Robot Relationships

The statement takes it a bit far I think, but much will be learned in these environments.   Much still has to be learned.  And to be taught to shoppers as expectations.

Walmart stores become labs for human-robot relationships
Fasr Company via Retailwire:
08/29/2019

Walmart continues to roll out robots in its store environments — 350 this year alone — and their robotic development partners are learning a great deal from seeing the autonomous gizmos navigate around and interact with humans. “… We have a life-sized laboratory where hopefully millions of people will be seeing our robot,” says Sarjoun Skaff of Bossa Nova, the company behind Walmart’s shelf-scanning robots. One nagging problem for Bossa Nova is finding a way for the robots to indicate to humans which direction they intend to move. They liken the issue to the kind of conventions developed for drivers, such as turn signals and traffic lights.  ....  "

Happy Working Alongside Robots

A look at people working with robots.  Not only the physical kind, but the 'robotic process' kind.   In fact, we have been planning, creating and installing the latter for many years.   Though it says 'happy', this is an likely an overstatement.    Some nervous insecurity is likely to be there as well.  Stats are interesting.

Most Business Decision-makers and Knowledge Workers Happy to Work Alongside Robots

Fears that automation will remove jobs for knowledge workers are reducing as opportunities emerge to upskill and eradicate mundane work     By Karl Flinders    Emea Content Editor, in Computer Weekly
  
A large majority of knowledge workers are happy to learn new skills and work alongside the robots that are rapidly automating businesses.

A survey of 5,000 of these professionals has revealed that 83% felt this way, with 78% ready to take on new roles.

The survey, carried out by automation software maker Blue Prism, contrasts with reports of fears among people that their jobs are at risk from automation. Blue Prism’s report found that only 37% of knowledge workers fear losing their job. .... "

And with acceptance of automation growing, businesses are not holding back. The survey found that 92% of business decision-makers are planning to automate more of their processes.

Some 88% believe robotic process automation (RPA) and 83% think intelligent automation will help solve global productivity problems and are critical for digital transformations.  ... "