We cannot imitate the human brain. It is a debatable issue but researchers predict that future belongs to robotics. We don’t know what the truth is but seeing the advancements in robotics we can certainly say that something is cooking.
As we have grown up watching TV shows related to robots but we never ever thought about the advanced techniques involved in robotics so today we will be discussing few things which will narrate the theory behind the future of robotics.
The story revolves around the 3Ds. Generally scientists have designed robots for doing the works that are dirty, dull or dangerous. There is a fourth application which can also be seen. Robots can also be used in exploring areas that are inaccessible to humans. They can be deep undersea, outer space, remote mountainous or desert land areas. Robots can collect valuable information from these inaccessible regions which can further be used for research and development.
What is easy and what is difficult for a Robot to do? The operating environment in which there are few rules that can be defined easily is the excellent environment for Robotics. Let us take the example of chess. There are limited rules in playing chess which are easy to define. Therefore, it is easy for a robot to play chess.
Now there is one more case. Let us assume we want the robot to iron the clothes or we want the robot to make a bed for us. In both the cases there are so many combinations of shapes, appearance, sizes and positions of clothes, sheets and blankets. In this case the operating environment becomes relatively hard for a robot.
Generally we visualize a robot to be mobile but there can also be static robots. Let us assume about the functioning of a washing machines, dishwashers and driers. In all these cases there are sophisticated robots working which are fitted with artificial brains known as microprocessor along with so many sensors and actuators.
Coming to the topic now! The future jobs that can be done by a robot can be of:
Train Driver: We expect to see unmanned cybernetic (computer controlled) trains frequently running on tracks in another five to ten years, just there is a need of initial investment and political will power.
Taxi Driver/Chauffeur: Google’s self-driven car is an excellent example of robot driven vehicles. However, there are few challenges that need to be addressed. They are processing the signals from video cameras and laser rangefinders at speed in a very variable and rapidly changing situation moreover the cost of sensors, hardware and software is also considerably high today. So, we expect to see self-driven vehicles on slightly deserted roads in the coming ten to fifteen years of time.
Robot nurses and office porter: We could see robot nurses working extensively in hospitals to carry patient meals, for distribution of bed linen, carry waste, drugs and dressing material as hospitals offer a structured environment where fetching and carrying things is relatively easy for a robot.
Space explorer: Robots are being widely used in space exploration and research modules because of the risk involved, weight of the person and due to the life support system required by humans.
Floor cleaners and lawn mowers: People as well as commercial establishments like airports and railway stations are employing robots for floor cleaning and lawn mowing purposes due to improved performance in the technology.
Lab technicians and scientists: Robots and computers have proved to be helpful in decoding the human genome thus it gives a valuable contribution to lab technicians and scientists to achieve their R&D objectives.
Pharmacists: Imagine a robot helping you in picking up the right packet of drugs from a number of pigeon holes and passing them to a human pharmacist via conveyer belt for rechecking. It is just not an imagination it is a fact now.
Robots and medical surgery
Incredibly smart Robots have been made to help human doctors in major surgeries. In many surgical operations there is a need to do many precise incisions which are better done by a robot only. For example in cancer cases it is important to remove all cancerous cells but in case the adjacent healthy cells are also removed then it could do a serious harm to the patient. In those cases robots play a significant role. In some brain related operations an MRI scan locates cancerous cells and subsequently the locations are transmitted directly to the robot surgeon which makes the operation easier.
Thus, we see robots can perform a number of tasks for humans but at the same time we cannot underestimate the power of this single statement – “Science is a good servant but a bad master.” So, we need to be careful while dealing with these so called “Artificial Humans.”