Robots in space!
Combining two of our childhood fantasies and possibly nightmares into one amazing mission.
Developed by Robo Garage, Toyota and JAXA and launched to the International Space Station
on August 4, 2013, Kirobo will assist Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata in various experiments
and test the ability of man and machine to get along and work together...
in space!
Kirobo is equipped with a whole slew of high-tech features including: voice and speech recognition,
natural language processing, speech synthesis and telecommunications, as well as facial
recognition and video recording.
Kirobo is also designed to navigate zero gravity environments and with this cute little guy
orbiting 330km above our heads, we are one step closer to the inevitable robot apocalypse.
Japan has a long standing obsession with robots and they come in all shapes and sizes.
From Astro Boy to Doraemon to Gundam, robots represent a very deep and complex set of ideas
and are often used to explore, paradoxically, what it means to be human.
In the Astro Boy comic the nuclear powered robot created by Dr. Tenma of the Ministry
of Science was created as a replacement for his dead son but is later rejected by his
creator when Astro Boy is unable to fill the void left by his human child.
Deep, huh?
But why does Japan employ more robotic workers than any other nation and see robots as one
of the ways in which they can tackle the economic problems brought on by low birth rates and
a greying society?
Many point to the animist elements of the Shinto religion and their contrast to many
Western religions' views on the creation of life by humans.
Animism is the idea that every object that exists has a spirit attached to it and isn't
necessarily going to wreak havoc on you or the world at large if given the opportunity.
In contrast, Western religion imparts the notion that the creation of life ultimately
leads to the destruction of the creator.
Robots equal created life, created life equals bad.
It's a good thing that robots in Japan are given quite a warm welcome as they're probably
going to continue popping up quite often in the years to come.
The Japanese government is funding projects that aim to develop low cost robots that can
be used in nursing homes to assist the elderly and take some of the burden off their human
counterparts.
The coolest among the subsidized designs is "a motorized robot suit that can assist in
lifting or moving elderly and otherwise impaired patients so that caretakers do not need to
exert as much physical strength."
Think power loader exo-suit from the movie Aliens.
The most well known among Japanese robots is probably the Advanced Step in Innovative
MObility robot being developed by Honda.
ASIMO's resume is impressive and shows about where we stand in terms of the progress of
modern robotics.
ASIMO has the ability to recognize moving objects, postures, gestures, its surrounding
environment, sounds and faces.
Furthermore, ASIMO can detect the movement of multiple objects and determine distance
and direction using its stereoscopic vision.
ASIMO can also interpret voice commands and human gestures which allow it to distinguish
between an arm offered for a handshake or when a person waves or points at something.
Additionally, ASIMO is also able to recognize its name and respond to and recognize the
faces of multiple people in conversation; up to ten actually.
In short, ASIMO has social graces more human than many of the humans I know and he just
keeps getting better.
From the first experimental model in 1986 to the 130cm tall version of ASIMO making
public appearances at movie premiers, Disney attractions and symphony halls, our little
friend doesn't seem to be slowing down.
Whether they freak you out or inspire warm feelings of companionship, robots are among
us and our relationship with them is going to be constantly evolving.
What are prohibitively expensive novelties in the year 2013 are going to be, with quite
a bit of development, highly integral components of our future lives.
Look forward to it!
Thanks for watching this episode of The Japan Show, if you have any questions or want to
tell us about some other cool robots, be sure to leave a comment below, and if you want
to see more episodes like this one, head over to youtube.com/watchthejapanshow and subscribe!