No wonder you’re out of work–today’s factories are filled with robots. And in the not-so-distant future they will do even MORE than put parts together: Armies of robots will be nimbly be crawling up towers and skyscrapers to make repairs, so humans don’t have to.
Amazon.com is opening new warehouses that will use armies of robots to find books and other items for customers. And when it comes to the dangerous job of building skyscrapers, the latest robot prototype can autonomously traverse and manipulate a 3-D truss structure, using specially designed gears and joints to assemble and disassemble the structure as it climbs.
Engineer Jeremy Blum says, "What gets me most excited is this idea of safety." Having a robot able to climb and reconfigure building structures, even just to deliver materials, would be a step toward making construction zones safer for humans. Until recently, the construction of tall buildings was often left to Indian workers, but now, like so many jobs, these tasks may be done by robots.
The robot is equipped with an onboard power system, as well as reflectivity sensors so it can identify where it is on the structure. This allows it to maneuver accurately without explicit commands. The robot can also be used in space-exploration applications: Instead of sending astronauts out on a dangerous spacewalk at the International Space Station, a robot could be deployed to repair a damaged truss.
You won’t meet any robots at our Dreamland Festival in May–just some of the nicest people you’d ever care to know (like YOU!) who also CARE ABOUT THE SAME THINGS YOU DO. It’s a rare chance, so don’t miss it–we sell out every year!
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