dms@MIT-HERMES.ARPA (David M. Siegel) (02/08/86)
Date: 1 Feb 86 06:52:48 GMT
From: ucdavis!lll-crg!seismo!cmcl2!lanl!jlg@ucbvax.berkeley.edu
Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory
I keep fairly close tabs on AI and robotics. There is no way with
today's technology to build an automaton that could have repaired
the Solar MAX satellite. Much less - capture and return disabled
satellites. Teleoperation doesn't help this much, the problem is
at least partly one of dexterity.
I'm working on a project that attempts to duplicate the dexterity of a
human hand, and you might be surprised at what has already been
achieved. The hand, a joint project between the University of Utah and
the MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab, has 3 fingers and an opposing
thumb. Each finger has 4 degrees of freedom, giving the hand a total
of 16 joints. Soon it should be equipped with a large number of
tactile sensors, giving it a primitive (compared with humans) sense
of touch.
While we still have a while to go before a device like the Utah/MIT hand
could be used to repair a satellite, the time is not so far in the
future. And if a billions dollars (half the cost of a shuttle) where
put into the project, I'd guess that a dexterous teleoperator version
could be built in a handful of years.
-Davemdm@pur-ee.UUCP (Mike D McEvoy) (02/11/86)
In article dms@MIT-HERMES.ARPA (David M. Siegel) writes: >While we still have a while to go before a device like the Utah/MIT hand >could be used to repair a satellite, the time is not so far in the >future. And if a billions dollars (half the cost of a shuttle) where >put into the project, I'd guess that a dexterous teleoperator version >could be built in a handful of years. Given the current state of the art, 3-4 years minimum to produce a functional prototype that is designed for orbital operation. Of course, you need the shuttle + 2-3 mission specialist to do the debugging and at least two shuttle missions to debug the thing (I am an incurable optimist) How do you retrieve the teleoperator and return it to earth for repair? It is a mechanical device - it will break, more often than planned. How do you return the non-repairable items? This list does go on. At some point it becomes more cost effective to add the mission speciallist. The point is, the two systems are complementary. Having good teleoperator capability without shuttle technology (some form - orient express, ???) only solves part of the problem. We need good teleoperator/robot technology and a good shuttle system. Mike McEvoy Cybotech Robotics PS FYI CYBOTECH is a five year old manufacturer of robots and robot based manufacturing systems serving the aerospace, automotive, and welding marketplaces. Our sales volume places us in the top 10 list of robot companies. It's a fun place to work. Usual disclaimers apply.........