General Purpose Robotic Co-Workers
In the future, the traditional way a robot worker performs programmed actions within a confined space will change drastically. Humans and robots will share a common workspace, they will instruct each other and they will also assist each other in tasks that require the specific skills of either the robot or the human.
Moreover, humans will expect their robot co-worker to be general purpose, meaning not restricted in its application to a specific set of tasks. Clearly, humans will also want general purpose co-workers to remember what they were taught, to perform in different settings and to explain their actions and plans. Eventually, this technology will lead to applications like personalized companion robots, “intelligent” tele-operators, assistants in a mechanical or car-repair work-shop, edutainment robots and more.
Seven ECHORD++ experiments fit in the scenario of “General Purpose Robotic Co-Workers”:
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