Find and read an article about a new robot or one under development. And answer all questions
Include a title with the name of the robot if it has one. Be sure to answer all questions. Be specific but brief. Remember to use the spelling and grammar check!
1. What is its main purpose? Is its purpose for industry, private use, military, education, or another? Explain.
2. Give a brief description of the robot’s construction: is it humanoid, wheeled like a car, exoskeletal, animal-like, etc.
3. How many degrees of freedom does the robot have? What are they? Is the robot holonomic? Redundant?
4. Discuss the actuators/effectors: how many are there, what type (wheels, legs, grippers, etc.), what are their functions?
5. Discuss the sensors: what type(s), what are they used for?
6. What type of control architecture is used? Why? (you may guess but explain your choice) Remember that the control architecture must fall into one of the 4 discussed architectures.
7. What is the advantage of a robot over a machine (or human) in this application?
8. What additional hardware and/or software is needed, if any, to make the robot (more) effective?
9. Discuss its stability (dynamic vs. static) if applicable.
10. What challenges do the creators face, i.e. what presents the most difficulty to the creator? (e.g. hardware, control, sensing, stability, or something else)
11. Does it have mass-market appeal/potential? Explain.
12. What effect will it have on human employment? Will it take away jobs, make jobs easier to perform, etc.
Please use an online article from a newspaper, magazine, or another website. The article should be dated any time after Jan 2018. Use a written article, not just a video (optional), and include a link to the online article. You are not required to do additional research, though you may if you want. Include links to all sources used.
If any of these questions are not answered/discussed in your article, use your knowledge of robotics to make an educated guess, stating that the answer is your thoughts rather than what is stated in the article. It doesn’t matter if your answer is not correct, as long as you justify it!
Most questions will require 2 – 3 sentences. Please don’t exceed that unless absolutely necessary. Insert the answer below each question. Use complete sentences.
Don’t use any of these robots: Big Dog, any of the DARPA vehicles, or Roomba. Otherwise, you can use almost any other robot.