Communications of the ACM
Robots Aren't Done Reshaping Warehouses
Experts say robotics will change how warehouses are operated and designed.
Credit: Whitten Sabbatini/The New York Times
When Digit spends an afternoon unloading boxes from a tractor-trailer in 100-plus-degree heat, co-workers never hear a complaint. Digit, a blue-and-white humanoid robot, was designed to handle the tough, menial and dangerous tasks at warehouses.
The robot's movements, informed by years of studying how birds walk, include a slight sway in its frame when it is at rest, to dispel the discomforting stillness that bothers humans. It also doesn't talk, because voice recognition tech is not advanced enough yet.
"Instead of designing the whole warehouse around the robots, we can now build robots that are able to operate on our terms, in our spaces, in our environments," said Jonathan Hurst, the chief technology officer and a founder of Agility Robotics, the firm behind Digit.
From The New York Times
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