How Brooklyn Robot Foundry's programs for budding robot designers can inspire kids

"That's exactly what we want them to do. We want them to know they can take things apart and put them back together," Young said. "Maybe it was a car when it went home and then they want to turn it into an airplane."Young said the space widens the definition of a robot, which can be especially appealing to girls. Kids don't have to build a "fighting ninja robot;" They have to define the basic purpose of a robot, but kids are free to design them however they want. They can take the form of a fluffy pink bunny or a zebra with a top hat. Kids with narrow interests can also find peers to relate to, which may difficult for them at school or home.

The result is a friendly, beginner-safe space where children can channel wild imaginations into cute robotic creations. Young said they sometimes have people ask if they run classes for adults they don't. It's easy to see why they ask; there is no real comparable place for adults to turn to learn basic robotics skills. There are makerspaces and college classes, but they can be intimidating and often aimed at those who already have existing knowledge.We humans enjoy not having knives inside of us. Robots don't know this, three laws be damned. Therefore it's important for humans to explain this information to robots using careful training. Thankfully,Cyberdyne shows new industrial cleaning robot at IREX 2013 the good dudes at Cornell are on the case.

Ashutosh Saxena, assistant professor of computer science, and his team have created a system for fixing robotic motions. In their demo they show the robot lifting a knife from a counter and nearly stabbing a guy. The trainer explains that stabbing is not OK and the robot begins to learn through a process of trial and error that, in the end, ensures minimal stabbage. The system uses trajectory mapping the robot decides on three potentially un-stabby motions and the human selects the best one and moves the robot in order to ensure minimal stabbage. From the paper:Then humans can give corrective feedback. As the robot executes its movements, the operator can intervene, manually guiding the arms to fine-tune the trajectory. The robot has what the researchers call a "zero-G" mode, where the robot's arms hold their position against gravity but allow the operator to move them.