Posted on 07/02/2015 9:39:44 AM PDT by grundle
A robot has killed a man at a Volkswagen car factory in Germany.
The 22-year-old worker died from injuries he sustained when he was trapped by a robotic arm and crushed against a metal plate.
The man, who has not been named, was part of a team that was setting up the automated machinery at the factory in Kassel, north of Frankfurt, according to Volkswagen.
The robot in question is a mechanical arm that moves car parts into place, said Heiko Hillwig, a spokesman for the company.
It is part of an automated assembly line that is capable of functioning without a human operator, but it is believed it may have been under human control at the time of the accident.
Mr Hillwig said he could not provide any further details as the case is now under police investigation.
Initial reports suggested human error may have been to blame, rather than a problem with the machine.
But the state prosecutor’s office in Kassel said that had not yet been confirmed.
“We have begun an investigation to find out exactly what happened and to determine whether anybody was at fault,” said Dr Götz Wied, a spokesman.
The contractor is believed to have died from injuries caused when his chest was crushed by the robot arm. He was rushed to hospital but doctors were unable to save him.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
“Initial reports suggested human error may have been to blame, rather than a problem with the machine.”
Yeah, rule #1:
POWER DOWN!
If he said “Hasta la vista, baby.” I’m not sure it was an accident.
Just in time for terminator genesys
Never, Ever turn you back on a Robot.
Prayers to the family.
HAL?
All it wanted was a shot of WD-40.
OMG The Robots are overtaking us. Will they be our overlords?
Let’s remember it was an accident and someone lost their life.
Just saying, because the way things are, I am all too willing myself to jump onto a thread like this and get some humor out of it.
And so it begins ...
Robot uprising is now.
Robots are becoming self-aware, the singularity is near.
Yep, it is sad. Article states the 1st robot caused death (at least in the US) was in 1971 in a Ford plant, so this occurs every so often..............one would think it would be an avoidable hazard though.
The literal words that came out of my mouth when I read the headline.
2) A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law."
But they still went with the sensational headline anyway.
I wonder if they play Rammstein on the factory floor through the PA system, if not, they should....
I, for one, welcome our new mechanical overlords.
And are we sure this wasn’t some sort of a publicity stunt for terminator genesys?
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