Virginia is the first state to pass a law allowing robots to deliver straight to your door

MSN ^ | 3-4-2017 | April Glaser

[brucedickinson]

© Provided by Vox Media, Inc. Idaho and Florida may be next.

Virginia has made robotics history. The commonwealth is the first state to pass legislation allowing delivery robots to operate on sidewalks and crosswalks across the state.

The new law goes into effect on July 1 and was signed into law by the governor last Friday.

The two Virginia lawmakers who sponsored the bill, Ron Villanueva and Bill DeSteph, teamed up with Starship Technologies, an Estonian-based ground delivery robotics company, to draft the legislation.

Robots operating under the new law won’t be able to exceed ten miles per hour or weigh over 50 pounds, but they will be allowed to rove autonomously.

[Morpheus2009]

I was thinking more about the Terminator movies, where the dogs know it is a killer android before humans do.

[GOPJ]

I can see the headlines now, “Robot Mugged”

A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. A robot must obey orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law. Isaac Asimov's "Three Laws of Robotics"

[GOPJ]

Robots will have cameras for eyes and easy communications with their home base.

Some thug wants to take on the robot - in seconds the face-recognition software, fingerprints and DNA sample information will have been sent to police.

And you say there aren't enough police to deal with this type of property damage? Police robots will serve warrants... and if the perp doesn't show up for court a live cop will go out and arrest them.

As far as safeguarding packages - it's easy - build a box into the robot. It doesn't open until the robot says it opens. And yes, in the old days crooks could take a safe to a hideout and leisurely open it up... but the safe wasn't communicating with the bank and the police - which made it a whole lot easier...