Posted on 06/14/2021 8:01:26 AM PDT by bgill
Starting Monday, robots are making deliveries along South Congress and downtown under the supervision of the Austin Transportation Department...
Robots will roll through Austin starting Monday making food deliveries in the South Congress area and throughout downtown.
Austin Transportation Department officials say the company behind the robots, Refraction AI, will launch a fleet of 10 robots.
ATD officials add the robots will travel in the bike lane unless there is not one. Then, they will travel on the main road. The robots will be monitored by a person who will travel along with the robot. Officials said it is required by state law to ensure safety.
(Excerpt) Read more at kxan.com ...
Autobrake is much simpler than a fully autonomous driving system. One that’s no worse than a mediocre human *in the real world* is probably about a decade away.
The Tesla tests are interesting but they are in a controlled environment, not a truly realistic simulation.
“If the AI gets confused or has another problem…”
We often shop at Giant, and there is always an easily confused robot wandering around the aisles. I’m not sure what the purpose is… spotting shoplifters? Giving little promotional alerts? Reporting spills or breakage?
It is often saying something but I usually don’t pay attention. One time it was in the dairy section talking about “hazardous conditions” and everyone was totally ignoring it.
I love to torture it by pretending I don’t see it and driving my cart right toward it or on its path. It is programmed to get out of people’s way, but it is so slow moving, it’s actions are always too late.
I stop short of an actual collision of course. When it looks sufficiently confused, and has jerked around stupidly enough for my entertainment, my job is done and I scoot around it.
“I love to torture it ... “
Whatever rocks your boat!
I’d like to see an inflation adjusted version of your chart. But I don’t trust the official inflation numbers at all.
Learn to what?
You know Coding is going to be automated soon.
Move on to a real suggestion.
Like making videos in a milk bath.
Not the stated purpose perhaps.
I bet a nickel that when the monitor learns how to do the job the robot will be retired!!!!!
You just know someone will order a bunch of pizzas from all over Austin to be out in 5 o’clock traffic. Ten little robots and their handlers spaced 30 seconds apart out on MoPac, ten more on I-35, ten more on 71, 45, 183, Capitol of TX Hwy, N. Lamar and Manchaca. The return trips would be just as bothersome to everyone trying to get home and terrifying for the handlers.
What speeds to these things get up to? Even if they have to travel along frontage roads, they’d get some major road rage going.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRJV1SPYpIE
Walmart had a pilot program using robots to check stock, keep inventory current (Walmart has a huge problem with this), verify correct pricing on the shelves and more. They ended the program a couple years ago, but other companies are investigating the technology.
They’re going to be confined to surface streets and only certain smallish areas, so that’s not going to happen at this stage of deployment. IIRC, they’re limited to a brisk walking pace, so maybe 5mph.
Walking pace, huh. Well, Domino’s won’t be using them.
Here in my backwater farm town in the State of Jefferson there’s a nearly continuous stream of robots going to and fro from a local McDonalds.
They tend to use sidewalks, stop at stop lights AND stop signs. Perfectly navigating.
At about 2 mph.
Each time I see them I wonder: Who in the hell is too lazy to go to McDonalds for take out?
That seems like good use of a robot. For all I know the robot in the Giant is actually doing something useful - it doesn’t seem like it, but anything is possible.
As we know from the automated customer service rabbit holes, where you “press 3 for…” - anything other than a human being is a HUGE waste of time.
They make you enter all sorts of account information and then if you are lucky enough to talk to a real person, they always ask for it again.
More often than not, they send you on a wild goose chase and then disconnect you.
Automated assembly lines though are tremendously productive - so robotics has its successes and it’s failures. I suspect any applications that involve constant human interaction will be huge failures for quite some time.
Laundry is a good example. A washing machine is a great robot and has been for many years - but a machine that can decide what needs to be washed and gather it up - that’s still a long way off because it requires human interaction.
You would need to organize your ready-to-be-washed clothing in a very robot friendly way.
One mistake and you might find yourself folded and pressed along with the pants you were wearing.
“Pilot program, required by law.”
Dumbass law to preserve some bureaucracy or revenue stream.
This is proven tech in wide, general use on the west coast.
“At this stage of development, vehicle AI isn’t very good and the chances of it running amok left to its own devices is high.”
It’s general availability and production for vehicles under 5 mph.
It’s everywhere.
But not on the street. They still have major problems to overcome in real world street traffic. Better that they are small and slow and escorted by people at this stage of development than left to drive a Volvo SUV by itself and mow down a bicyclist.
Uh, no. The law was passed due to incidents like this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Elaine_Herzberg
Because THIS is the biggest problem in Austin...holy crap.
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