AUTOMATONS WITH ALMO HUMAN SENSE DO MECHANICAL TASKS.

Shannon News, 31 May 1929, Page 4

AUTOMATONS WITH ALMO HUMAN SENSE DO MECHANICAL TASKS.

ROBOT PRINCIPLE EXPLAIN E.

We have long wanted robots, i chanicni men, to do our heavy, mo tonous tasks. As children we \v< •.perhaps thrilled,, by ttie story of Fr Bacon's near success in his attempt build mechanical met- to guard t shores of England—an attempt whi failed, according to the story, only cause of the ulier stupidity t\f his s vaut, writos H. H. Sheldon, Profess of Physics, New York, 'University/ Left to watch the would-be 'rot ami to report any signs of activity once, he was not impressed when said, "Tine is," and from its butt ed head, which once served as a ket lie made up a verse, of song which snug to the accompaniment of an .i strumeut with which lid was whili awav the hours:

"Time w;io when liiou a ketlel Wert filled with better matter. But Friar Bacon did thee spoil When he thy sides did.batter Robots Long Used, But if Friar Bacon, with his conc< tiou of roots and herbs and with t help of a good-natured but stupid si vant, did not make a robot, the ne generation will not suffer from' his ft ure. We have long had robots. 0

gieat ;irmy of mean meal devices c s'itutcs their muscles!

in the case of knitting mackin< glass-blowing machines and numcro such devices there seems almost c deuce of brains. One-track brains be sure, but sso highly developed as make no errors' on their particu) jobs.

But all these devices require the j tention of human beings to supplcmc their efforts. Only when wc have i bols who can see, hear, smell, taste a feel, who require no one to throw switch or push even a button to .sta them off on their tasks can we real say we have a robot. .All these thin wc now have to some extent,, althoui not in one single device. A conditij which after all, will seldd be necessary. Notable Development in Eye.

The last few years in scicriti jchicycmcnt have been notable in £ development of the.robot's eye. Tl device, to scientists, is .known as t piioto-clcctric coil. It is a device wb.ie with the proper accessories, chang light into an electric current. Ti: makes it possible to set almost ai machine into operation through l.ig signals. It opens up large fields usefulness. By means of such a devi we may tui;n on our street lights ■ night when* darkness demands it ai turn them off in the morning.

We may control the lighting offices or factories so that tho lam] will be turned on - exactly when the ore needed, according to correct stan aids of illuminations. An airplane a riving at a flying field may turn on tl landing lights by directing a beam < light on a target containing a cell. . danger signal to direct highway traff may be thrown into operation by' tli lights of an approaching car—-a'syste: that would be highly desirable c roads not sufficiently used to warrar the continuous operation of such sif hals.