I. Key Milestones in the Development of Humanoid Robots
(1) 1920s: The earliest humanoid robots appeared. In 1921, the word "robot" was first mentioned in the play "Robota" by Czech writer Karel Čapek. The word "Robota" in the title was used to describe a kind of cyborg assembled from biological parts—a slave serving humans. This word later evolved into "Robot" and became a synonym for artificial human or robot.
(2) 1950s: The rise of human engineering research. With the advancement of industrial technology, people began to study how to design robots to mimic human appearance and movements. Robots during this period were mainly used for simple tasks on industrial production lines.
(3) 1960s: The rise of Japan's robotics industry. Japan became one of the leading countries in the research and development of humanoid robots. During this period, robots that could mimic human walking and lifting objects began to appear.
(4) 1980s: Rapid development of robotics technology. With the advancement of computer technology, the intelligence of robots has been improved. During this period, some robots with artificial intelligence and speech recognition functions emerged.
(5) 2000s: Development of specialized robots. In addition to industrial and scientific research fields, humanoid robots began to be applied in other fields, such as medical care, education and entertainment. These robots are able to interact with humans in more complex ways.
(6) Since the 2010s: Humanoid robots have become a research hotspot. Research on humanoid robots in the fields of scientific research and technology has received widespread attention. Some humanoid robots with highly complex motion control and emotional communication capabilities have begun to emerge. Currently, the development of humanoid robots is continuously advancing. With the continuous progress in fields such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, the intelligence and realism of humanoid robots will continue to improve, bringing more convenience and innovation to human life. In ancient China, there was no concept of robots like those in modern technology.
II. What sensors and algorithms are included in the perception system of a humanoid robot?
Position sensors, such as IMUs (Inertial Measurement Units), are used to measure the robot's motion and attitude information. Joint force control sensors, including one-dimensional pressure sensors and one-dimensional torque sensors, are used to measure the force and torque information of the joints. Tesla places these sensors on each linear and rotary joint to achieve high-precision motion control.
Wrist and ankle sensors: Employing six-dimensional torque sensors, these sensors provide force and torque information from the wrist and ankle. These sensors are crucial for improving the robot's dexterity and stability.
Haptic sensors: Adding haptic sensors to the hand can improve the dexterity of a robot's hand. Tesla uses 10 haptic sensors in its hand, while other manufacturers are exploring vision-based haptic sensor solutions.
In terms of algorithms, such as visual perception algorithms, including binocular 3D environment perception, 3D point cloud registration, pose estimation algorithms, etc., are used to achieve a realistic depiction of the external environment and the reconstruction of digital models.
Data fusion algorithm: fuses data from different sensors to improve the accuracy and robustness of the sensing system.
