Comment by program_whiz
2 days ago
I think one major draw to human-like for factors is the reuse of existing ecosystems and tools. If you have human-like grasping, you can reuse tools and utensils for human hands, otherwise, you need custom attachments. If you have human-like legs you can navigate stairs, wear pants for customization, and possibly operate a car or bike.
Its a bit like choosing JS / python -- of course performance is inferior to a compiled language with highly tailored code, but they are flexible and have an ecosystem that might do 99% of the lifting for you.
But in isolation, I agree with your idea that specialized robots with form fitted specifically to task will likely outperform a more generalized solution in a specific domain of behavior, the more generalized will likely outperform in flexibility and reusability (e.g. capable of reusing the human ecosystem).
I think it’s less about tools and more about the spaces that humans operate in.
You don’t need a human-like hand to hold a tool made for humans. As an extreme example, you can make a robot operate a power drill with strap to hold it and a servo with a small bit of wood to operate the trigger mechanism.
But for a robot operating in a space made for humans there certainly are some physical requirements which are based on the human form: maximum volume and clearances, stairs, fragile fixtures that can’t be operated with too much force, etc.
Ever walk through some over-crowded antique shop where you need to twist and lean your body to avoid knocking into thing?
> and possibly operate a car or bike.
This is exactly the example I used to show the ridiculousness of humanoid robots. You're not going to have a humanoid form climb into the driver seat of your car and act as your chauffeur. Your car will be the robot.
Just how ridiculous is a humanoid robot chauffeur? Should know how to drive a stick shift? Should it use its superior ability to swivel its head around to check for cars in the blind spot?
Someday business schools will have a chapter in their product management course that covers all the ways people slide ass backwards into thinking a humanoid robot makes sense. Humanoid robots will always be crushed between the rock of low value use cases below their price points the hard place of high value use cases that deserve tailored solutions.
There are a whole lot of tools intended for human use that I would use much more effectively if I could rotate my wrist repeatedly in the same direction.
But that's a superset of human functionality, aka even worse.
Reuse tools to do what? Touch type on a mechanical keyboard?
What makes human hands especially suitable for e.g. assembling a phone or installing a door handle onto a car?
> Touch type on a mechanical keyboard
yes. do you think it's safe to just plug usb into some hole and type? the safest option for a robot is typing with fingers