[genewitch]

Why does it even need to be that type of robot, a conveyor that has items on it, but its a mesh, a camera looks, and if something can be sorted just use compressed air to move it to a collection area/bin. Put an electromagnet at the start of the conveyor that can move on a gantry to another bin.

Why's everything gotta have arms and graspers it's so inefficient.

Robots aren't climbing trees or chasing food. They don't need tails, either.

[dagw]

Why's everything gotta have arms and graspers it's so inefficient.

We have designed a lot of processes and workplaces around the assumption that the 'machine' working there will be be around 160-190 cm tall, with two arms with graspers on the end and equipped with stereo colour vision cameras. The closer you make your new machine match that spec the less changes you have to make to your current setup. It also makes it easier to partially swap in robots over time, rather than ripping everything out and building something completely new.

Having worked at a company close to this field, the real answer through is that both approaches are being done right now. People building new facilities from scratch are building entirely automated system where the 'robot' is the whole machine. People with existing facilities are more interested in finding ways to add robots to their current workflow with minimal changes.

[genewitch]

I am having a hard time imagining a scenario where you have humans working where you can't replace them with a conveyor system. it doesn't need to be that long, you could have a 5 foot, linear, isolated section (about the sphere of a human range), and use compressed air and optical/laser sensing to pop stuff out of that section into a bin/trailer/whatever.

do you have a picture of a facility where they would have to replace humans with humanoid robots and a conveyor would not work?

[fc417fc802]

> compressed air

I believe a short drop and hydraulically actuated metal plates are the more typical solution. That offers a high level of precision.

[dyauspitr]

It’s this same purpose built argument again. That’s not the point of these. The point is to be able to go and do anything a human can, something the entire world has been built around.