Apple has published research showing a prototype tabletop robot with lifelike movements, adding more weight to the idea home robotics is the company’s next major play.
In a post published on the company’s Machine Learning Research blog, Apple revealed a lamp with movements reminiscent of the cute Pixar lamp that prefaces the start of movies like Toy Story.
The design showcased by Apple “explores the interplay between functional and expressive objectives in movement design.”
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The video shows a human summoning the lamp to come closer to focus on a book and to follow said book as it moves around a desk. The human is also shown putting a hand up to stop the lamp moving closer and pointing to direct the light away from the desk.
The human can also use voice commands to “help me read that note in the corner” and the lamp will move across a series of post-its laid out on a desk.
In another scenario, the lamp can be shown nudging a glass of water towards the human, and putting it under a spotlight to remind them to hydrate.
The key are the expressive movements, according to the blog post. For example, the user can ask for the weather report and the lamp will look out of the window – with a human-like but unnecessary gaze – before reading the weather. The lamp also looks sad and hangs its shade when told it cannot come out on an adventure with its human.
“For robots to interact more naturally with humans, robot movement design should likewise integrate expressive qualities—such as intention, attention, and emotions—alongside traditional functional considerations like task fulfilment, spatial constraints, and time efficiency,” Apple writes in the post.
Given Apple is hotly tipped to make a major push into home robotics in the years to come, this is a fascinating look into the company’s thinking.
Screw the robot, I love lamp!
Apple is said to be working on a robot – billed as a large iPad on wheels with a robotic arm and loads of cameras and sensors – that could help users when they’re not at their main screen and need info, or their hands are occupied doing other things. It could also just patrol the home when the occupier is out.
But, you know, can we just have this lamp? It’s cute and awesome and looks genuinely helpful!
