Boston Dynamics’ latest robot is a mechanical ostrich that loads pallets

The new Handle is no longer humanoid. While it still has wheel-legs with backward-bending knees, it's now more bird-like than human. The two arms have been replaced with a single arm mounted at the top of the bot, making it look like a long neck.

The original Handle's top-heavy design has been changed, and now a lot of the robot's mass lives in a large, wildly swinging rear (butt? tail?) that acts as a counterweight as the robot lifts things and moves around.

On top of the neck-arm are what look like some visual sensors and a grid of vacuum suction cups that allow the robot to pick up boxes weighing up to 33 pounds and arrange them on pallets.

This looks to be a much better design. The low center of gravity counter balance really looks like it works well. This bird will go up to 90MPH!

Robots will be replacing many human workers soon. I am not sure if that is a good thing or bad thing.

Here's a link to the old Handel shown below.

I worked in air cargo for a few years. I actually enjoyed stacking pallets and loading containers. Stacking pallets in such a way that they stayed stable, loading containers so that there was as little wasted space as possible.

Robots would probably be better at both.

I give it twenty years before most jobs as we know it are run by some sort of machine, robot or automation. There will be many jobs involved with the sale, maintenance and programming of them but I don't think that will be enough to fill the void.

originally posted by: Phage
I worked in air cargo for a few years. I actually enjoyed stacking pallets and loading containers. Stacking pallets in such a way that they stayed stable, loading containers so that there was as little wasted space as possible.

Robots would probably be better at both.

That was something you enjoyed and gave you a means to earn money. Taking that away form people is not a good thing, even if a robot can do it better.

originally posted by: conspiracy nut
I give it twenty years before most jobs as we know it are run by some sort of machine, robot or automation. There will be many jobs involved with the sale, maintenance and programming of them but I don't think that will be enough to fill the void.

This could be one reason they are experimenting with a basic free income in some city's.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

I understand the concept. Continuance of reduced efficiency for the sake of maintaining employment. Lots of union rules seem to promote that.

originally posted by: Phage
I worked in air cargo for a few years. I actually enjoyed stacking pallets and loading containers. Stacking pallets in such a way that they stayed stable, loading containers so that there was as little wasted space as possible.

Robots would probably be better at both.

In my early 20's I worked for a logistics company.

I worked my way up to run the operations and missed loading trucks.

I did up to 80,000 pounds a shift and had to think about every placement.

Best shape of my life and I went home satisfied.

This is absurdly inefficient. It would take this thing 20 minutes to unload a pallet, and thats being charitable multiply that by 24 and it would take 8 hours to unload a trailer. that's with perfectly placed boxes not wrapped with plastic or anything, not falling all over the place after transit etc.

A single minimum wage employee could break down a pallet like that, of large uniformly sized boxes in like a minute.

There are probably millions of people who do this routinely every day of the week. Since they cost 22k a year this thing being much slower would have to cost less than that.

I guess it's better at building very tall pallets that cant fit in trucks, doesnt seem very useful.

It also seems dangerous going 90mph like osha's regulations will require everything to stop when anyone's on the warehouse floor

It takes up a ton of space, you couldn't really parallelize any of the work because of that unlike with people.

The robots cant cut open the boxes or fold up the garbage or sweep the floors or do any of the stuff people can do when they're done unloading pallets and trucks. They can only move a box from a to b. Which is a tiny part of warehouse or retail work, and they do it slower than people can who can easily change tasks based on need.

originally posted by: Phage
I worked in air cargo for a few years. I actually enjoyed stacking pallets and loading containers. Stacking pallets in such a way that they stayed stable, loading containers so that there was as little wasted space as possible.

Robots would probably be better at both.

I had a second job once as a material handler at a perfume factory.

Sailed around all night in a big warehouse with an electric pallet jack.

Kept the production lines loaded with components, swapped product components for a new run, stack the finished boxes on a pallet, cling wrap them and line them up to get loaded onto the truck.

I've no idea why considering the work, but it was one of the most rewarding jobs (in terms of job satisfaction) I've ever had.

So I get you on that..

a reply to: Lumenari

We didn't have powered pallet jacks. Between flights we'd use them for "water skiing" with a rope tied to the forklift, around the ramp and warehouse. Amazingly, no broken bones.

I was lead agent on the swing shift. Good times.

originally posted by: conspiracy nut
I give it twenty years before most jobs as we know it are run by some sort of machine, robot or automation. There will be many jobs involved with the sale, maintenance and programming of them but I don't think that will be enough to fill the void.

Most experts (MIT, Yale, Government think tanks) have 70 % of American jobs either automated or in the process of being automated by 2030. Coming sooner than we think.

Listen to Andrew Yang on Joe Rogans podcast...he cites some interesting research and has a solution. Whether it’s the right solution or not remains to be seen. But he’s the only one talking about it at the political level.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

This is going to put a lot of real ostriches out of work!

Bastards!

a reply to: LookingAtMars

It is high on the list of reasons Andrew Yang is pushing for it in his platform.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

Japan has an interesting take on automation. Since they are not having enough babies to sustain their population and work force they are turning more and more to robotics instead of opening the flood gates to immigration. I would postulate that Japan is the place to watch for future trends of employment in everything robotics simply because of people not being available to do manual labor.

Having said all that does not mean I am taking anything away from the accomplishments demonstrated in the Op's videos. I would predict that when 5G is available everywhere will be when the big transformation into automation occurs (if it does not fry us all) !

originally posted by: Assassin82

originally posted by: conspiracy nut
I give it twenty years before most jobs as we know it are run by some sort of machine, robot or automation. There will be many jobs involved with the sale, maintenance and programming of them but I don't think that will be enough to fill the void.

Most experts (MIT, Yale, Government think tanks) have 70 % of American jobs either automated or in the process of being automated by 2030. Coming sooner than we think.

Listen to Andrew Yang on Joe Rogans podcast...he cites some interesting research and has a solution. Whether it’s the right solution or not remains to be seen. But he’s the only one talking about it at the political level.

Thanks for the info, I will try to give it a listen later. Can you share a brief description of his solution?

originally posted by: 727Sky
a reply to: LookingAtMars

Japan has an interesting take on automation. Since they are not having enough babies to sustain their population and work force they are turning more and more to robotics instead of opening the flood gates to immigration. I would postulate that Japan is the place to watch for future trends of employment in everything robotics simply because of people not being available to do manual labor.

Having said all that does not mean I am taking anything away from the accomplishments demonstrated in the Op's videos. I would predict that when 5G is available everywhere will be when the big transformation into automation occurs (if it does not fry us all) !

The internet of things will be things we have not even dreamed of yet, but we are starting to get a glimpse of the possibilities.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

Without a hell of a lot more security than is there now, those things are a catastrophe waiting to happen.

I like my old truck. I don't need the factory to know what it's doing every second.

Also, I can't afford a new one.

a reply to: Phage

It will suck for you driving around in your old truck while some newfangled AI is driving around in a nice 3D printed flying one. The AI are the ones that will get the flying cars, not us

a reply to: Phage

Without a hell of a lot more security than is there now, those things are a catastrophe waiting to happen.

That really set in to me when I read the story our drones were partially compromised. If memory serves me right it was kind of a read only breach.

Which isn't to downplay, that kind of in could be very damaging. I just think of how that level of sophistication and potential for disaster can be susceptible.

a reply to: CriticalStinker

Drones are MilSpec, presumably. Are consumer goods?