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NASA Tests Telepresence Robot

 Space suitSpace suit

When it comes to robots there are two choices, you can either let them do things on their own, or you can control them remotely. If a task requires judgment, and your AI is not quite up to the job then the remote control system known as telepresence is the way to go. It can also be the way to go if you need to do repairs in places that are really inconvenient to get to, like the depths of space.

One team is working on an new telepresence project, but its not the robot who is in space right now, it is the human controller. In a recent test done by the Ames Research Center, a part of NASA, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano controlled a robot on California soil from the heights of the International Space Station. The robot he is controlling is a K-10 rover, which had made appearances in space before.


If things go well with this testing the remote system could allow these bots to explore all kinds of inhospitable situations for us.

Source: Wired

Image: Morgue File