Robot mimics human action and plays rock-paper-scissors

Last Updated on 01 May 2009 Written by InfoWeb

One of the most sophisticated robots created in the UK made its public debut in London with a game of rock-paper-scissors.

Berti is less than two years old but will help scientists develop artificial intelligence outstripping anything previously seen before.
The robot, created by Bristol Robotics Laboratory and Elumotion, a robotics firm based in Bath, is greeting the public at London's Science Museum.

It was created to mimic human gestures as part of a study into how humans react to lifelike robots.

Berti, whose name stands for Bristol Elumotion Robotic Torso 1, has already been programmed to play the game rock-paper-scissors and a sensor glove worn by its competitor means the robot can even tell whether it won or not.
Dr Graham Whiteley, co-director of Elumotion, said research into this kind of technology is invaluable. He said: "We are working towards the design of future humanoid robots that will be intuitive and natural for people to interact with.
"Robots like Berti could be used in the development of prosthetic limbs for people who have been in car accidents or to carry out extremely dangerous jobs such as land mine clearance."
Visitors to the Science Museum will see Berti give a short speech, using a computer generated voice, and make hand gestures before they are asked to rate the "naturalness" of its performance.

Craig Fletcher, also a co-director of Elumotion, said Berti cost around £200,000 in parts and technology to build but the effort in terms of man hours and scientific research was incalculable. He said: "Berti was certainly a challenge to build. To mimic human gestures a robot must be both lightweight and powerful. "It was certainly a challenge for us but the result is a robot which is as sophisticated as anything else out there. "This is the first time we have brought Berti out of the lab so it is great to have it here at the museum and meeting people."

Berti will be at the Science Museum's Antenna Gallery until Thursday. Source:Telegraph.co.uk