In an effort to learn more about manufacturing and robotics, GM has built a humanoid robot with NASA. It will be launched into space later in 2010 to work on the International Space Station and is the first human-like robot destined to be a permanent resident of the ISS. The Robonaut 2, a.k.a. R2 (our initial coverage here) was developed in collaboration by GM and NASA to work alongside humans, whether in space or at GM’s manufacturing facilities (the latter option is much more long-term).
The R2, however, is not the only robot on the ISS. Dextre – the other station robot – was developed by the Canadian Space Agency and is used on the outside of the space station. It is made up of two arms to complete activities usually requiring astronauts to spacewalk. R2 weighs 300 pounds and consists of a head and torso with arms and hands just like those of people. It is planned to launch in September on the STS-133 mission aboard space shuttle Discovery.
In contrast with Dextre, R2 is much more human-like and will be confined to use within the station’s Destiny laboratory. There, R2 will work alongside people, making full use of its human similarities by using the same tools as the astronauts. Future advancements may enable R2 to operate in and move freely around the rest of the space station or even externally in space. Because of the R2′s human resemblance and its ability to use the same tools, the hope is that eventually the robot can be a “stand-in for astronauts during spacewalks or for tasks too difficult or dangerous for humans.” This is a future goal as R2 is not adequately protected for external use at this time.
Since R2 is still a prototype, it will be used within the station in an intermediate environments – functioning in zero-gravity space as well as work alongside humans. It will also provide valuable performance data that will shed some light as to how radiation and electromagnetic interference will affect the robot as well as its work with astronauts. Based on this information, teams on the ground may be able to provide the R2 with hardware and software upgrades capable of making the robot perform new tasks.
Currently, R2 is undergoing intense testing such as vacuum, vibration, and radiation testing – all essential to ensure the robot’s safety during spaceflight. This technology is also beneficial to GM’s manufacturing processes. GM plans to use some of the technology in R2 in “advanced vehicle safety systems as well as manufacturing plant applications.”
Alan Taub, vice president of GM’s global research and development, said that “The extreme levels of testing R2 has undergone as it prepares to venture to the International Space Station are on par with the validation our vehicles and components go through on the path to production. The work done by GM and NASA engineers also will help us validate manufacturing technologies that will improve the health and safety of our GM team members at our manufacturing plants throughout the world.” He continued to say that “partnerships between organizations such as GM and NASA help ensure space exploration, road travel and manufacturing can become even safer in the future.”
GM’s goals with the R2 project are to increase vehicle safety and the manufacturing processes. GM believes it can also inherently change and improve the processes it uses to manufacture cars and trucks based on research partnerships and projects like this. This, perhaps, is the take away point.
NASA to Launch GM Co-Developed Robot to International Space Station
Technology to drive advancements in vehicle and manufacturing safety systems
2010-04-14
WASHINGTON — NASA will launch the first human-like robot to space later this year to become a permanent resident of the International Space Station. Robonaut 2, or R2, was developed jointly by NASA and General Motors under a cooperative agreement to develop a robotic assistant that can work alongside humans, whether they be astronauts in space or workers at GM manufacturing plants on Earth.
The 300-pound R2 consists of a head and a torso with two arms and two hands and will launch on space shuttle Discovery as part of the STS-133 mission planned for September. Once aboard the station, engineers will monitor how the robot operates in weightlessness. R2 joins another station robot, known as Dextre. That robot, built by the Canadian Space Agency, consists of two, long arms to perform tasks that normally require spacewalking astronauts to complete.
While Dextre is located on the station’s exterior, R2 will be confined to operations in the station’s Destiny laboratory. However, future enhancements could allow it to move more freely around the station’s interior, and it could one day be modified to operate outside the complex.
“The use of R2 on the space station is just the beginning of a quickening pace between human and robotic exploration of space,” said John Olson, director of NASA’s Exploration Systems Integration Office. “The partnership of humans and robots will be critical to opening up the solar system and will allow us to go farther and achieve more than we can probably even imagine today.”
The dexterous humanoid robot not only looks like a human, it is designed to work like one. With human-like hands and arms, R2 is able to use the same tools that station crew members use. In the future, the greatest benefit of humanoid robots in space may be as an assistant or stand-in for astronauts during spacewalks or for tasks too difficult or dangerous for humans. For now, R2 is still a prototype and lacks adequate protection needed to exist outside the space station in the extreme temperatures of space.
Testing the robot inside the station will provide an important intermediate environment. R2 will be tested in zero gravity, as well as being subjected to the station’s radiation and electromagnetic interference environments. The interior operations will provide performance data on how a robot may work side-by-side with astronauts. As development activities progress on the ground, station crews may be provided hardware and software to update R2 to allow it to do new tasks.
R2 is undergoing extensive testing in preparation for its flight. Vibration, vacuum and radiation testing along with other procedures being conducted on R2 also benefit the team at GM. The automaker plans to use technologies from R2 in future advanced vehicle safety systems and manufacturing plant applications.
“The extreme levels of testing R2 has undergone as it prepares to venture to the International Space Station are on par with the validation our vehicles and components go through on the path to production,” said Alan Taub, vice president of GM’s global research and development. “The work done by GM and NASA engineers also will help us validate manufacturing technologies that will improve the health and safety of our GM team members at our manufacturing plants throughout the world.”
“Partnerships between organizations such as GM and NASA help ensure space exploration, road travel and manufacturing can become even safer in the future,” Taub said.
GM’s manufacturing engineering team is already working to identify potential applications for R2’s array of vision, motion and sensor technologies that will assist workers in manufacturing operations.
“Our strategy is to develop technologies that can fundamentally change the way we manufacture cars and trucks”, said Kenneth D. Knight, executive director GM Manufacturing Assembly & Automation Center. “This includes a focus on developing ways to further support our operators.”
About General Motors: General Motors, one of the world’s largest automakers, traces its roots back to 1908. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 217,000 people in every major region of the world and does business in some 140 countries. GM and its strategic partners produce cars and trucks in 34 countries, and sell and service these vehicles through the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, FAW, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM’s largest national market is the United States, followed by China, Brazil, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Italy. GM’s OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle safety, security and information services. General Motors acquired operations from General Motors Corporation on July 10, 2009, and references to prior periods in this and other press materials refer to operations of the old General Motors Corporation. More information on the new General Motors can be found at www.gm.com.
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