Transparent surfaces are no longer a hindrance.
The Toyota Research Institute (TRI) has presented a robot that is able to solve everyday tasks. In particular, we are talking about the recognition of transparent and reflective surfaces and interaction with them.
Most robots are programmed so that they react only to nearby objects and cannot distinguish reflections. This is especially noticeable on the example of smart vacuum cleaners with lidars — when they meet a mirror, they try to penetrate “through” it, building a false map of the room.
Toyota researchers claim that they have solved the problem and demonstrated a working prototype of a humanoid robot. It analyzes surfaces along the way and removes interfering objects from the path, even if they are transparent, like a glass. The robot was taught to carefully wipe the tables, interact with various materials and shoot its actions on the camera.
During the development, a new method of perception of three-dimensional geometry was used. For this purpose, the robot was trained with large amounts of synthetic data, so that the machine could take into account unexpected results and find solutions.
As a result, an experimental sample was obtained, which sooner or later may end up in every family, as it happened with cars, the company noted. The researchers will continue working on the robot’s intelligence.
In June, a budget robot dog that can follow the owner and carry products went on sale in China.