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				Mazes and Squiggles The world’s best robots compete to navigate mazes and chase after tennis balls, to test out the latest artificial intelligence programs.
		Select text to jump ahead in the clip: Robot: I am looking for tennis balls. Alda: WE'RE ON THE TRACK OF ROBOTS WITH A MIND OF THEIR OWN. WHY DID HE STAY IN WITH IT? IN CASE IT GOES WILD. WHAT, WAS IT LIABLE TO ATTACK US? WHAT DO YOU MEAN? Alda: AT THE FIFTH ANNUAL ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE CONVENTION IN PORTLAND, OREGON, ROBOTS ARE COMPETING TO SHOW HOW THEY CAN RECOGNIZE AND MANIPULATE THINGS AND HOW THEY CAN FIND THEIR WAY IN A MAZE OF CORRIDORS AND ROOMS. IT'S A FORUM FOR SOME OF THE WORLD'S TOP ROBOT SCIENTISTS TO SEE WHAT THEY CAN DO. HERE WE ARE AT THE PRELIMINARIES OF THE MAZE CONTEST. ( faint beeping and static ) I have arrived at conference room one. Alda: THINGS ARE ALREADY GETTING TENSE. IT'S DOING BETTER THAN I AM. I FEEL LIKE I'M ABOUT TO PASS OUT. If there is someone here they are probably pacing up and down giving a talk. This room is occupied, excuse me for interrupting your meeting. Alda: IN THE MAZE CONTEST ROBOTS HAVE TO START IN THE DIRECTOR'S OFFICE FIND WHICH ONE OF TWO CONFERENCE ROOMS IS EMPTY SET A MEETING TIME, INVITE TWO PROFESSORS TO IT AND THEN RETURN TO SUMMON THE DIRECTOR EXACTLY ONE MINUTE BEFORE THE MEETING. THE ROBOTS ARE GIVEN THE ROUGH LAYOUT BUT NOT THE EXACT SIZES. THEY'VE GOT TO FIND ROOMS AND DOORWAYS FOR THEMSELVES AND WATCH OUT FOR THE FOYER-- A NOTORIOUS TRAP. IN THE PRELIMINARIES, THE FOYER WAS AMELIA'S DOWNFALL SHE THOUGHT IT WAS A ROOM AND GOT STUCK. THE TEAM WILL WORK ON IT TONIGHT. ONE MORE CHANCE. Alda: MOST ENTRIES ARE SINGLE ROBOTS BUT IN THIS INNOVATIVE APPROACH, TWO SMALL ROBOTS FIND THE ROOMS UNDER THE DIRECTION OF A CENTRAL PLANNING COMPUTER. THEY USE A SYSTEM LIKE THE INTERNET TO TALK TO EACH OTHER-- AT LEAST THAT'S THE THEORY. D. D.A., IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE HE'S GOT THE RIGHT PLAN HERE AT ALL. IT'S JUST MORE THAN TWICE AS HARD TO DO TWO ROBOTS BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO COORDINATE THEM AND COMMUNICATE BETWEEN THEM. BUT IT'S PUSHING US. Alda: NOW THE FINALS. EARLY ON, THE PACE IS SET BY KANSAS STATE. I am inside the room I am now going to search for people in the room. Alda: THROUGHOUT THE CONTEST, THE JUDGES WILL DEMONSTRATE THAT CONFERENCE ROOM ONE IS BUSY. Exiting the room, going through the door. HOW DID HE KNOW THAT THERE WERE PEOPLE IN HERE? THIS IS ONE OF THE TEAMS USING THE CAMERA TO FOLLOW MOTION. IN SUCCESSIVE FRAMES OF THE CAMERA THEY'LL SEE A CHANGE AND DETECT SOMEBODY MOVING IN THE ROOM. Alda: ROWS OF SONAR RANGE FINDERS ARE USED BY ALL THE ROBOTS TO SENSE THEIR SURROUNDINGS. NOT HITTING OBSTACLES IS A CONTEST REQUIREMENT. STOP, STOP. WHAT IF IT HADN'T STOPPED? THAT WAS INTERESTING. HE CAME VERY CLOSE. Alda: KANSAS STATE BREEZES THROUGH THE FOYER, FINDS CONFERENCE ROOM TWO SETS UP THE MEETING TIME AND ALERTS THE PROFESSORS. The meeting will be in conference room two. The meeting will be held two minutes and 31 seconds two minutes, 31 seconds. I am now headed for the director's office. Alda: THE FINAL ARRIVAL IS PERFECTLY TIMED. Excuse me, director, the meeting will be in conference room two. The meeting is in one minute. THEY HAVE THE FASTEST TIME OF ANY ONE ROBOT ENTERED-- NINE MINUTES AND 25 SECONDS-- AND THEY HAVE MAXIMUM POSSIBLE POINTS-- 295 POINTS SO GIVE THEM A LARGE ROUND OF APPLAUSE. Alda: THE ONLY WAY TO BEAT THIS SCORE IS WITH SPEED. THERE'S A 50-POINT BONUS FOR THE FASTEST ROUND. ON YODA, THE CAMERAS ARE NOT WORKING. ( woman's voice ): Conference room one-- ( child's voice ): the next landmark after moving. ( with accent ): Found the landmark. ( Alda giggling ) THIS ROBOT HAS MULTIPLE PERSONALITY DISORDER-- EVERY TIME IT TALKS, IT'S GOT A DIFFERENT VOICE. Is there anybody in the room? Please come and get some M & M's. Alda: TO DETECT MOTION YODA HAS TO ENTICE PEOPLE WITHIN RANGE OF HIS SONAR. Thank you. OH, THANK YOU. ( all laughing ) SO FAR, THIS IS MY PERSONAL FAVORITE. Alda: YODA ALSO MAKES A FLAWLESS ROUND. Director, the meeting starts in one minute. Alda: PERFECT TIMING, TOO BUT YODA TOOK TWICE AS LONG AS KANSAS STATE. S. R.I.'s MULTI-ROBOT STRATEGY HAS THE GREATEST SPEED POTENTIAL SIMPLY BECAUSE TWO TRAVELING ROBOTS CAN GET DONE IN HALF THE TIME. BLUE MOVES OUT TO CHECK CONFERENCE ROOM ONE WHILE RED HEADS IMMEDIATELY TO CONFERENCE ROOM TWO. Alda: HE'S PASSING RIGHT BY THE... OH, NO, HE SAW THE DOORWAY. Alda: S. R.I. IS PREPARED TO TAKE A TEN-POINT PENALTY FOR DEMANDING RED SHORTS ON THE JUDGE. IT'S EASIER FOR THE CAMERA TO DETECT. WAS HE TOLD BEFOREHAND TO FIRST GO TO THE CONFERENCE ROOM AND THEN THE PROFESSOR'S ROOM? HE WAS TOLD TO GO TO THE CONFERENCE ROOM AND CHECK IT AND THEN CHECK BACK AND SEE WHAT TO DO NEXT. Alda: AT THE SAME TIME RED WAS DISCOVERING THAT CONFERENCE ROOM TWO WAS FREE. BOTH ROBOTS NOW TALK TO THE CENTRAL COMPUTER WHICH SETS THE MEETING TIME AND SENDS EACH ROBOT TO A DIFFERENT PROFESSOR'S OFFICE. NOBODY GETS LOST AND THE TOTAL TIME IS LESS THAN HALF OF KANSAS STATE'S. IT'S OVER NOW-- THEY DID IT, HUH? AND THE TIME IS INCREDIBLE. THAT'S AMAZING. Alda: POOR OLD AMELIA IS OFF TO A BAD START. I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED, JUST GO BACK AND RESTART. WHAT HAPPENED THERE? ONE OF THE SOFTWARE PROGRAMS CRASHED-- SOMETHING THAT NEVER HAPPENED TO US BEFORE. IS THAT IT NOW? ARE YOU... WELL, WE'RE GOING TO RESTART. HOW MANY TIMES ARE YOU ALLOWED TO RESTART? I THINK AS MANY TIMES AS YOU WANT BUT YOU GET POINTS DEDUCTED EACH TIME YOU RESTART AND THIS IS A FAIRLY MAJOR HIT. Alda: ONCE RESTARTED, AMELIA IS FINE AT THE FIRST CONFERENCE ROOM AND SHE HEADS ACROSS THE DREADED FOYER. IT LOOKS LIKE THE SAME PROBLEM AS IN THE PRELIMINARIES BUT WITH OVERNIGHT SOFTWARE CHANGES AMELIA CAN NOW RECOVER IF SHE GETS LOST. Alda: AMELIA, COME BACK. AMELIA IS HEADSTRONG HERE. COME BACK, YOU'VE GONE TOO FAR. Alda: SHE GETS OUT OF THE FOYER AND SLOWLY FIGURES OUT WHERE SHE IS. Alda: TURN LEFT. AHHH. THAT PROCESS WAS REALLY FASCINATING. I MEAN, THAT WAS LIKE THINKING PRACTICALLY. Alda: BUT IT'S ALL TOO MUCH FOR AMELIA. SHE CRASHES FOR THE SECOND AND LAST TIME. WITH THEIR TIME BONUS S. R.I.'s MULTIPLE ROBOTS CAME FIRST BUT THAT'S NOT REALLY THE POINT. PUSHING THE STATE OF THE ART IS WHAT COUNTS AND BY THAT MEASURE, EVERYBODY WON. IT'S HARD TO SAY WHERE RESEARCH LIKE THIS WILL LEAD BUT THIS CAN GIVE YOU AN IDEA. MANY MACHINES CAN BE HARD FOR PEOPLE TO HANDLE ESPECIALLY IF YOU'RE NEW AT IT. I'M NOT TRYING TO DO THIS. I SWEAR, I REALLY... I'M NOT TRYING TO CRASH. ( laughing ) ( groans in exasperation ) Alda: NOW LOOK AT THIS-- SAME WHEELCHAIR BUT WITH A ROBOT NAVIGATOR ADDED. IT WON'T LET ME RACE AS FAST AS I WENT BEFORE. Man: RIGHT, WELL, PART OF IT IS THAT THIS IS A CROWDED ENVIRONMENT AND IT... IT REDUCES THE SPEED IN PROPORTION TO HOW CROWDED ITS SURROUNDINGS ARE. Alda: YEAH, I'M DRIVING AS WILDLY AS I DID BEFORE BUT IT'S NOT LETTING ME. Alda: BASED DIRECTLY ON THE SYSTEMS IN THE CONTEST IT'S A FIRST GLIMPSE INTO A WORLD WITH ROBOTS WHERE HUMANS AND SMART MACHINES COOPERATE. FOR THE SECOND CONTEST IT'S ANOTHER DECEPTIVELY SIMPLE TASK-- FIND TEN TENNIS BALLS SPREAD AROUND THE COURT PICK THEM UP, PUT THEM IN THE CORNER. PRECISE BUT SLOW-MOVING MACHINES LIKE THIS WILL HAVE A HARD TIME BECAUSE THERE'S A TEN-MINUTE TIME LIMIT... PLUS A COUPLE OF MOVING SQUIGGLE BALLS FOR AN EXTRA BONUS. ( buzzing ) HAND-EYE COORDINATION IS AN INTELLIGENT THING AND IF YOU CAN GET THE ROBOTS TO DO THAT THEN WE'RE ADVANCING THE STATE OF THE ART. IT COULD PICK UP TRASH ON A CLUTTERED DESK OR MANEUVER AROUND VARIOUS OBJECTS ON YOUR DESK. SO IF YOU SAID, "WHILE YOU'RE AT IT CATCH MY TWO-YEAR-OLD"-- FORGET IT. Alda: SMALL, AGILE ROBOTS ARE THE FAVORITES IN THIS CONTEST. HERE THE WALLEYE TEAM HAS OPTED TO PAINT THE BALLS BLACK SO THEIR BLACK AND WHITE CAMERA CAN SEE THEM. THERE'S A 20-POINT PENALTY, THOUGH. Man: WE HAVE A TENDENCY TO CATCH THE GRIPPER ON THE WALLS. OKAY, THERE IT GOT IT. Alda: IN A COUPLE OF MINUTES, THE FIRST LOAD IS DELIVERED BUT THEN... UH, IT LOOKS LIKE IT JUST WENT DOWN. Alda: YOU JUST KNOW IT'S GOING TO CRASH AT THE WORST POSSIBLE MINUTE. RESTART AND THEN TRY AGAIN. ALL RIGHT, WE'RE READY TO START UP AGAIN. Alda: RIGHT OFF THE BAT THE WALLEYE TRAPS AND CAPTURES A MOVING SQUIGGLE BALL WORTH 50 POINTS... THEN ANOTHER CRASH. THIS NEVER HAPPENED IN PRACTICE SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON HERE. Alda: AT THE SECOND RESTART, THE TEAM LEAVES THE BALLS IN THE GRIPPERS BUT AFTER RESTARTING THE ROBOT THINKS IT HAS TO START LOOKING AGAIN. IT'S NOT SMART ENOUGH TO KNOW IT'S ALREADY LOADED UP. ( laughing ) THIS MACHINE IS A GLUTTON. Alda: AS IT GRABS ITS SIXTH BALL, IT FINALLY REACHES OVERLOAD AND STOPS FOR GOOD. THIS ROBOT IS BASED ON A POWERFUL CARRYING PLATFORM USED IN HOSPITALS. I am looking for tennis balls. Alda: IT EFFICIENTLY GATHERS TENNIS BALLS BUT IT'S TOO SLOW TO GET SQUIGGLE BALLS. IN A PIECE OF LUCK, IT RUNS INTO ONE BY ACCIDENT. THEN, AGAINST ALL ODDS THE SECOND SQUIGGLE BALL RUNS INTO THE COLLECTOR AS WELL. THAT'S THE SECOND ONE THAT JUST CRAWLED IN. ACCIDENT OR NOT, IT'S WORTH POINTS. Man: THEIR GATE IS SUCH THAT IT WON'T GET OUT. NEXT UP, A ROBOT USING A POWERFUL COMBINATION OF A SYSTEMATIC SEARCH PATTERN WITH A TV CAMERA BALL SPOTTER. AMAZINGLY, FIRST OFF THERE'S ANOTHER LUCKY SQUIGGLE ENCOUNTER. AND THEN YET ANOTHER. IT'S ANNOYING FOR THE TEAM, BECAUSE THEIR EFFICIENT MACHINE CAN TRACK AND CATCH SQUIGGLE BALLS ON ITS OWN. AND IT HAS A SPECIAL STRATEGY FOR THOSE HARD-TO-GET BALLS PLACED ALONG THE EDGE BY THE JUDGES. Man: THE STRATEGY NOW IS TO UNLOAD AND IT'S GOING TO DO THIS PERIODICALLY. Alda: IT'S AN ALMOST PERFECT SCORE. Alda: SO NOW IT'S GOING TO TRY TO FIND ANY MORE WITH THE SAME PATTERN? YEAH, BECAUSE THE TENNIS GAME COULD GO ON AND THERE COULD BE NEW BALLS. Alda: YOU MEAN YOU PICTURE SOMEBODY PLAYING TENNIS IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS WITH THIS THING ROAMING AROUND UNDER YOUR FEET? Alda: THEY SAVED THE BEST FOR LAST. Alda: ALL RIGHT, THERE IT GOES! Alda: AT LEAST THE MOST ENTERTAINING. Man: SO THE ROBOT, IN FACT, WITH ITS CAMERA CAN SEE ABOUT HALFWAY THROUGH THE RINK. Alda: THIS LITTLE GUY REALLY SEEMS ALIVE. HELPED BY A SUPER-FAST COLOR VISION SYSTEM CHASING DOWN A SQUIGGLE BALL IT'S LIKE A CAT CHASING A MOUSE. ( crowd laughing ) ( cheering ) WHAT SEEMS LIKE A VICTORY DANCE IS ACTUALLY A QUICK SEARCH FOR THE DUMPING CORNER, NOW TOO FAR FOR THE ROBOT TO SEE. SO IT DECIDES TO FOLLOW THE WALL ALL THE WAY AROUND. Man: IT SPUN AROUND A BIT. IT WAS TRYING TO SEE THE GATE. Alda: AFTER DELIVERING THE FIRST SQUIGGLE BALL IT QUICKLY SPOTS ANOTHER. IT'S SINGLE-MINDED IGNORING A LOW-VALUE TENNIS BALL FOR THE BIGGER PRIZE. THAT'S SENSATIONAL! Alda: THE ROBOT MAKES QUICK WORK OF NINE OF THE TEN TENNIS BALLS ON THE COURT. Man: AND THOSE WILL ACTUALLY CATCH ON THE BAR. Alda: THEN IT'S FACED WITH A SERIOUS PROBLEM. THERE'S JUST ONE BALL LEFT BUT IT'S IN THE DEAD CENTER OF THE COURT JUST OUT OF RANGE OF THE ROBOT'S CAMERA-- A CAMERA THAT THE TEAM HAD TO ANGLE DOWNWARD TO AVOID THE GLARE OF THE CONVENTION HALL'S LIGHTS. ( crown groans ) Alda: OH, NO, IT'S GOING TO MISS IT NOW. Man: THE BALL IS EXACTLY WHERE IT HAS TO BE SO IT CAN'T BE SEEN BY THAT FIELD OF VIEW FROM AROUND THE WALLS. IT JUST HAPPENS TO BE JUST EXACTLY THE RIGHT COMBINATION OF CIRCUMSTANCES TO BEAT THIS MACHINE. Alda: UNTIL, THAT IS, THE ROBOT TURNS IN A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT PLACE. OH, OH, OH, OH! ( wild applause ) Alda: IT WAS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, OR A. I. AS THE SCIENTISTS SAY BUT IT SURE SEEMED ALIVE. OH, THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT THESE ROBOTS. IT'S TRUE, YOU KNOW, WHEN THAT MACHINE CAUGHT THAT TENNIS BALL AT THE LAST SECOND WHEN I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS GOING TO GET IT AND IT DID IT, IT WAS LIKE ROCKY. I WAS CHEERING FOR IT. AND THE COMBINATION OF A. I. AND A MACHINE THAT ALMOST SEEMED TO HAVE A HUMAN WILL WAS EXCITING AND THAT ALONE CAN MAKE PEOPLE, I THINK WANT TO DO MORE IN BOTH THESE FIELDS. Alda: ROBOTICS AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ARE THE TWO FRONTIERS OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AND IT'S GOT TO BE THE ROBOT PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE MOST FUN. ( applause and laughter ) HELLO, CYBOT. Would you like a drink? YES, PLEASE. ( laughs ) SO, UH, YOU HERE FOR THE WHOLE CONVENTION? Alda: I GUESS THIS HAS TO BE ONE OF THE STRANGEST THINGS I'VE EVER TAKEN A RIDE IN. NOBODY SEEMS TO BE IN CHARGE.

				Look No Hands! Computer engineers are developing autonomous cars that can follow the highway and avoid obstacles without human intervention.
		Select text to jump ahead in the clip: IS THIS DRIVING ITSELF NOW? IT'S DRIVING ITSELF NOW. YOU CAN SEE THE STEERING WHEEL TURNING. HOW DOES IT KNOW WHERE TO GO? I DESIGNATED THE GOAL POINT ABOUT 100 METERS AWAY. Alda: THE GOAL POINT THAT MARTIAL HAS CHOSEN CANNOT BE REACHED DIRECTLY, THERE ARE OBSTACLES IN THE WAY. USING PICTURES FROM A SET OF TV CAMERAS THE ONBOARD SYSTEM GENERATES HEIGHT AND POSITION INFORMATION FOR THE TERRAIN AHEAD DECIDES WHICH FEATURES ARE TOO BIG TO BE IGNORED AND THEN PLOTS A COURSE AROUND THEM. THIS IS ONE OF A LONG SERIES OF EXPERIMENTS TO DEVELOP AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES-- VEHICLES THAT CAN GET AROUND ON THEIR OWN. THE WORK HAS BEEN CONTINUING FOR MORE THAN A DECADE AT CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY IN PITTSBURGH DIRECTED BY CHUCK THORPE. HOW DID EVERYTHING CHANGE WHEN YOU WENT TO THIS NEXT MODEL? WHEN WE WERE WORKING ON THIS ONE WE WERE THINKING A LOT ABOUT DRIVING IN HAZARDOUS ENVIRONMENTS AND OUR PICTURE OF HAZARDOUS ENVIRONMENTS WAS REALLY MILITARY ENVIRONMENTS. BUT WE STARTED TO REALIZE THAT THE HIGHWAYS ARE PRETTY HAZARDOUS ENVIRONMENTS, TOO. WE STILL KILL 40,000 PEOPLE PER YEAR IN THE U. S. ON THE HIGHWAYS. Alda: THIS IS THEIR FIFTH GENERATION OF AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES. IT USES A SIMPLE PERSONAL COMPUTER HOOKED INTO A RADAR RANGE FINDER FOR DETECTING OBSTACLES AND A SINGLE MINIATURE TV CAMERA. DEAN POMERLEAU, WHO WROTE MOST OF THE SOFTWARE THAT TIES IT ALL TOGETHER, TOOK ME OUT FOR A SPIN. WHAT'S THIS BIG BLUE SQUARE HERE? THAT'S ACTUALLY A REPRESENTATION OF THE BACK OF THE VEHICLE. YOU CAN SEE THE VEHICLE AND THE TWO TIRES BELOW IT-- LITTLE GRAY SQUARES-- AND THEN BELOW THAT, THE TWO YELLOW MARKINGS THAT ARE DANCING BACK AND FORTH. THOSE REPRESENT WHERE IT BELIEVES THE EDGES OF THE LANE TO BE. BECAUSE WE'RE IN A PARKING LOT RIGHT NOW YOU DON'T ACTUALLY... IT'S NOT FINDING ANY ROAD SO THOSE ARE SORT OF DANCING AROUND AS IT'S HUNTING FOR THE ROAD AHEAD. NOW, HOW ABOUT THIS RED... TRAPEZOID? YEAH, TRAPEZOID, YES. I KNEW THERE WAS A WORD FOR IT. THAT'S THE PORTION OF THE SCENE AHEAD THAT THE SYSTEM IS ACTUALLY PROCESSING SO IT ISN'T PROCESSING THE WHOLE IMAGE. Alda: FOR COMPUTER VISION SYSTEMS, THE REAL WORLD IS A MESS. IT'S CLUTTERED AND COMPLICATED SO THIS SYSTEM TRIES TO MAKE IT SIMPLER. IT TAKES JUST THE CENTRAL PART OF THE PICTURE SHOWING THE ROAD AND LOOKS FOR SOME KIND OF STRUCTURE. RIGHT NOW IT'S FINDING THIS SERIES OF INTERSECTIONS JUST AS CONFUSING AS THE PARKING LOT BUT THEN IT SETTLES DOWN. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE IN A FAIRLY WELL- STRUCTURED SETTING. THERE ARE LANE BOUNDARIES ON THE SIDE AND A DASH MARKING DOWN THE MIDDLE SO THE SYSTEM IS QUITE CONFIDENT AND AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE DISPLAY HAS LOCKED ON QUITE WELL TO THE LANE CENTER AND TWO LANE BOUNDARIES. SO YOU WOULD FEEL CONFIDENT HERE LETTING THE CAR GO BY ITSELF? FOR THAT STRETCH, YES BUT HERE WE COME UP TO AN INTERSECTION. THERE'S A STOP LIGHT. IN FACT, THIS STOP LIGHT APPEARS NOT TO BE WORKING. THAT GUY GIVING ME HAND SIGNALS THAT IT'S SAFE TO GO THROUGH THE INTERSECTION IS FAR BEYOND THE KINDS OF STUFF THAT ANY MACHINE VISION SYSTEM IS CAPABLE OF NOW. Alda: EVEN SO, THE SYSTEM IS NOT ENTIRELY DUMB. THE MOST INTERESTING THING ABOUT THE SYSTEM IS IT, IN FACT, IS NOT EXPLICITLY TRACKING THOSE LANE MARKINGS. THERE ISN'T A HAND-PROGRAMMED LANE MARKER DETECTOR IN HERE. THE SYSTEM BASICALLY ADAPTS TO UTILIZE WHATEVER FEATURES ARE VISIBLE ON THE ROAD AHEAD. WHAT OTHER FEATURES WOULD IT TRACK? THINGS LIKE WHAT WE SEE HERE-- LIKE THE CRACKS IN THE ROAD WHERE THEY'VE BEEN FILLED THE DARK DISCOLORATIONS EVEN THE SLIGHT DISCOLORATION DOWN THE LANE CENTER. Alda: THE SYSTEM WORKS BEST IN THE SIMPLER SETTING OF THE HIGHWAY. THAT'S WHERE I'M GOING TO TRY IT OUT IN WHAT THEY CALL "WARNING MODE. " THIS IS PROBABLY THE WAY SMART CARS LIKE THIS WILL FIRST COME INTO WIDESPREAD USE. Alda: NOW, I'M GOING TO DELIBERATELY DRIFT HERE. I'M GOING TO DRIFT THAT WAY. SEE WHAT HAPPENS. ( alarm beeps ) RIGHT AS YOUR TIRE CROSSED THE LANE BOUNDARY IT BASICALLY GAVE YOU THE AUDIBLE WARNING THAT THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG HERE. YOU WANT TO STEER BACK TOWARDS THE LANE CENTER. ALL RIGHT, HERE I GO AGAIN. DRIFTING. ( alarm beeps ) THE GOAL OF THIS INITIALLY IS TO BASICALLY DEPLOY IT ON TRUCKS. THEY'RE WHERE A LARGE PROBLEM IS WITH DROWSY DRIVERS IN PARTICULAR. WE'RE GETTING DOWN TO ONE LANE AND THERE'S NO STRIPE ON THE LEFT SO IT MUST JUST BE READING THE OIL SPOTS IN THE CENTER. AND THERE IS A SLIGHT SEAM A CRACK IN THE ROAD THE SYSTEM IS ALSO SEEING. SO IT WILL ADAPT WHAT FEATURES IT UTILIZES TO THE CIRCUMSTANCES. Alda: NOW WE'RE GOING TO GO TO FULL, AUTONOMOUS STEERING. BETTER TO HAVE DEAN IN THE HOT SEAT. NERVOUS? A LITTLE BIT, YES. SO WHAT I'M GOING TO DO NOW IS CHANGE THE MODE NOW INTO THE MODE WHERE WE CAN AUTOMATICALLY DRIVE THE VEHICLE. RIGHT, HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU DONE THIS? HUNDREDS. 100 TIMES? OH, MINIMUM. Alda: WE REJOIN THE HIGH-SPEED TRAFFIC ON THE HIGHWAY. SO WE CAN SEE THE SYSTEM HAS LOCKED ONTO THE ROAD AHEAD. YEAH? AND SO I WILL NOW HIT THE RED BUTTON AND NOW IT'S STEERING ON ITS OWN. HOW FAST ARE WE GOING? 55, 57 MILES PER HOUR. WELL, THIS IS NOT NEARLY AS FRIGHTENING AS I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE. I'LL TELL YOU WHAT'S MORE AMAZING IS THAT WE'VE BEEN CHATTING AND I'VE COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN THAT YOU HAVE YOUR HANDS OFF THE WHEEL. THERE, IT'S GOING AROUND A CURVE NOW. IT'S GREAT TO SEE THAT WHEEL ACTUALLY TAKE THE CURVE. Alda: IT'S STILL UP TO THE DRIVER TO APPLY THE BRAKES BUT THE SYSTEM WILL BE ABLE TO HANDLE THAT, TOO. OKAY, THIS CAR JUST PULLED INTO OUR LANE. DID WE RESPOND TO THAT? THE RADAR HAS LOCATED IT. YOU CAN SEE THE WHITE LINE WITH THE PINK DOT RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF IT? THAT'S INDICATING IT'S TRACKING IT AND IT KNOWS IT'S IN OUR LANE. Alda: AT THE SAME TIME, THE SYSTEM EXCLUDES THE OVERTAKING CAR FROM THE RED TRAPEZOID SO THE VIEW OF THE LANE AHEAD IS NOT DISRUPTED. TEN YEARS AGO, OUR CAMERAS RECORDED SOME OF CHUCK THORPE'S EARLY EXPERIMENTS. THE FIRST NAVLAB, AS THEY CALLED IT DETECTED OBSTACLES WITH A LASER SCANNER. IT WORKED AS WELL AS THE RADAR ON THE LATEST VERSION BUT IT WAS SLOW-- LIKE EVERYTHING ON NAVLAB 1. JUST LIKE TODAY'S SYSTEM, IT COMBINED OBSTACLE DETECTION WITH PROCESSED TV CAMERA PICTURES. BUT ITS COMPUTERS TOOK TEN SECONDS TO PROCESS EACH NEW FRAME OF PICTURE SO IT FOUND THE ROAD AND STAYED ON IT BUT AT LESS THAN WALKING PACE. TODAY, THE SPEED LIMIT'S NO LONGER IN THE COMPUTERS-- IT'S IN THE LAW. THERE'S NOT MUCH DOUBT THAT WE'LL BE RIDING IN ROBOTIC CARS BEFORE LONG BUT IS THAT REALLY SUCH A STRANGE IDEA? HOW MUCH ARE WE CONTROLLED BY COMPUTERS THAT WE JUST ACCEPT WITHOUT GIVING IT TOO MUCH THOUGHT? THE INTERESTING THING IS THAT PROBABLY 15, EVEN TEN YEARS AGO THE VIEW OF ROBOTICS WAS YOU'D HAVE A HUMAN-APPEARING SERVANT IN YOUR HOUSE FOR EXAMPLE, THAT WOULD CLEAN YOUR DISHES MAKE YOUR BED IN THE MORNING. WHAT'S REALLY HAPPENED IN ROBOTICS IS THE TECHNOLOGY HAS BECOME EMBEDDED AND REALLY INVISIBLE SO THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS. YOUR MICROWAVE OVEN HAS A PRETTY SOPHISTICATED COMPUTER IN IT. SO ROBOTICS IS ACTUALLY BECOMING LESS AND LESS VISIBLE BUT MORE AND MORE PREVALENT THROUGH SOCIETY AND THAT'S WHAT WE SEE FOR THIS TECHNOLOGY. THIS CAMERA JUST A FEW YEARS AGO WAS A CAMERA ABOUT THIS BIG AND NEEDED A BIG PLATFORM TO SIT ON. BUT IT'S SHRINKING DOWN AND EVENTUALLY WE HOPE TO PUT EVERYTHING IN A BOX SMALLER THAN THAT AND JUST STICK IT ON THE BACK OF THE REARVIEW MIRROR AND THE PERSON WON'T EVEN REALIZE IT'S THERE UNTIL THEY BEGIN TO DRIFT OFF THE ROAD AND IT WARNS THEM AND HOPEFULLY SAVES THEIR LIFE. Alda: IT'S ALMOST 20 YEARS SINCE THE IMPERIAL WALKERS FIRST LUMBERED INTO ACTION IN THE MOVIE THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK.

				Toddler's First Steps In teaching a robotic pair of legs to walk, engineers gain new respect for the skills of human toddlers.
		Select text to jump ahead in the clip: AND IF THEY LOOK A BIT TENTATIVE, IT'S NOT SURPRISING. EVEN MOVIE MAGIC CAN'T DISGUISE HOW HARD IT IS TO MAKE A ROBOT WALK. LOOKING REMARKABLY LIKE A MODEL IMPERIAL WALKER THIS MACHINE WAS ACTUALLY BUILT OVER 30 YEARS AGO BY AN ENGINEER NAMED RALPH MOSHER. WITHOUT BENEFIT OF COMPUTERS MOSHER'S WALKER TRANSLATED HIS HAND AND FOOT MOTIONS INTO FOOTSTEPS POWERED BY HYDRAULIC MOTORS. MOSHER'S MACHINE WAS EVENTUALLY ABANDONED AS IMPRACTICAL. BUT AS WELL AS INSPIRING THE IMPERIAL WALKER IT ALSO INSPIRED THIS CREATION-- A SIX-LEGGED ROBOT BUILT IN THE MID-1980s AT OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY. 16 ONBOARD COMPUTERS MADE SURE ITS CENTER OF GRAVITY WAS KEPT SAFELY OVER ITS LEGS. TODAY, THIS FOUR-TON MONSTER IS ALSO IN MOTH BALLS. NEEDING ALWAYS TO BE IN BALANCE MADE IT SIMPLY TOO SLOW AND CUMBERSOME. BUT ALSO IN THE MID-1980s AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT TYPE OF WALKING MACHINE WAS BEING PIONEERED AT CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY. IN THESE MACHINES BALANCING WAS AN ACTIVE RATHER THAN PASSIVE PROCESS. Man: THESE MACHINES BALANCE THE SAME AS ME BALANCING THIS BROOM ON MY FINGER. IF I KEEP MY FINGER UNDER THE BODY, IT'LL STAY STATIONARY. IF I MOVE MY FINGER AY, IT'LL TIP TOWARDS ME. AND IF I MOVE MY FINGER TOWARDS ME, THE BROOM WILL TIP AWAY. IF I WANT TO MAKE IT FALL TOWARDS ME I CAN PUT MY FINGER AWAY. Alda: MARC RAIBERT'S HOPPER HAD TO KEEP MOVING TO KEEP BALANCED. BUT IT COULD PERFORM SOME SPECTACULAR TRICKS. NOW, HIS TWO-LEGGED HOPPER CAN BOUNCE ALONG WITHOUT A BOOM TO STEADY IT AND ITS GYMNASTIC SKILLS ARE EVEN MORE IMPRESSIVE. UNLIKE PEOPLE, ON THE OTHER HAND THIS BIPED CAN'T SIMPLY STAND STILL AND IT NEEDS A LOT OF COMPUTING POWER TO CONSTANTLY FIGURE OUT WHAT IT NEEDS TO DO TO STAY ON ITS FEET. THIS LITTLE ROBOT BEING BUILT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE IS AN ATTEMPT TO MUCH MORE CLOSELY MIMIC THE WAY HUMANS WALK. ITS CREATOR, TOM MILLER HAS NOT ONLY MODELED ITS LEGS AND FEET ON OUR OWN BUT ALSO THE WAY IT ACQUIRES ITS SKILLS. Miller: OUR APPROACH IS TO TRY AND LEARN FROM PAST EXPERIENCES AND JUST REMEMBER WHAT YOU'VE DONE IN THE PAST AND HOW THAT WORKED AND THEN TO TRY AND MAKE CONTROLLED DECISIONS FOR FUTURE ACTIONS. Alda: IN OTHER WORDS, HIS ROBOT LEARNS. AND THE FIRST THING IT LEARNS EVERY TIME IT HAS TO STAND ON ITS OWN TWO FEET IS HOW NOT TO TOPPLE OVER. EASING ITS TOP-HEAVY BODY INTO A CROUCH, THE ROBOT-- NICKNAMED TODDLER-- NOT ONLY STANDS ALONE BUT CAN EVEN COPE WITH SOME GENTLE NUDGING. TODDLER'S BRAIN IS KEPT SAFELY ON A NEARBY DESK WHILE ITS KNOWLEDGE ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING COMES FROM FORCE SENSORS IN ITS FEET AS WELL AS BALANCE AND MOVEMENT SENSORS IN ITS TORSO. THE BODY OF THE BIPED HAS ACCELEROMETERS ON THE FRONT AND SIDE OF THE ROBOT, AND GYROSCOPES WHICH MEASURE THE ROTATION OF THE BODY OF THE ROBOT AND THAT ESSENTIALLY GIVES IT A SENSE OF WHAT ITS ORIENTATION IS RELATIVE TO THE WORLD. Alda: EACH TIME IT'S SWITCHED ON TODDLER HAS TO START FROM SCRATCH. Miller: IT'S EXPERIMENTING WITH HOW FAR TO LEAN RIGHT BEFORE IT LIFTS ITS LEFT LEG, AND YOU SEE THE KNEE FLEXES. IT'S TRYING TO LIFT THE LEFT AND IF IT DOESN'T GET OFF THE GROUND IT GETS STABLE AGAIN AND THEN LEANS A LITTLE FARTHER. THAT TIME WHEN IT FINALLY GOT OFF YOU SEE IT LEANED TOO FAR. Alda: MILLER HOVERS PROTECTIVELY AS HIS ROBOT EXPERIMENTS FIRST WITH SWINGING FROM SIDE TO SIDE WHILE STANDING IN PLACE. WITH EVERY SWAY, IT'S LEARNING WHAT WORKS AND WHAT DOESN'T. THEN CAUTIOUSLY, IT TAKES ITS FIRST TINY STEPS. Miller: IT HAS VERY SIMPLE INTUITIONS ABOUT HOW TO WALK. IT KNOWS TO MOVE SIDE TO SIDE AND WHEN IT LEANS TO ONE SIDE IT SHOULD TRY AND PICK UP THE OPPOSITE FOOT. AND THEN WITH THE LEARNING, IT'S TRYING TO... THAT'S THE TROUBLE-- I KIND OF HAVE TO LOOK AT THE ROBOT WHEN IT'S LEARNING. THIS PROCESS IS SOMEWHAT LIKE A TODDLER LEARNING TO WALK. JUST LIKE A TODDLER, IT NEEDS AN ADULT STANDING HERE TO CATCH IT WHEN IT MAKES MISTAKES. LET'S TRY TWO-CENTIMETER STEPS. Alda: TOM MILLER'S BASIC INTEREST IS IN MAKING MACHINES THAT CAN LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE AND A ROBOT THAT CAN WALK ON ITS OWN TWO FEET IS A PERFECT CHALLENGE FOR MACHINE LEARNING. Miller: WE PROGRAMMED IN PROCEDURES BY WHICH IT CAN EVALUATE ITS STABILITY BASED ON ITS SENSORS AND SO AS IT DOES THESE MOTIONS, IT EVALUATES HOW STABLE IT IS AND THEN MAKES MODIFICATIONS TO ITS PRIMITIVE ACTIONS AND OF THOSE MODIFICATIONS IMPROVES THE STABILITY WHEN IT TRIES THEM, THEN REMEMBERS THAT AND TRIES IT AGAIN AND EACH TIME IT TRIES TO JUST CONTINUALLY IMPROVE ON ITS SENSE OF STABILITY. Alda: LIKE ALL TODDLERS THIS ONE STILL HAS A LOT OF LEARNING TO DO BEFORE IT CAN MAKE ITS OWN WAY IN THE WORLD. AS FOR WHAT A WALKING ROBOT MIGHT BE USEFUL FOR? WELL, WHAT DID SOMEONE ONCE SAY-- "WHAT USE IS A BABY?

				Almost Human Rodney Brooks is beginning to build the first robot with human-like senses, allowing it to learn about the world for itself, like a human baby.
		Select text to jump ahead in the clip: " IT, WAKE UP. VERY GOOD, HELLO, GOOD MORNING! Alda: MEET "IT"-- A ROBOT THAT MAKES HUMAN-LOOKING FACES. I'M SORRY, WOULD YOU JUST SAY THAT AGAIN? Alda: "IT" IS THE CREATION OF RODNEY BROOKS A WORLD-FAMOUS ROBOT BUILDER AND A PROFESSOR AT THE MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY. "IT" MIGHT GET A LITTLE UPSET AND THERE'S A DETECTOR AT THE FRONT HERE, SO... Alda: GET TOO CLOSE TO ONE OF "IT'S" INFRARED DETECTORS AND YOU TRIGGER AN ANNOYED-LOOKING RESPONSE. ( laughing ) IT OPENS ITS MOUTH IN UTTER SURPRISE. YEAH, AND IT RAISED ITS EYEBROWS. IT SORT OF GOT THIS... UH, REACTION OF "WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE? GET AWAY FROM ME. " Alda: THANKS TO MICROPHONES IN THE HEAD AND MOTION DETECTORS IN THE EYE, "IT" SEEMS TO FOLLOW THE BACK AND FORTH OF YOUR CONVERSATION AND "IT" SMILES WHENEVER THERE'S A LOT OF ACTIVITY GOING ON. "IT" TRIES TO APPEAR TO BE A HUMAN SO THAT WE CAN INTERACT WITH IT IN A WAY THAT'S LIKE A HUMAN AND IT'S MEANT TO BE A ROBOT THAT YOU MIGHT INTERACT WITH IN AN ENTERTAINMENT SORT OF THING AT AN AMUSEMENT PARK OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. Alda: OF COURSE, "IT" IS FAR FROM HUMAN BUT IT DOES EXHIBIT A CERTAIN LIFE-LIKE BEHAVIOR THANKS TO A PROGRAMMING TECHNIQUE ROD INVENTED. INSTEAD OF GIVING HIS ROBOTS COMPLEX INSTRUCTIONS HE USES LAYERS OF SIMPLE, FAST PROGRAMS WHICH ALL RUN AT THE SAME TIME AND WORK LIKE REFLEXES. IN ROD'S FAMOUS INSECT ROBOTS, EACH LEG INDEPENDENTLY SENSES AND LIFTS OVER OBSTACLES SO THESE ROBOTS MOVE QUICKLY WITHOUT DOING A LOT OF THINKING. ROD USED THIS SAME IDEA IN DEVELOPING SMALL, AUTONOMOUS ROVERS FOR NASA TO SEND TO MARS AND NOW HE'S ATTEMPTING TO BUILD THE MOST AMBITIOUS ROBOT EVER-- A HUMANOID CALLED "COG. " THE GOAL IS FOR COG TO ONE DAY HAVE THE DEXTERITY, INTELLIGENCE AND UNDERSTANDING OF A REAL HUMAN BEING. WHEN I FIRST MET COG TWO YEARS AGO MUCH OF IT WAS STILL IN PIECES ON THE LABORATORY BENCH WAITING TO BE ASSEMBLED. COG IS SUPPOSED TO LEARN ABOUT THE WORLD THE WAY A CHILD DOES. EARLY IN LIFE, CHILDREN DON'T KNOW MUCH OF ANYTHING NOT EVEN HOW TO COORDINATE THEIR OWN LIMBS YET OUT OF THE DESIRE TO EXPLORE AND EXPERIENCE THE WORLD COMES KNOWLEDGE. Woman: DO YOU WANT IT? BY BEING A HUMAN SHAPE AND HAVING THE SAME ARRANGEMENT OF EYES, ETC. IT WILL ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO INTERACT WITH IT AS THOUGH IT WAS A HUMAN AND IT WILL HAVE THE SAME SORTS OF EXPERIENCES THAT A HUMAN HAS WHEN A HUMAN DEVELOPS IN A HUMAN SOCIETY WITH OTHER HUMANS INTERACTING WITH IT. Alda: IT'S GOT TWO PARTS TO EACH EYE-- WHAT'S THAT? THAT'S MUCH LIKE HUMANS HAVE A WIDE-ANGLE VIEW OF THE WORLD AND A VERY FOVEAL VIEW AND IF WE COME OVER HERE AND LOOK AT THE MONITORS AND MAYBE LYNN, IF YOU STAY... Alda: THE FOVEA IS THE HIGH-RESOLUTION CENTRAL PART OF OUR EYES. IN COG'S MONITOR BANK I COULD SEE BOTH THE CLOSE-UP FOVEAL VIEW AND A WIDE-ANGLE ONE CORRESPONDING TO THE TWO CAMERAS IN EACH EYE. COG NEEDS BOTH VIEWS TO FOLLOW WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE WORLD. JUST LIKE IN YOUR EYES YOU'RE ABLE TO SEE THINGS WITHOUT MUCH DETAIL OFF IN THE DISTANCE. IF, YOU KNOW, YOU SEE A BALL COMING IN YOU RAPIDLY MOVE YOUR EYES OVER TO SEE WHAT'S THERE AND THEN WITH YOUR FOVEA TRACK WHERE IT IS AND GO OUT AND CATCH IT. Alda: LIKE HUMANS, COG MUST CONSTANTLY SHIFT ITS EYES TO SEE THE DETAILS OF INTERESTING OBJECTS. ROD BUILT IN THE ABILITY TO ANALYZE THE WIDE-ANGLE VIEW AND PICK OUT MOTION WHICH SHOWS UP ON THIS DISPLAY AS WHITE AREAS BUT COG HAD TO LEARN BY TRIAL AND ERROR HOW TO ACTUALLY MOVE ITS EYES. TO MAKE COG'S VISION SYSTEM FAST THE COMPONENTS ARE SPLIT UP AMONG SEPARATE COMPUTERS. DO YOU THINK THAT THAT IMITATES MORE ACCURATELY WHAT... HOW PEOPLE ARE MADE? THAT IS HOW THE BRAIN IS ORGANIZED-- THAT THERE IS THIS VERY DISTRIBUTED SYSTEM. DISTRIBUTED MEANING...? THERE'S LOTS OF LITTLE PIECES. THEY HAVE EVOLVED SEPARATELY AND ARE ALL RUNNING SEPARATELY NOT KNOWING ABOUT THE OTHER PIECES GOING ON THERE. THEY'RE SENDING MESSAGES TO MUSCLES OR THE CEREBELLUM AND DEMANDING THINGS THAT HAPPEN AND MAYBE THOSE THINGS HAPPEN, MAYBE NOT BECAUSE MAYBE SOME OTHER PART OF THE BRAIN GETS CONTROL AT THAT PARTICULAR TIME. Alda: COG'S NECK IS ANOTHER PIECE OF THE ROBOT THAT'S CONTROLLED SEPARATELY. IF THE EYES LOOK OVER THERE AND IN YOUR HEART OF HEARTS YOU WANT THE HEAD TO GO WHERE THE EYES GO HOW DO YOU GET THE HEAD TO GET THAT INFORMATION FROM THE EYES AND USE IT? THEN WE HAVE ANOTHER PROGRAM THAT'S SITTING RUNNING AND IT TRIES TO ALWAYS MAKE THE EYES BE CENTERED LOOKING STRAIGHT AHEAD BUT THE ONLY CONTROL IT HAS IS CONTROL OF THE NECK SO WHEN THE EYES ARE POINTING OVER THERE THE ONLY WAY IT CAN MAKE THE EYES BE CENTERED IN THE HEAD IS TO TURN THE NECK, BECAUSE THAT'S THE ONLY THING THAT PARTICULAR PROGRAM HAS CONTROL OF. Alda: COG'S NECK WILL ALSO BE CONTROLLED BY A SECOND PROGRAM ONE THAT REPRODUCES THE HUMAN REFLEX TO TURN TOWARD THE SOURCE OF SOUND. JUST LIKE WITH BABIES BEING ABLE TO FOCUS ON WHERE A SOUND COMES FROM SHOULD HELP COG FIND THE INTERESTING SOUNDS AROUND IT AND EVENTUALLY TO UNDERSTAND THEM. LET'S COME AND LOOK AT THE HAND HERE. Alda: COG WILL ALSO BE ABLE TO EXPERIENCE THE WORLD THROUGH TOUCH. Brooks: THIS IS A THREE-FINGERED AND ONE-THUMBED HAND. HERE'S THE THUMB AND HERE ARE THE THREE FINGERS OF A LEFT HAND AND WE'VE GOT JUST A LITTLE PIECE OF SKIN ATTACHED TO IT TO THE FINGER, THERE, SO IT'S TOUCH SENSITIVE AND MOVES WHEN WE TOUCH IT. WE JUST PROGRAMMED IT TO DO THAT. WHY DON'T YOU TOUCH IT AND SEE IF YOU CAN MAKE IT MOVE. OKAY, IT FELT YOU AND NOW IT'S GOING TO GO AROUND AND TRY AND GRAB THE OBJECT THAT IT'S FEELING. SO IT'S SORT OF PROGRAMMED NOW TO GRAB WHAT IT FEELS PRESSURE ON. JUST WITH THAT ONE LITTLE FINGER. EVENTUALLY, AS WE FINISH BUILDING THIS HAND WE'LL HAVE THE FINGERS COMPLETELY WRAPPED WITH THIS TOUCH-SENSITIVE MATERIAL. Alda: YET ANOTHER INDEPENDENT COMPUTER WILL CONTROL COG'S SENSE OF TOUCH. THAT'S A CIRCUIT BOARD WHICH WILL BE HERE AND WILL BE PROCESSING... Alda: IT WILL SIT INSIDE COG'S HAND SO THAT TOUCH INFORMATION CAN BE PROCESSED RIGHT ON THE SPOT. IN A HUMAN, OF COURSE OUR SPINE MAKES A LOT OF DECISIONS FOR US. IT DOESN'T