Personal Assistance Robots: Will they improve our quality of life?

While robots have worked in factories for many years, and have starred in recent animated movies, they have yet to make an impact on our personal lives. The only exception is the over 7 million robotic vacuums, such as the Roomba, that are now helping people keep dust at bay. Are they only the beginning of a personal robot revolution? Based on large investments in robotics by companies such as Google and Amazon, and the thousands of people developing robots all over the world, many people think the answer is “Yes!”.  Even with that positive assessment, the future of personal robots is unclear. What will they look like? Will they be sociable? What tasks should they perform? How smart should they be? How strong should they be? How much will they cost? And last, but certainly not least, will they improve our quality of life? The answers to these questions and others will be discussed in this thought provoking talk. The talk will be followed by a Q & A session where your input can contribute to the next-generation robotic technologies being developed at McMaster University by the research group led by Professor Gary Bone.