The iCub, the latest generation in humanoids, comes to UPF
The iCub, the latest generation in humanoids, comes to UPF
The iCub is a robot with human characteristics similar to those of a three- or four-year-old child. It was designed by the International RobotCub Consortium, made up of several European universities. It is small, is 104 cm tall and weighs 22 kilograms, and its cost is estimated at around 200,000 euros. The RobotCub project is a strategic commitment by the European Union in the sphere of cognitive systems, interaction and robotics.
After an international competition, the six iCub robots that have so far been produced were transferred to various European research centres, where development work on them will continue. One of the robots has a permanent new home at the Synthetic Perceptive, Emotive and Cognitive Systems Research Group ( SPECS) at UPF, and is the only robot of its type currently in Spain.
The main objective of the development phase of this invention is to study human learning processes in depth, using artificial systems. This involves providing the humanoid robot with new algorithms based on biological processes, which is one of the most well-established research lines at SPECS.
The iCub uses several sensors to perform its functions, which it uses to obtain the information it needs about its environment. After processing the external stimuli that it receives, either from the cameras in its eyes or the microphones in its ears, it can react with 54 degrees of freedom of movement, distributed among its body parts - its arms, hands, legs, thorax, abdomen and head.
There is broad consensus among neuroscientists that visual and manual motor processing is essential for cognitive development. New technology enables the robot to carry out tasks related tovisual attention, making music, physical exercise and manual dexterity, among other areas.
The software that has been developed is open source and collaborative, so that the research groups participating in the project can make the necessary changes at any given time.
Those in charge of the project said that "many scientifists have carried out simulations of mental processes and neuronal networks. Now we have the opportunity to try them on something even more important - the body." These comments are taken from the article on this project published in the journal Nature in late August. The article also includes comments by the UPF researcher Paul Verschure.
The SPECS laboratory, headed by Paul Verschure, is a research group in the Department of Information and Communication Technologies (DTIC) which is now part of the Audiovisual University Institute (IUA) at UPF.
It studies the underlying neuronal, psychological and behavioural principles behind perception, emotion and cognition. SPECS uses a constructive synthetic approach which combines systems from the real world (such as robots, virtual reality and interactive systems) with computational models. The centre's activities are based on three main areas: theoretical cognitive neuroscience; biological-based real world systems; brain repair and quality of life technologies.
Article published in Nature " The bot that plays ball ", Vol. 460, 27 August 2009. (PDF, 1042Kb).
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