Carnegie Mellon News - Carnegie Mellon University: When Don Hall saw a robot arm made of balloons while visiting Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute several years ago, he knew instantly that Baymax, a pivotal character in the animated feature he was co-directing for Disney, also would be an inflatable robot.
12 comments:
You know, Anonymous, you didn't really comment on the article at all...
Funny enough, I had planned to go see this movie in theatres when it came out because it looked so cute. I didn't know that they were actually working on a soft robot or that they are doing practically next door to me! As the article points out, there are a lot of advantages to soft robots such as safety etc, but there are also a few drawbacks. Soft robots will be really easy to break. You just have to have a sharp point and then you could pop any of them. Pop-able robots do NOT sound like a good idea. Waving a balloon in front of someone is like asking them to break it. It doesn't even have to be on purpose. If someone just happens to be wearing something sharp, on like a jacket let's say, then if they just accidentally brush up against the robot, oops! There goes the robot. I'm curious to see how they get around this.
I hadn't heard of this movie before the article, but this might just make me go see it! It's really quite a cute concept, and really cool that something right here at CMU inspired the design of the character. I also had no idea that soft robotics existed, and I'm really interested to know more about it. I feel like this is such a no brainer, as long as the materials used are strong enough to support the same amount of weight that a "normal" metal part would be able to provide. Not to mention, not all robots would necessarily need to carry such heavy loads in the first place.
I saw a trailer for this movie a couple of weeks ago and it looked really adorable. I had no idea that they got the idea for the character from something they saw at Carnegie Mellon! That just makes me want to see it all the more. It also makes me want to find out more about the research that is happening at CMU and to find that inflatable robotic arm they have pictures of. Sometimes I feel like the theatre is such a separate world from the rest of this college that I forget we are one of the best research institutions in the country. I'm curious to know more about this robot and how it was made and works. From what I remember of the trailer, the robot sometimes gets deflated. I think this is a humorous way to problem solve some of the downfalls of a soft robot and I think this movie will inspire the researchers here to answer questions that they might not have though of before. After all, a scientist's mind and an artist's mind can work in vastly different ways.
I had already heard of this movie before reading this article. It is a cute story that seems captivating and inspiring. I did not know that the model of the character was based on soft robotics. Before reading this i did not even know that soft robotics existed. Now that I have read this the idea of it makes perfect sense to me. I am very proud to say i go to carnegie mellon for many reasons and this just added another. The fact that we used this technology is amazing to me. It is even more amazing that some thing that was being done here help inspire such a interesting Disney film.
Well apparently as a female I'm likely to get fat... backstage body! Thanks anonymous for that vital information.
I hadn't heard of this movie until I read the article, but it looks utterly adorable! I am really excited for it to come out within the next week. The concept of soft robotics is also extremely fascinating! I had never thought that a robot could be made of any material other than stainless steal due to the amount of stress that it undergoes. Carnegie Mellon University really is going above and beyond when it comes to inventions.
This article is a great example of how a fiction can help with the growth of real world technologies. While having a balloon robot in a movie may not be the most accurate depiction of its functionality, it does introduce a new and progressive form of technology to an audience that would have otherwise never known it existed. Introducing this technology in the form of a kids movie is especially effective, as it shows these progressive ideas to those who could one day grow up to invent it! In fact, it could be a good thing that the movie portrays the robot as far more advanced than it currently is, because then the kids watching have a "dream" or standard in their minds of what robots could be, and then when they grow up they will try to invent ways to reach that dream!
Not only am I crazy excited for this movie but I also can't believe that it was based off a CMU design! I keep hearing more and more how amazing this school is and I am so beyond happy to be here! Anyhow, the idea of soft robots, as the creators have said is most certainly new to me, its weird to think of robots as non-metal but also very interesting as well as economical. I'm very interested to see how far they can take this befor some social issue arises as I'm sure will in the movie. At any rate the possible benefits of soft robots is quite recognizable and quite expandable
I love when entertainment depicts the future. Often times we see these depictions years later and can either laugh at how the world is not like prior artists imagined or be fascinated at how the world has caught up with their depictions. In this case, I hope that years from now inflatable robots will be around as Big Hero 6 will depict. I love the idea of soft robots helping in health care. It is more difficult now to find enough people to join health care for these delicate positions. Having soft robots could really help that situation. All in all I hope this movie can put the idea of soft robots in the front of peoples' minds so that years from now this future depiction can come true.
Advances in medical practices are coming about in both big and small ways. To be able to acknowledge these advances on the big screen allows us to become more aware as to the possibilities that are out there that can assist with the needs to help patients. It’s true I’ve only really thought of robots as being hard and made of metal, but then again take a look at the societal views that we live in. How many time have we seen movies with robots and a hard skeleton than with a movie about robots that is soft? I believe my point is made. It’s amazing how influencing others around you can be, and it only takes one person to change perceptions and create something new and innovative that not only changes how we think, but change our perceptions on what can be limited. So let’s see how far we come in the next few years with this new technology.
I have been very much on the fence about seeing this movie. Growing up with Pixar being the leading force in 3d animation with stories that are timeless and pull at my heartstrings every time I watch them, has made me very disheartened to see Disney continually attempt to break off and make their own movies when they still have this partnership in place. I was able to let go when their movies continued related to fairy-tale like fantasy movies, with the exception of Wreck it Ralph. With that said I think the technology this movie was inspired after gives it a level of depth that for me makes it worth seeing. I look at the image that comes to mind when I think of a robot and I see the wires and the circuits and all the metal and feel disconnected to forming any attachment. With the technology in place of soft robotics not only does it provide the peace of mind that the robot won't injury the person they are aiding but it changes the way we perceive them. As a human being we tend to be more open to the idea and likeness of rounded objects.
I hadn't heard about this, but that is pretty cool that something from CMU thats not from the drama school has had such a direct impact on a movie. its cool that the idea came from something in real life but is being used in a not so real plot. I am proud to be from a school where so much of what we do is represented outside of campus
With a new design project coming up which pushes us to look at an object to make another, this article was fascinating. I briefly walked past the robotics labs when touring CMU for the first time and thought of the future, not so much entertainment value. Wanting to to create entertainment in the future I think it would be a great exercise to look at one thing and maybe give that object a story or, like disney, turn it into a character with emotions that plays out a story all its own.
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