Science-
Fans of fiction should cheer up.
Robots are finally taking over the world.
It will not be like a blockbuster, but it is predicted that the global robot market will exceed £ 100 billion by 2019.
We will increasingly install service robots at home to perform humble tasks, entertain us, and take care of tedious administrators.
Such a family market
It is predicted that the helper alone will reach 19 billion in two years.
You have bought Roomba from Dyson's 360-eye iRobot company to do your vacuum.
But most of the current excitement comes from a new generation of complex humanoid robots.
These robots can dust your party, entertain your children, or play cocktail waiters --
There has been a witty conversation.
Experts say similar robots will soon replace humans, from nurses to Realtors.
Nursing homes are already conducting trials of so-called "Nursing Robots", and the International Federation of Robotics predicts that nearly 42 million service robots will be sold worldwide in the next three years.
Adam Kushner, the owner of the London robotics company, explained that the development of humanoid robots is mainly in Japan and China.
"The best things are being tried out or bought by wealthy private enthusiasts.
The meeting machine that looks so human has a charm.
Large Japanese companies, including Honda and Toyota, have invested heavily in development.
The current result may not be achieved by ordinary families --
Cost up to 17,000
But it may change soon.
Adam predicts that in the next 10 years or so, every family will have robots to help with the housework.
This will change life.
We will never forget to take medicine or buy milk. Any break-
All our housework will be done for us.
Honorary Professor Kevin Warwick, deputy
The president of Coventry University and the leader of the controlling academic community went further.
Robots will take over the roles that we are happy to have them playing, he said, simply because they are better at them than we are.
It's hard to imagine any work that a robot can't do.
Humanoid robots can also end loneliness.
You will have a robot companion, someone you can trust.
"It sounds amazing, but how close is the day when a robot assistant can replace a good old assistant --
Work hard around the house?
Alice Smellie tested the latest model.
Flir robot, from 5,000, robot sososoflotto. co. ukWHAT IS IT? At 58cm (2ft)
High, this humanoid robot (
The main picture has a duster, right)
There is a pair of attractive "blink" eyes and small dots with a mouth.
She was a little feminine and the motor of each joint gave her amazing dexterity.
People must believe in her dance movements. WHAT CAN IT DO?
Nao has been used in the education sector and works with children.
She was also tested in a nursing home and worked as a sports coach for the elderly.
When you talk, she seems to be a bit frivolous in her demeanor, holding her head high.
Fortunately, her sweet appearance made her charming rather than irritating.
Testing: at present, everything these robots do has to be programmed separately, and manufacturers want to change when they are widely used.
A useful technician at the London headquarters robot has given Nao the ability to carry out a dust removal movement, moving her hands back and forth.
All I have to do is put her in front of the surface I want to clean, look!
I was impressed by her agility, although so far she has only been able to do static dust removal.
More useful, you can use her speech recognition device to get her to pick up small objects, such as reading glasses that she has been programmed to recognize.
Not as useful as a cleaner yet, but she followed your instructions without a doubt.
Judgment: 9/10 face it. . .
This is the future social robot with a rent of 2,000. co. ukWHAT IS IT? A 60cm (2ft)
Metal head and torso with plastic face.
The video projector inside the head projects a "face" onto the inside of the plastic feature.
Eyes blink realistically and follow you around the room. WHAT CAN IT DO?
It has no limbs, so it can't walk or pick things up, but the social robot is touted as the next big thing in the conference call: it can be programmed to project your face to her
Then all you need to do is put on your headphones and microphone to chat.
In the conference room at the other end of the world, social robots will broadcast what you said and feed back the video and audio to you.
Its lips move even in sync with yours.
It has been used in museums and educational centers around the world.
There is clearly potential for celebrity endorsements.
If Brad Pitt's face and voice tell you what to do, who wouldn't notice it?
TEST: I asked if it was possible to put three social bots in my three children's bedroom, all with my face. . .
In theory, can I sit in the kitchen and drink, put on headphones and cameras and direct their finishing work in real time?
The answer is yes!
I give it a try and yell "pick up those towels" into the social robot with my most terrible face. Brilliant!
It's okay to clean the robot.
This is the future.
Judgment result: 10/10 pints
Large size yoga expert 1 S humanoid robot, £ 399, harrods. comWHAT IS IT? This pint-
Humanoid robot height 40 cm (16in)high.
He's a Rakuten guy. he flashed a bunch of different things. Colorful lights. WHAT CAN IT DO?
From playing football to the icing on the cake, there are various simple tasks.
But he is more entertaining than housework. he can't talk. controlled —
You tell him what to do with your mobile app.
If you need a personal trainer, though, he's just a ticket.
He can lead you through yoga exercises and can be programmed to perform almost any exercise while playing music.
The only drawback of the robot coach is that he is never tired.
Test: The application is very simple to use-
I chose a function and he left.
The icing on the cake is very interesting.
I put a plastic spoon in his hand, put some icing on the table behind the cake, and pressed my phone.
Look, he leveled the icing on my sponge cake.
Very smart-
But there is still a way to go before Mary Berry needs to worry.
Verdict: London robotics, about £ 17,000, is a very talkative family helper. co. ukWHAT IS IT? This 120cm (4ft)
High imitation human robots have huge eyes and sound of conversation.
He has a tablet on his stomach and a very human gesture.
There are three sensors in his wheel base, so he won't hit something. WHAT CAN IT DO?
Adam Kushner says pepper can show and react to emotions.
Thanks to his sweet attitude, he achieved great success in the nursing home.
A number of programs have also been written to make him a real estate agent, to welcome customers and to give them a virtual property tour on his tablet screen.
He had just been bought by a wealthy businessman and wanted to be his receptionist.
TEST: I named Pepper and he answered immediately and asked him how to help.
I don't need his realtor skills, but the technician has developed a dust-sucking program so I tried it.
His hands are flexible, but he can't control the Henry vacuum well, even though his up and down movements are very good.
He may be the state-of-the-art robot we 've tested, but I think Pepper needs to do a little bit of work on his housekeeping techniques.
Conclusion: 8/10 diy kit your child will love the jimu Robot Explorer Kit, 149 149. 99, argos. co. ukWHAT IS IT?
A diy robot building kit.
It looks a bit like Meccano, designed for people aged eight or over.
It includes a control unit, a connecting line and 372 interlocking components. WHAT CAN IT DO?
Now ask the school to teach the code.
You, I, computer programming.
Jimu is a useful tool.
Special applications guide them through the build steps and then program the robot.
Test: Jimu was assembled for me by a technician because I could barely get our TV to work, not to mention bots.
When I showed it to my ten kidsyear-
Old Oscar, he can foresee, it looks really easy.
At least this app is simple to use.
I connect the bot to my phone via Bluetooth and then select a command like "Dance crazy" or "spin ".
Jimu responded immediately.
It was a great pleasure.
This is limited, but a great way to show kids the technology behind robots.
Verdict: perfect party for 6/10 robobot, £ 8,000 from robotsoflotter. co. ukWHAT IS IT? At 145cm (4ft 7in)
High, Promobot is a bulky guy with arms and bulky barrel body.
He has no legs, but walks around on the casters to promote what he plans to promote. WHAT CAN IT DO?
Promobot has full facial recognition.
He will never forget you once you meet him.
Throughout the morning I heard him say spring to anyone passing by, greeting them as his friends or introducing themselves on their own initiative.
Able to remember thousands of faces and have a witty conversation, he is a perfect meetingand-greet robot —
Definitely better than some of the people I met at the cocktail party.
TEST: I was tired after having the robot do a day's work for me.
Luckily, when Promobot was handed me a glass of wine and I called his name from the comfortable chair, he brought it directly to me!
I think he is my favorite.
Conclusion: 7/10 network "mom" for all FAMILYSense mother smart home devices, £ 50. 55, sen. seWHAT IS IT?
This shape is a bit humanoid, but only 16 cm (6in)high. WHAT CAN IT DO? Mother —
Very Big Brother. ish this —
Motion can be detected and used to handle things for you from monitoring sleep to alerting you to thieves.
She is equipped with remote sensors that connect to the main device via wi-fi.
You can attach them to any item in your home and the mother will know if the object moves or the temperature changes.
TEST: It took me 30 minutes to create an account on the website and I will control the device from it.
Then I plug my mom in.
I named Marilyn after my own mom, and when I did, I giggled slightly.
I put a remote on the front door and every time I open it my mom sends me an email.
Obviously, it can be annoying when we are all at home, but it is very useful if we are not there today.
You can use sensors to solve some problems, such as whether children bring their game packs to school, and whether someone is bothered to get the bins out.
It's not a bad idea, but some humanoid robots I 've tested don't have a competitor.