Astronauts on board the International Space Station will soon have a few extra hands to help out -- mechanical ones, that is. The Robonaut 2 will fly in the space shuttle Discovery on a mission planned to launch on Nov. 1.“The astronauts have come to us and said, 'You know what would be amazing? If it could just hold something for us for awhile,'” said Robonaut expert Nic Radford.
The Robonaut might some day replace astronauts for lengthy spacewalks, developers said. Tasks that can be tedious and tiring might be perfect for a mechanical pal.The technology is extremely advanced on one hand, yet in its infancy on another.“We're just that little rocket in the back yard right now, but you have to start somewhere,” said Radford.General Motors is a partner in the project. Company representatives said the same technology could also assist on Earth.
“This will allow us to build more quality cars, and in a safer manufacturing environment,” said GM’s Adam Sanders.Sanders insists the robots are not to replace auto workers, rather they are to work alongside one another to be more efficient.
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