Humanoid robot
A humanoid robot is a robot with its body shape built to resemble the human body. The design may be for
functional purposes, such as interacting with human tools and environments, for experimental purposes,
such as the study of bipedal locomotion, or for other purposes. In general, humanoid robots have a torso, a
head, two arms, and two legs, though some forms of humanoid robots may model only part of the body, for
example, from the waist up. Some humanoid robots also have heads designed to replicate human facial
features such as eyes and mouths. Androids are humanoid robots built to aesthetically resemble humans.
හියුමන ොයිඩ් (humanoid) නරොන ෝවක් යනු මිනිස් සිරුරට සමො ව පරිදි එහි ශරීර හැඩය
සහිත නරොන ෝවකි. නමය සැලසුම් කර තින නු නේ මිනිසුන් සමග කථො කිරීමට හැකි (interacting
with human tools) නමවලමක් නලස සහ විවිධ පරිසරයන් (environments) සමඟ අන්තර්ක්‍රියො කිරීම
වැනි විවිධ ියොකොරී අරණු ස සාහො විය හැකිය.
, යිනපඩල් දුම්රිය එන්ින් අධයය ය වැනි පර්ක්‍රනේණාෝමක අරණු ස සාහො නහෝ නව ්
අරණු ස සාහො. නපොදුනේ ග් කල, හියුමන ොයිඩ් නරොන ෝවරුන්ට උරහිසක්, හිසක්, අ් නෙකක්
සහ කකුල් නෙකක් ඇත, ණු් සමහර ආකොරනේ හියුනමොන ොයිඩ් නරොන ෝවරු ශරීරනේ
නකොටසක් පමාක් නිරූපාය කළ හැකිය, උෙොහරායක් නලස ඉා සිට ඉහළට. සමහර
හියුනමොන ොයිඩ් නරොන ෝවරුන්ට ඇස් සහ ණුඛය වැනි මිනිස් ණුහුනේ ලක්ණා ප්‍රතිනිර්ක්‍රමොාය
කිරීම සාහො හිස් නිර්ක්‍රමොාය කර ඇත. ඇන්නරොයිඩ් යනු මිනිසුන්ට නස්න්ෙර්ක්‍රයෝමකව සමො
ව පරිදි නගොඩ ගො ඇති හියුමන ොයිඩ් නරොන ෝවරු ය.
Humanoid robots are now used as research tools in several scientific areas. Researchers study the human
body structure and behavior (biomechanics) to build humanoid robots. On the other side, the attempt to
simulate the human body leads to a better understanding of it. Human cognition is a field of study which is
focused on how humans learn from sensory information in order to acquire perceptual and motor skills. This
knowledge is used to develop computational models of human behavior and it has been improving over
time.
It has been suggested that very advanced robotics will facilitate the enhancement of ordinary humans. See
transhumanism.
Although the initial aim of humanoid research was to build better orthosis and prosthesis for human beings,
knowledge has been transferred between both disciplines. A few examples are powered leg prosthesis for
neuromuscularly impaired, ankle-foot orthosis, biological realistic leg prosthesis and forearm prosthesis.
Besides the research, humanoid robots are being developed to perform human tasks like personal
assistance, through which they should be able to assist the sick and elderly, and dirty or dangerous jobs.
Humanoids are also suitable for some procedurally-based vocations, such as reception-desk administrators
and automotive manufacturing line workers. In essence, since they can use tools and operate equipment
and vehicles designed for the human form, humanoids could theoretically perform any task a human being
can, so long as they have the proper software. However, the complexity of doing so is immense.
They are also becoming increasingly popular as entertainers. For example, Ursula, a female robot, sings,
plays music, dances and speaks to her audiences at Universal Studios. Several Disney theme park shows
utilize animatronic robots that look, move and speak much like human beings. Although these robots look
realistic, they have no cognition or physical autonomy. Various humanoid robots and their possible
applications in daily life are featured in an independent documentary film called Plug & Pray, which was
released in 2010.
Humanoid robots, especially those with artificial intelligence algorithms, could be useful for future
dangerous and/or distant space exploration missions, without having the need to turn back around again
and return to Earth once the mission is completed.
“That’s their workshop. Different explosions and different things happen in here,” is how Chamira Prasad
Jayasinghe – CEO of Arimac described it. This workshop he pointed at was a small room right next to his
office. Inside it, a team of six engineers is working on one of Arimac’s many grand projects. This one is a
robot called Diyazen.
The origins of Diyazen
Originally announced at last year’s Google I/O Extended, Diyazen is Arimac’s effort to build a humanoid
robot. This isn’t exactly Arimac’s first foray into the world of robotics either. The company had previously
formed a partnership with Sanbot Robotics. Through this partnership, Arimac was the supplier for Sanbot
robots in Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
Just last year, these robots were spotted roaming inside the Dialog Iconic Store. Arimac had validated the
wow factor and versatility of using robots in the role of customer service. But not everything was working
smoothly. They soon learned that Sanbot’s robots didn’t exactly meet all the requirements of their clients.
So Chamira approached Rasika Manawadu and asked him to look at alternatives or find out how Arimac
could build its own robots. Having graduated with a degree in Electronic Engineering, Rasika jumped at the
opportunity. He began exploring the world of robotics and found that if Arimac wanted the right robot, it
would have to build it. Thus, Diyazen was born.
The challenges of building a robot
Soon afterward, a team was formed to build this robot with Rasika at the helm. Alongside him was Sadeesh
Kalhara, Oshan Wickramasinghe, Kavishka Karunasinghe, Damith Galhena, and Neranjen Chameera. This
team had a daunting task ahead of them. “Before creating a humanoid robot, we had to create an
autonomous platform,” explains Sadeesh.
The team behind Diyazen. From L to R: Damith Galhena, Neranjen Chameera, Oshan Wickramasinghe, Rasika
Manawadu, Chamira Prasad Jayasinghe, Sadeesh Kalhara, Kavishka Karunasinghe (Image credits: Arimac)
This was the first hurdle the team had to cross. So they started off by taking a steel block, slapped a few
wheels on it. Once it could move, they created a basic system that utilized a few sensors to help it navigate
environments. The team ticked off this first hurdle 5 months ago and it still sits in a corner of their workshop.
Having built the autonomous platform, the next step for the team was to enhance it. This meant adding
additional sensors and giving it a brain. In other words, they needed to give their new platform knowledge.
Until it learned how to make decisions and execute tasks it wasn’t a true robot.
How to give life to a robot
To give their autonomous platform a brain, the team now had to create the right software architecture.
Based on Rasika’s initial research, the team decided to build everything on top of the open source Robot
Operating System. This would make the core system of the robot. But from the beginning of the project, the
team had the vision of making Diyazen modular.
Whether it’s at a warehouse or in a hotel, Diyazen is designed with modularity in mind to meet a wide range
of requirements
Diyazen is meant to be a robot that can adapt to a wide variety of needs. Rasika elaborated on this saying, “If
you’re running a warehouse then you might only need a simple moving platform. But if you’re running a
hotel, then you need a robot that can do multiple things from greeting guests to help them check in to
informing them about sights. So we want to ensure that Diyazen meets everyone’s needs.”
That means not only modular hardware but also software. Diyazen will have its own form of AI to help
identify people and carry out other tasks. A necessity in modern times with the global AI market expected to
be worth $89.85 billion by 2025. Sri Lanka too has it’s own plans to grab a slice of this pie. But for all this,
developers should be able to flexibly utilize this AI.
To ensure true
flexibility for app developers, Diyazen comes with a host of API’s and Software Development Kit (Image
credits: Golden Sikorka)
As such, Sadeesh shared with us that they’d release a host of API’s and a Software Development Kit for
developers. With these tools, developers would be able to control almost every aspect of Diyazen right down
to individual motors. Using this approach, the Arimac team aims to give developers the freedom to create
the apps they want.
This is how they’d give their autonomous platform a brain and transform it into a robot. It could now
execute tasks. But when making decisions to execute these tasks, it still had to take one important factor
into account: the battery.
Tackling the laws of physics and logistics
The battery itself gave the Diyazen team its own set of challenges. As the team worked on the software, they
came to a realization. The processor consumed massive amounts of power as it tried to figure out how to
navigate environments and carry out tasks.
Now whenever it carried out a task, Diyazen now had to take its battery level into account. Sadeesh
explained this saying, “It’ll have to go from Point A to Point B to do something. But it also needs to analyze
what are the obstacles in its way. After that, it needs to decide whether it has enough battery power to do
the task or return to it’s charging dock.”
The team soon found that they had to seriously
consider power consumption as Diyazen executed its tasks (Image credits: Elisabeth Deim)
These batteries aren’t like the ones you’d find in your phones either. These batteries are significantly larger
almost resembling car batteries. As such, due to the laws of physics, these batteries are located at the
bottom of the robot. If not, then the concept of center of gravity would mean the robot would simply fall flat
on its face. Yet, in Chamira’s eyes, all these challenges were relatively easy.
“The hardest part is simply getting the necessary resources down. We’ve had hardware and software
challenges but we’ve overcome them. Our guys are too smart,” said Chamira.
This also states the biggest challenge that Diyazen faces right now. Currently, the Arimac team has tested all
the individual components of Diyazen. This includes its face recognition and voice recognition systems along
with cameras and screens.
Now the only thing that remains is to put it all together. For this, they need to get their enclosure, which
they’re creating using 3D printing firm in China. When asked why, both Chamira and Rasika shared that Sri
Lanka simply lacks the facilities they need.
Creating a good user experience with Sri Lankan flavor
Looking at the design of this 3D printed body, one can immediately tell that Diyazen is Sri Lankan.
Immediately when you look at it, you can tell the face is based on the traditional Raksha Masks. Rasika
shared that the ears, which share the features of the traditional masks, also includes 3D microphones.
The Arimac team was determined to let everyone know at first glance that Diyazen was a Sri Lankan robot
Chamira added that the decision to base the design of the ears on Raksha Masks was intentional. One that
he adds Arimac stubbornly adheres to. “Some of our clients asked us to remove the ears. But we were
determined to keep it. We wanted everyone to know that Diyazen was a Sri Lankan robot,” states Chamira.
Another design decision Arimac made was to make Diyazen as tall as an average person. Rasika explained
this decision saying, “One of the issues we had with the old Sanbot robots was that they were short. You had
to bend down to use them. We wanted to ensure people had a good user experience with Diyazen, that’s
why we made it as tall as a person.”
The greater challenge of selling a robot
Speaking to ReadMe, Chamira shared that with every Diyazen robot, Arimac would ensure it’s customized to
the needs of the client. That means everything from the design of the robot itself to developing the exact
apps they need installed. Furthermore, there would be a warranty period and they’re looking at
collaborating with a local company to carry out maintenance.
Yet, when asked about how much the robots would cost, Chamira admits that Arimac hasn’t decided on a
price for it. This he explains is because Diyazen is still in the prototype stage. Furthermore, Sri Lanka lacks the
facilities for mass production of robots. As such, Arimac is currently exploring its options with local and
Chinese hardware manufacturers.
The biggest challenge Diyazen currently faces is mass production since Sri Lanka lacks the necessary facilities
(Image credits: The New York Times)
Despite this, he shared that Arimac has received orders from some leading telecom operators. For these
telecom operators, robots like Diyazen allow them to complete basic tasks like checking bills and issuing
SIM’s. Such robots would allow these tasks to be completed with a wow factor.
But another area Arimac believes Diyazen will be a popular tool is in the tourism industry. According to
Chamira, the Diyazen robots would be capable of recognizing individual guests, know if they’ve previously
stayed at the hotel, and answer any questions they may have. Additionally, since Diyazen is modular, it
would also be able to carry out check-ins and issue keycards.
“We can fake it till we make it. But we can’t sell it until we make it” – Chamira Prasad Jayasinghe
At the end of the day, Arimac aims to put Sri Lanka on the map in the field of humanoid robotics.
Nonetheless, despite overcoming many challenges, the company still faces an uphill battle. One that’s
known all too well by any company trying to manufacture hardware products in Sri Lanka. As Chamira
describes the situation,
“We can fake it till we make it. But we can’t sell it until we make it.”