In the future, we won’t need humans to teach robots. Robots will be able to teach others. Currently, mostly robots are programmed using motion planning techniques or task replication. Researchers at MIT have developed a system that aims to allow users to teach robots skills they can transfer to other bots that move differently.
C-LEARN, which allows noncoders to teach robots a range of tasks simply by providing some information about how objects are typically manipulated and then showing the robot a single demo of the task. The team tested the system on Optimus, a new two-armed robot designed for bomb disposal that they programmed to perform tasks such as opening doors, transporting objects, and extracting objects from containers. In simulations they showed that Optimus’ learned skills could be seamlessly transferred to Atlas, CSAIL’s 6-foot-tall, 400-pound humanoid robot.