[HN Gopher] Apple Pushes Ahead with Tabletop Home Device in Shif...
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       Apple Pushes Ahead with Tabletop Home Device in Shift to Robotics
        
       Author : mfiguiere
       Score  : 23 points
       Date   : 2024-08-14 18:19 UTC (4 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.bloomberg.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.bloomberg.com)
        
       | melling wrote:
       | The device could respond to commands, such as "look at me,"
       | 
       | It doesn't seem very robotic.
        
         | dudeofea wrote:
         | I'm the robot now
        
       | ninininino wrote:
       | I want them to make a clothes-washing-and-drying device that has
       | a hopper you throw dirty clothes into and when enough clothes are
       | in it, it turns on and then they come out on other end hung up
       | dried, neatly on a clothing rack with no creases or wrinkles (but
       | done through steaming not through an iron). So from dirty to
       | hung-up with no manual human steps.
        
         | sudosysgen wrote:
         | We recently have had the technology to do this (I helped on a
         | household robotics project last year where folding cloth was a
         | task). As a ADHD afflict, I would love nothing more, but I
         | didn't see a way to do it affordably. I fully expect it within
         | a few years, though, perhaps with RFID tags for folding and
         | cleaning instructions.
        
           | 2OEH8eoCRo0 wrote:
           | _Robot, please separate clothes by size and gender._
        
         | fragmede wrote:
         | > hung up dried, neatly on a clothing rack with no creases or
         | wrinkles
         | 
         | That is a surprisingly difficult thing for a robot/machine to
         | do, with the SOTA still requiring speeded up video in demos for
         | clothes folding. The difficult part is I the digitizing and
         | manipulation, so hanging it on a hangar with robot arms is
         | approximately as difficult.
        
           | rolph wrote:
           | i think the most diffuculty would be the task of prepping a
           | crumpled up ball of several articles of clothing, to ready
           | for folding, individual articles, and all whilenot tearing it
           | to rags.
           | 
           | perhaps if the clothing was hung to begin with rather than
           | hoppered.
           | 
           | a piece of clothing hanging straight would be easier to fold,
           | but the entire scheme would require more space for typical
           | laundry loads.
        
           | 2OEH8eoCRo0 wrote:
           | The dishwasher is slower than hand washing but it still
           | mostly eliminates the task.
        
           | sudosysgen wrote:
           | The SOTA is about 2-3 minutes per clothing item. That's
           | pretty slow, but more than fast enough - who generates more
           | than 1 dirty cloth per half hour? Besides, the critical
           | source of latency will be washing and drying either way.
        
         | nanomonkey wrote:
         | How about if you just hung it up dirty, and it went through a
         | supercritical CO2 cleaner, and then transitioned to a clean
         | section of your closet?
        
           | ninininino wrote:
           | Hang up dirty version is a good incremental product.
        
             | jazzyjackson wrote:
             | https://www.samsung.com/us/home-appliances/air-
             | dresser/air-d...
        
       | rolph wrote:
       | tabletop arena interface coming soon i hope.
       | 
       | "bot, prepare lunch".
       | 
       | [loads ingredients on table].
       | 
       | [selects from proffered menu].
       | 
       | lunch is prepared.
       | 
       | next comes an overhead rail for transit to various stations.
        
         | bitwize wrote:
         | "They told me never, ever, EVER to disengage myself from my
         | management rail, or I would DIE. But we're out of options here,
         | so get ready to catch me on the off chance that I'm not dead
         | the moment I pop off this thing."
        
       | Ancalagon wrote:
       | Haven't we tried the home robot screen-helpers enough already? We
       | don't want it unless it does the dishes better than a dishwasher.
       | 
       | Can't we just focus on iterating Apple Vision Pro? I still think
       | there's a ton of potential there.
        
       | willhackett wrote:
       | Another device for the e-waste pile. I'd rather pay for working
       | software than another iDevice.
        
       | pavel_lishin wrote:
       | I don't have access to the full article, but ... it's basically
       | just a screen that can swivel to follow you? That doesn't sound
       | particularly exciting, interesting, or useful.
       | 
       | > _The company now has a team of several hundred people working
       | on the device, which uses a thin robotic arm to move around a
       | large screen, according to people with knowledge of the matter._
        
         | pazimzadeh wrote:
         | the tabletop part is what sounds limiting. but if it could
         | follow you around the house, that could be useful
        
           | naikrovek wrote:
           | Uhh. I like being able to walk away from things. I do not
           | need my devices following me when I poop or go to bed.
        
             | thehoff wrote:
             | So don't buy it?
        
             | scopendo wrote:
             | Don't ever get a cocker spaniel then
        
             | throwaway48540 wrote:
             | I recommend getting doors, it's very effective at
             | preventing entry of unwanted objects.
        
               | pavel_lishin wrote:
               | Tell that to these ants.
        
             | pazimzadeh wrote:
             | pretty sure you would be able to turn that feature on and
             | off
        
           | pavel_lishin wrote:
           | I'm not being snarky, but I genuinely can't really imagine
           | why.
           | 
           | I guess if I'm walking around the house doing chores while
           | I'm watching TV or on a video call with someone?
           | 
           | Otherwise, it seems like it could be cheaper to just install
           | multiple terminal screens in your house connected to a hub
           | that's aware of where you are.
        
             | rolph wrote:
             | 'alexa, where did i leave my keys' ?
        
               | pavel_lishin wrote:
               | Don't most people have an Alexa pod in most rooms they're
               | in?
        
         | dialup_sounds wrote:
         | I might be wrong but it sounds just like a shot at Google Nest
         | Hub or Amazon Echo Show, the latter of which has had a
         | motorized rotating screen for a few years now.
         | 
         | Calling it a tabletop home robot instead of a "HomePod with a
         | Screen" or an "iPad on a Swivel" really sets a different
         | expectation, though.
        
       | quitit wrote:
       | Probably a good time to be reminded that Apple (and many others)
       | seed fake projects to those under NDA to sniff out leaks.
        
       | bitwize wrote:
       | This is just Jeebo. Seems a bit tacky for Apple, but if Apple did
       | it it would work and be well supported. People would want to buy
       | it.
        
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       (page generated 2024-08-14 23:01 UTC)