George Jetson, the father in The Jetsons animated series which originally ran in 1962 and was set in 2062, chronologically would be born this year – 2022. The series featured many futuristic ideas that we have now, like video calls, Apple watches, digital newspapers, voice-activated alarm clocks, holograms, 3D printed foods, dog treadmills, and even tanning beds. While the world doesn’t yet have Rosie – a robot who can cook, clean and play basketball with the kids – there is a forerunner called Dax, a humanized robot created by Joseph Sullivan, Founder, Director and Owner of Daxbot, based in Philomath.
Other robots, such as the mobile cube-like delivery system used by OSU developed by San Fancisco’s Starship or the legged warehouse task helper from Albany’s Agility Robotics, are seen as functional robots. According to Miriam Sullivan, Marketing Director, her engineer brother wanted a fun, personable robot that would bring him a soda.
Dax was developed with human-like characteristics such as a head on a fully articulating neck, and the ability to show six different expressions through its eyes – neutral, happy, confused, sleepy, hearts and the not-oft-used angry. The creators decided to use male pronouns for Dax.
Miriam Sullivan says, “Dax is not really intended to look like a human or replace humans, so much as to be easily understood by humans and make friends with them.”
Bridging the “Uncanny Valley”
If you watched “The Jetsons” you may have noticed Rosie saw everything.
To address privacy and security concerns, Dax’s eyes – which are two cameras – do not have facial recognition. To bridge the ‘uncanny valley’ – that discomfort one feels when interacting with a robot when they begin to traverse the line between robotic and human – Dax does not talk. This experience is often joked about in relation to Siri or Alexa’s misinterpretations.
Miriam Sullivan points out that Dax does make “robotic type noises that sound affirmative or questioning or excited; people talk with him and connect with him on the same kind of level that they connect with pets.”
She adds “When he sees someone he looks at them, cocks his head and makes heart eyes. In that way it’s natural to accept him as part of our world, and we’ve seen people of all ages do just that pretty easily.”
Young children instantly connect with Dax, dancing, laughing, and engaging with deliveries. During a test run at a Senior Center, the Daxbot team discovered deliveries were slowed down because residents wanted to walk and talk with him, considering him a part of the community.
Dax on the Move
Unlike Rosie’s little wheels, Dax has two smart treads to get him around town. While Dax uses GPS technology, collision detection, and sensors to get around town, their electric battery span only allows them to travel two-and-a-half-10 miles. Also, the bots are monitored by humans, which comes in handy when something unusual happens.
While under Oregon laws sidewalk robots are considered the same class as Segways or scooters, Philomath considers Dax a pedestrian. Standing at 3’ high, he is about the same size as a younger child, and has hazard lights on his wheels that flash when he’s crossing the street or doing anything where he needs increased visibility. So far, Dax has only been hit once by a car speeding down a back road.
Meet Dax in Person
Rosie stayed at the Jetson house – out of the public eye.
Dax – with a cargo bay the size of 537 ping pong balls or two pizzas and drinks – has been delivering for local Philomath restaurants during the pandemic with great success. The company has expanded to the city of Coronado, Calif. and Georgia, and plans to build bigger headquarters in Philomath.
While future plans may include some of the jobs that Rosie did, for now Daxbot is focusing on Dax’s semi-autonomous delivery abilities and handling tasks people don’t enjoy doing themselves.
By: Stacey Newman Weldon
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