The Three Laws of Robotics - mob.watchprosite.com

The Three Laws of Robotics
Jul 07 2008,08:47 AM

"A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law

A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law."

First presented by Issac Assimov in the short story " I,Robot" these three laws set definitive parameters for robot behavior since machines are devoid of morality or empathy.

In reality these laws are rooted in our innate fear of the future. In a technology driven society we worry about the unforeseen consequences of our own intellectual creations and the "over-reaching" of modern man.

Today we grapple with the implementation of genetically altered crops and cloning.

In the 1950s, under the shadow of the Cold War, we struggled with nuclear power.

The same concerns existed during the Industrial Revolution of the 1800s. It is well captured in the novel Frankenstein.

Given this context, it should be no suprise that Pierre Jaquet Droz faced not only fame but hostile intent when he introduced his automatons to the world in the 1770s.

"Some informers from the Holy Office, honest men and good Christians it would seem, although poor in spirit, took the commendable decision to expose the automata as each containing the devil. The Inquisition decreed that the figures would be interrogated, to which one of them replied by drawing while another wrote and the third played her small organ. The intention was no doubt to burn them along with their purchaser, had he not been advised to dismantle them piece by piece, whereupon the inquisitors realised that their perfection was the work of a genius and not the invention of the devil."

The automata footage in is in the first few minutes of this BBC news clip. It has clips of the automata that I've not seen before even in J*D's own promotional CDs (If you are curious about the French Revolution, Mozart, and Ben Franklin, by all means...watch the rest of the clip)

Eventhough Pierre Jaquet Droz died over two hundred years ago, a new era of Jaquet Droz Automatons is on the horizon.

Working quiety and faithfully, a remarkable parallel journey reminiscent of the humble beginings of the brand has been taking place over the past six years in the company's workshops located in La Chaux De Fonds.

Instead of Pierre Jaquet Droz and Jacques Vaucanson, a new team with the same vision and drive has emerged. Fighting everyday for the resources necessary to complete this ambitious project even justifying the expense to Mr. Hyek Sr. himself. Gulp!

Mr. Manuel Emch, at the helm of the project, eloquently stated " I wanted to create a beautiful object of art that immediately stimulates emotion. My watchmakers and I spent over six years working on this timepiece to reproduce the exact movements of the pen on the paper."

Yes, the managing director of Jaquet Droz was intimately involved with this new automaton. Mr. Emch put his complete weight into the project and his reputation at stake.

Now who was managing the group of technical experts? Why did he dedicate six years of his life behind this project?

It would take a thousand words to answer the second question but I believe this one picture summarizes it all. It is the picture on his desk.

He did it for his family. For the pride that all fathers and husbands experience when they achieve something remarkable. To enjoy that moment captured in a loved one's eyes when a grueling task has been completed, like returning home from a long business trip or crossing the finish line after a marathon.

So just who was this engineer?

Do you see the new automaton " La Machine à écrire le Temps" in this picture?

This was the prototype skeleton mechanism two years ago. Finally it is now almost completed and ready for production. Over a thousand individual pieces. The tolerances are so tight that each individual piece has to be customized for each automaton. Jaquet Droz has promised to produce 88 of these. The total production time will span years if not decades.

The parallel story even includes the price tag. The customers of Pierre Jaquet Droz's automatons were European and Asian nobility who paid thousands of gold coins for these amazing robots. Now 200+ years later I suspect the pricing trend to continue. Thankfully Jaquet Droz did not adjust the price for inflation!

A few more weeks and I'll bring you the first few pictures of this model.

Enjoy,

Mike

This message has been edited by mkt33 on 2008-07-25 17:34:45



By: mkt33 (registered) PM Posts: 1392	The Three Laws of Robotics Jul 07 2008,08:47 AM "A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law." First presented by Issac Assimov in the short story " I,Robot" these three laws set definitive parameters for robot behavior since machines are devoid of morality or empathy. In reality these laws are rooted in our innate fear of the future. In a technology driven society we worry about the unforeseen consequences of our own intellectual creations and the "over-reaching" of modern man. Today we grapple with the implementation of genetically altered crops and cloning. In the 1950s, under the shadow of the Cold War, we struggled with nuclear power. The same concerns existed during the Industrial Revolution of the 1800s. It is well captured in the novel Frankenstein. Given this context, it should be no suprise that Pierre Jaquet Droz faced not only fame but hostile intent when he introduced his automatons to the world in the 1770s. "Some informers from the Holy Office, honest men and good Christians it would seem, although poor in spirit, took the commendable decision to expose the automata as each containing the devil. The Inquisition decreed that the figures would be interrogated, to which one of them replied by drawing while another wrote and the third played her small organ. The intention was no doubt to burn them along with their purchaser, had he not been advised to dismantle them piece by piece, whereupon the inquisitors realised that their perfection was the work of a genius and not the invention of the devil." The automata footage in is in the first few minutes of this BBC news clip. It has clips of the automata that I've not seen before even in J*D's own promotional CDs (If you are curious about the French Revolution, Mozart, and Ben Franklin, by all means...watch the rest of the clip) Eventhough Pierre Jaquet Droz died over two hundred years ago, a new era of Jaquet Droz Automatons is on the horizon. Working quiety and faithfully, a remarkable parallel journey reminiscent of the humble beginings of the brand has been taking place over the past six years in the company's workshops located in La Chaux De Fonds. Instead of Pierre Jaquet Droz and Jacques Vaucanson, a new team with the same vision and drive has emerged. Fighting everyday for the resources necessary to complete this ambitious project even justifying the expense to Mr. Hyek Sr. himself. Gulp! Mr. Manuel Emch, at the helm of the project, eloquently stated " I wanted to create a beautiful object of art that immediately stimulates emotion. My watchmakers and I spent over six years working on this timepiece to reproduce the exact movements of the pen on the paper." Yes, the managing director of Jaquet Droz was intimately involved with this new automaton. Mr. Emch put his complete weight into the project and his reputation at stake. Now who was managing the group of technical experts? Why did he dedicate six years of his life behind this project? It would take a thousand words to answer the second question but I believe this one picture summarizes it all. It is the picture on his desk. He did it for his family. For the pride that all fathers and husbands experience when they achieve something remarkable. To enjoy that moment captured in a loved one's eyes when a grueling task has been completed, like returning home from a long business trip or crossing the finish line after a marathon. So just who was this engineer? Do you see the new automaton " La Machine à écrire le Temps" in this picture? This was the prototype skeleton mechanism two years ago. Finally it is now almost completed and ready for production. Over a thousand individual pieces. The tolerances are so tight that each individual piece has to be customized for each automaton. Jaquet Droz has promised to produce 88 of these. The total production time will span years if not decades. The parallel story even includes the price tag. The customers of Pierre Jaquet Droz's automatons were European and Asian nobility who paid thousands of gold coins for these amazing robots. Now 200+ years later I suspect the pricing trend to continue. Thankfully Jaquet Droz did not adjust the price for inflation! A few more weeks and I'll bring you the first few pictures of this model. Enjoy, Mike This message has been edited by mkt33 on 2008-07-25 17:34:45 Respond to this post \|



By: Kong (registered) PM Posts: 1903	Thanks Mike. Very Interesting read. What is the size or height of the Jul 07 2008,18:51 PM new automaton? Kong Respond to this post \|



By: mkt33 (registered) PM Posts: 1392	Even I don't have that top secret information... Jul 08 2008,19:45 PM I know it looks good on a desktop though Give me a few weeks when everyone returns from their holidays! Cheers, Mike Respond to this post \|



By: Kong (registered) PM Posts: 1903	Understand, its watch-making holidays now. Thanks. [nt] Jul 08 2008,22:21 PM No message body Respond to this post \|



By: AnthonyTsai (registered) PM Posts: 6185	*Thanks for the heads-up intro on the upcoming JD automaton** Jul 07 2008,21:16 PM and can't wait to see the first pics here! Thanks Mike! Cheers, Anthony Respond to this post \|



By: Jokoh (registered) PM Posts: 2019	Ah ha....so the cat is finally out of the bag Jul 07 2008,22:34 PM OMG...but I can't remember where I file the pics...arghhh ;-) ...hehehe Thats one piece of ART. ! Hope to see the final product soon. Thanks Mike cheers joe Respond to this post \|



By: mkt33 (registered) PM Posts: 1392	I had to drag the cat out :-) Jul 08 2008,19:46 PM We've got to wait until August for the final product. I'll get the first pics for everyone! Cheers, Mike Respond to this post \|



By: Amr KSA (registered) PM Posts: 170	What a wonderful post Mike! Jul 10 2008,06:53 AM I didn't know the whole story on JD vs the Church... As you, know, I had the pleasure and privilege to see a working prototype of this mechanical wonderful in Basel. But as you can imagine, Manuel was strict about no cameras I have to say, I was totally blown away... It's totally different than any of JD's past automatons, but at the same time it conveys the same emotions. Interesting to note that J*D will price these slightly higher than their most complicated watch. But given the difficulty in producing even one unit, the waiting time must be terribly, terribly long Respond to this post \|



By: Jon (registered) PM Posts: 485	Mike, hello! Should I post my pics of this? Jul 10 2008,12:03 PM Nice tie-in to Asimov. We were all sworn to secrecy about that prototype model as I remember (and have honored it!). Laurent is such a nice guy and that is his family next to the prototype. It was nice of JD to trust us with this project. So, I have a few pics, but will wait until you post more. My GS is in Switzerland getting service (was running a little slow) and a NEW dial (in my type A way I wanted it to be smoother). And, as is keeping with the great JD executive team, Ms. Nathalie Laurent is shepharding it through the process. See you, Jon. Respond to this post \|