TED演講者：Robert Katzschmann / 羅伯特·卡奇曼

演講標(biāo)題：The future of machines that move like animals / 機(jī)械的未來(lái)：可以像動(dòng)物那樣移動(dòng)

內(nèi)容概要：Imagine a boat that propels by moving its "tail" from side to side, just like a fish. That's the kind of machine that TED Fellow Robert Katzschmann's lab builds: soft-bodied robots that imitate natural movements with artificial, silent muscles. He lays out his vision for machines that take on mesmerizing new forms, made of softer and more lifelike materials -- and capable of discovering unknown parts of the world.

想象一下，一艘船通過(guò)像魚(yú)一樣擺動(dòng)“尾巴”前進(jìn)。TED Fellow 羅伯特·卡奇曼（Robert Katzschmann）的研究團(tuán)隊(duì)就設(shè)計(jì)了這么一款機(jī)械：利用人造、安靜的肌肉模仿自然動(dòng)作的軟體機(jī)器人。他給我們展示了對(duì)機(jī)械的展望，它們會(huì)擁有令人眼花繚亂的新形態(tài)，由更柔軟、更仿生的材料制成，還可以探索世界的未知之域。

*******************************************

【1】Modern engineering focuses on rotating motors to power almost any machine.

現(xiàn)代工程的所有機(jī)器 幾乎都是用旋轉(zhuǎn)電機(jī)驅(qū)動(dòng)的。

【2】It has taken about 200 years for motors to become what they are today.

我們花了 200 年才把電機(jī) 發(fā)展成今天這個(gè)樣子。

【3】And they're still loud and unnatural in their ways.

它們依舊“我行我素”地 制造噪音、格格不入。

【4】The constant noise of machines causes problems for living beings everywhere, both in the ocean and also on land.

機(jī)械不斷發(fā)出的噪音 讓各處的生物頭疼不已, 海里的、地上的。

【5】Humans who are constantly exposed to noise can become stressed, depressed and even develop tinnitus.

長(zhǎng)時(shí)間暴露在噪聲中的人類(lèi) 會(huì)焦慮、抑郁, 甚至?xí)忌隙Q。

【6】In contrast, there are no rotating motors in nature.

然而, 自然界中并沒(méi)有旋轉(zhuǎn)電機(jī)。

【7】Nature often smoothly, glides, swims or wiggles, without the rattling of rigid parts or the loud rubbing of surfaces.

自然界的生物通常流暢地 滑動(dòng)、游動(dòng)、擺動(dòng), 沒(méi)有硬質(zhì)部件的響聲, 也沒(méi)有表面之間的摩擦噪音。

【8】I believe we can and should rehaul our approach to how we make machines.

我相信我們可以, 也應(yīng)該改變我們制造機(jī)械的方式。

【9】Instead of using rigid or unnatural materials, what if we made biomimetic machines?

不再使用剛性或非自然的材料, 而是制造仿生機(jī)器,會(huì)怎么樣？

【10】Machines made of soft or living materials that are adaptive and safe to use in a variety of everyday tasks?

由柔性或生物活性材料制成的機(jī)器, 適用于各種日?；顒?dòng)中的安全使用。

【11】Can you imagine boats or submarines that propel themselves by moving their tails from side to side, just like fish do?

你可以想象船只或者潛水艇通過(guò) 像魚(yú)一樣擺動(dòng)尾巴推進(jìn)嗎？

【12】So to imitate these natural movements, we have to replace rotating motors and fast, spinning propellers with artificial muscles.

要做到這種自然的動(dòng)作, 我們不應(yīng)該使用旋轉(zhuǎn)電機(jī)和 快速旋轉(zhuǎn)的螺旋槳, 而應(yīng)該使用人造肌肉。

【13】And I can tell you this, this can be done.

我可以告訴你的是, 我們真的可以做到這一點(diǎn)。

【14】Our team of researchers at MIT and ETH Zurich has started to develop less disruptive robots by introducing a new, biomimetic way of moving through water.

我們來(lái)自麻省理工學(xué)院和 蘇黎世聯(lián)邦理工學(xué)院的研究團(tuán)隊(duì) 已經(jīng)開(kāi)始研發(fā)一款 較容易融入現(xiàn)況的機(jī)器人, 引入了一種全新的 在水中游動(dòng)的仿生方式。

【15】We created a biomimetic robotic fish.

我們?cè)O(shè)計(jì)了一款仿生機(jī)器魚(yú)。

【16】Her name is Sophie.

她叫蘇菲（Sophie）。

【17】She's the first demonstration of a fully untethered, soft robot that can explore the ocean without the need for propellers.

她是首個(gè)完全無(wú)需外界電力的 柔性機(jī)器人示例, 可以在沒(méi)有螺旋槳的情況下 探索海洋。

【18】Sophie pumps water back and forth within a highly deformable tail.

蘇菲用她高度柔韌的尾巴前后劃水。

【19】Her tail movement imitates the natural swimming motion of real fish.

她尾部的動(dòng)作模仿了 真實(shí)魚(yú)類(lèi)自然游動(dòng)的動(dòng)作。

【20】Sophie's natural design allows her to closely monitor aquatic life.

蘇菲貼近自然的外形讓她可以 近距離監(jiān)控海洋生態(tài)。

【21】Now, there's a catch.

但是有一個(gè)問(wèn)題。

【22】Sophie is energy-hungry and loud.

蘇菲需要消耗大量能量, 還會(huì)制造噪音。

【23】Yes, we successfully managed to build a robot that swims like a fish, but...

沒(méi)錯(cuò),我們做出了一個(gè) 可以像魚(yú)那樣游泳的機(jī)器人, 但是……

【24】Sophie requires a motor and a pump to properly work.

蘇菲的正常運(yùn)作還是需要 一臺(tái)電機(jī)和一臺(tái)泵。

【25】Now we are replacing that motor and pump, which is noisy and not desired in such a way, we're replacing it with silent, artificial muscles.

我們不想再用這震耳欲聾、 令人討厭的電機(jī)和泵了。 而是用安靜的人造肌肉代替。

【26】These muscles are called HASELs.

這些肌肉名為 HASEL。

【27】They directly and efficiently convert electrical energy into muscle contractions.

它們可以直接高效地把電能 轉(zhuǎn)化成肌肉收縮。

【28】Take a look at this large muscle we made to lift and lower a leg.

來(lái)看一下我們做的這一大塊肌肉, 可以把腿提起、放下。

【29】A stack of flexible sheets contracts and relaxes just like a thigh muscle does.

一疊彈性薄片收縮、舒張, 如同大腿肌肉。

【30】Let me tell you how this works.

我來(lái)告訴你們它是如何運(yùn)作的。

【31】So we take laminated sheets to create pouches.

我們用夾層薄片 做出這樣的小格子。

【32】We have several of these pouches within a single muscle.

一塊肌肉上有很多小格子。

【33】We now take a conductive ink and spray-coat that ink onto these pouches, and then we inject them with oil.

然后把導(dǎo)電油墨 噴涂在小格子上, 再注入油。

【34】After having done this, we have a conductive ink that acts like a flexible electrode that squeezes these liquid-filled pouches when a voltage is applied.

做完這幾步以后, 導(dǎo)電油墨就會(huì)變成活動(dòng)的電極, 通電后擠壓這些充滿液體的小格子。

【35】Now, just like muscles with real fish, we take this kind of filmed muscles and pair them up as antagonistic pairs and put them into our soft robotic fish design.

和真實(shí)魚(yú)類(lèi)的肌肉一樣, 我們把這種薄膜肌肉 與相反電極配對(duì), 放入我們的柔性機(jī)器魚(yú)設(shè)計(jì)。

【36】We 3D-print the hull and the spine of this fish, using soft and rigid materials.

我們使用柔性和剛性材料 3D 打印出 機(jī)器魚(yú)的身體和脊柱。

【37】The fish now swims silently by electrically charging the muscles inside of the fish in an alternating fashion from one side to the other.

這樣機(jī)器魚(yú)就可以安靜地游動(dòng), 由電力驅(qū)動(dòng)體內(nèi)的肌肉, 與之前的做法截然相反。

【38】To improve our designs, we do not rely on tedious trial and error fabrication.

為了改進(jìn)我們的設(shè)計(jì), 我們不會(huì)依賴于 枯燥的測(cè)試和反復(fù)制造故障。

【39】Instead, our software rapidly simulates and optimizes a design for performance before we have to build it.

相反,我們的軟件 在我們將其投入生產(chǎn)前 就快速模擬、優(yōu)化了性能的設(shè)計(jì)。

【40】Our approach creates a continuous design space that interpolates between existing fish designs to create new designs.

我們的方法為 既有的機(jī)器魚(yú)設(shè)計(jì)和 新設(shè)計(jì)創(chuàng)作之間預(yù)留了 一塊銜接連貫的設(shè)計(jì)空間。

【41】Our optimization then explores this continuous design space to come up with new and faster creatures we have not seen before.

我們的優(yōu)化過(guò)程會(huì)探索 這塊連貫的設(shè)計(jì)空間, 更快地創(chuàng)造出前所未有的新生物。

【42】Robots one day might even be made of living muscle cells.

有朝一日我們可以用 活肌細(xì)胞制造機(jī)器人。

【43】Wouldn't it be great if such a living robot would then heal itself, just like human muscles do?

如果這個(gè)“活機(jī)器人”可以自愈, 就像人類(lèi)的肌肉那樣,不是很好嗎？

【44】I can tell you this.

我可以告訴你。

【45】Starting from muscle cells, we can already print, grow and stimulate muscles.

我們從肌細(xì)胞開(kāi)始, 已經(jīng)具備了打印、培養(yǎng)、 刺激肌肉的能力。

【46】We are now beginning to make these muscles larger, longer-lasting and controllable.

我們現(xiàn)在想把這些肌肉做得更大、 更持久、更可控。

【47】It’s a fascinating challenge to engineer a standalone muscle without a supporting organism that provides this muscle with an immune system.

設(shè)計(jì)制造出一塊獨(dú)立的肌肉, 而這塊肌肉并沒(méi)有 這會(huì)是一個(gè)很吸引人的挑戰(zhàn)。

【48】These living muscles efficiently convert chemical energy that comes from nutrients into muscle contractions.

這些活肌把來(lái)自營(yíng)養(yǎng)素的化學(xué)能量 高效地轉(zhuǎn)化為肌肉收縮。

【49】Living muscles can eventually become sustainable and biodegradable machines that decrease emissions and pollution all while actually truly mimicking nature.

這樣,活肌最終就會(huì)形成可持續(xù)、 可生物降解的機(jī)械, 減少碳排放和污染, 僅僅是通過(guò)真正地 模仿自然界這一過(guò)程。

【50】So all of this, what I've told you, is possible with the knowledge that researchers and engineers have today.

我剛剛介紹的所有內(nèi)容, 借助研究人員和工程師 如今擁有的知識(shí)都是可能的。

【51】I believe we have to rethink every machine ever invented from a holistic perspective.

我相信我們?cè)搹囊粋€(gè)全面的角度 重新考慮每一臺(tái) 過(guò)去被研發(fā)出來(lái)的機(jī)器。

【52】We have to rethink what the machine should do and what it should not do.

我們需要重新考慮 機(jī)器該做些什么, 不該做些什么。

【53】I think we want machines that safely integrate with us, improve our quality of life.

我覺(jué)得我們希望機(jī)器 可以安全地融入我們, 提高我們的生活質(zhì)量。

【54】All the while, we respect nature, and don't pollute our world with loud noises.

我們必須一直尊重自然, 不要用噪音污染我們的世界。

【55】So let's reimagine machines to take on forms we have never thought of before and discover places we have never been to before.

讓我們重新想象 未曾設(shè)想過(guò)的機(jī)器形態(tài), 探索尚未踏足之地。

【56】Thank you.

謝謝。

【57】(Applause)