Disney filed a patent for a soft-bodied robot to interact safely with humans, especially the children. The robot will be programmed by a controller on its sensors and software installed in its "padded" body. Various tests have been made with a toy-sized robot, but the company would invest in designing an artificial intelligence (AI) that can act as an animated character.
The robot will be filled with liquid or gas state matter on its surface, so that, once the robot was bumped or impacted by a person, its sensors will provide feedback to compensate for the hit. So far, scientists have developed a Baymax-like character inspired from the animated movie, "Big Hero 6."
According to the filed document in the US Patent and Trademark Office, "The inventors recognized that there was a need for robots that can safely interact with humans and, particularly, with children." Moreover, that's why the investors understood that there's a need to develop soft body parts for the AI and combine passive and active elements to enhance human safety.
The creators of the patent said that as robots become cheaper and reliable, their prevalence in the world made them quite in-demand. The Telegraph mentioned that there were no dates specified by engineers to invent a robot for Disney, more so resurrecting Walt Disney himself.
Meanwhile, Fortune has debated whether parents are open to the idea of kids going to robotic theme parks and what's the real interaction out of the human-robot relationship in the park. Earlier last month, Disney did unveil its plans to introduce robotic characters in its theme parks. It would soon replace human characters impersonating Disney personalities and promises not to scare away little children.
Disney showed its footage of a robotic Pascal from the animation movie, "Tangled." But it seemed like Disney are interested in creating more of a Baymax-type of a robot with its soft body.
