If science fiction has taught us anything, it’s that sometimes robots have feelings too. And while experiencing the euphoric rush of true love may be some years away for our hardwired friends, the subtleties of physical touch may already be at their robo-fingertips.
You may find that hard to believe, but Ford offers some definitive – if not slightly unexpected – proof towards this claim in the form of a driver’s seat and dashboard buttons.
Now before you greet this with an eye roll and a “thanks, but April Fools Day is a ways away still,” consider why your Ford’s seat, its buttons, handles and dials all feel the way they do. It’s all certainly not based on one person’s individual preferences, but rather on a complex system created by engineers, and tested by a robot helper we like to call RUTH.
Talk about being overly sensitive
Hailing from Europe, RUTH is one seriously-sophisticated machine. An acronym for Robotized Unit for Tactility and Haptics, she operates by touching and testing surfaces inside prototypes of new Fords. Equipped with a robotic arm and a finger-like probe that measures variables such as pressure, temperature, roughness and resistance to force, RUTH can predict whether customers will like how a new seat, a steering wheel, or a centre console feels.
It really comes down to desirable tactile properties. RUTH is taught how to measure such things through a poke here and a push there – her findings may even alter the way you push your A/C buttons.
Finely tuned for the finer things
In a recent project, RUTH was also brought in to Ford’s European Research Centre in Aachen, Germany to take a new steering wheel design for a spin.
“We compared the results of a customer clinic on steering wheels with the readings Ruth had given us,” says Mark Spingler, Ford technical expert, vehicle interior technologies. “RUTH’s readings on which steering wheels were most appealing to customers were 92 per cent accurate, which is really outstanding.”
Interestingly, RUTH’s body is built to fit on the seat, while a jointed, flexible arm lets her touch any surface within reach – a series of measurement instruments are affixed to her arm. Whether it’s gauging friction, texture, and roughness of wood, plastic, and metal (and how differing temperatures can even affect those sensations), RUTH picks up on the subtleties.
Customer comfort is only half of the story for RUTH though – she’s also trying to get a feel for how Ford cars can convey a sense of luxury through these tactile sensations.
“Perceptions of quality can be based on the materials used and the efforts and craftsmanship customers feel have gone into the product,” continues Spingler. “RUTH allows us to do what was previously impossible: measure a human-based evaluation.”
Looks like RUTH is one robot who truly understands the human touch.