Robot chef that can cook any of 2,000 meals at tap of a button to go on sale in 2017

[Reefa]

Stirring, adjusting the temperature, pouring and adding ingredients are all basic skills for a chef but they’re slightly harder to achieve for a robot.

However, that’s not the case for this pair of robotic hands, which could be set to revolutionise cooking and kitchen operations.

At present it’s able to knock up a crab bisque, which it creates by replicating the exact movements of a professional chef.

Creator Moley Robotics says that when the commercial version launches in 2017 users will be able to select one of 2,000 dishes from their phone and the robotic hands in the automated kitchen will make it.

If the robot is successful, it could mean we can simply tap a button on our phone to have a meal prepared in time for us coming home from work.

Everything in the automated kitchen has been designed and built from scratch. This allows the hands to be able to pick up and put down utensils, stir food a pan, and then safely turn a hob to the correct temperature.

The robotic hands, which are notoriously difficult to create, use 20 motors, 24 joints and 129 sensors to create the same range of movements that a human hand can make.

The cooking process was recorded in 3D in a special studio where each motion was captured.

The movements of the chef were then transferred into algorithms which could be re-created by the robot.

It isn’t the first robot which has been developed to work in a kitchen but the makers claim it is the first fully automated kitchen set-up to exist.

Other robots that are able to handle the heat of the kitchen include the Cooki, which uses a robotic arm to make meals from pre-portioned ingredients.

Researchers from Cornell University are teaching robots to understand instructions that are given to them by voice rather than a computer programme. So far they have been able to teach one robot how to boil water in a pan.

Meanwhile, in China, Chef Cui has been helping to slice noodles.

Ultimately the creators aim to build an app store for food, which will allow those who purchase the system to download recipes and instructions for the robot.

Mark Oleynik, who founded Moley Robotics, said that it is his aim to use robotics and other technologies that can help to make our lives easier.

“Whether you love food and want to explore different cuisines, or fancy saving a favourite family recipe for everyone to enjoy for years to come, the Automated Kitchen can do this,” said Oleynik.

“It is not just a labour saving device – it is a platform for our creativity. It can even teach us how to become better cooks.”

http://factor-tech.com/robotics/17437-robot-chef-that-can-cook-any-of-2000-meals-at-tap-of-a-button-to-go-on-sale-in-2017/

[freeforever03]

This is amazing. The homes of the future will be totally automated with cleaning, cooking, serving, etc. robots.Couple that with solar energy, automated recycling, energy conservation, etc. and the world will be a very different place.

[CODYQX4]

This is amazing. The homes of the future will be totally automated with cleaning, cooking, serving, etc. robots.Couple that with solar energy, automated recycling, energy conservation, etc. and the world will be a very different place.

I want to be frozen now just to experience it sooner.

I can't cook for shit and hate doing this and all that other drudgery, after coming home from work. There just isn't enough time in life to not invent machines to do all this extra work, especially as more and more people end up with 2+ hour commutes and 65 hour work weeks.

Someone needs to make one that will pick up tree limbs, rake leaves, and cut the grass. That takes awhile with a big yard.

[clubhouse]

I was watching that on BBC World News this morning...Pretty amazing stuff.