Page 133 - Concise Encyclopedia of Robotics

to logical conclusions intolerable to humanity. This theme is called the
Frankenstein scenario, after the famous fictional android.
A vivid example of the Frankenstein scenario is provided by the novel
2001: A Space Odyssey, in which Hal,an artificially intelligent computer on
a space ship, tries to kill an astronaut. Hal somehow malfunctions, be-
comes paranoid, and believes that Dave, the astronaut, is intent on the
computer’s destruction. Ironically, Hal’s paranoia brings about the very
misfortune Hal dreads, because Dave is forced to disable Hal to save his
own life. Function
A machine might react logically to preserve its own existence when
humans try to “pull the plug.” This could take the form of apparently
hostile behavior, in which robot controllers collectively decide that humans
must be eliminated. Because robots are supposed to preserve themselves
according to Asimov’s three laws, a robotic survival instinct can be useful,
but only up to a certain point. A robot must never harm a human being;
that is another of Asimov’s laws.
Another example of the Frankenstein scenario is the team of computers
in Colossus: The Forbin Project. In this case, the machines have the best
interests of humanity in mind. War, the computers decide, cannot be
allowed. Humans, the computers conclude, require structure in their lives,
and must therefore have all their behavior strictly regulated. The result is
a totalitarian state run by a machine.
See also ASIMOV’S THREE LAWS.
FRONT LIGHTING
In a robotic vision system, the term front lighting refers to illumination of
objects in the work environment using a light source located at or near the
robot’s own imaging sensors. The light from the source therefore reflects
from the surfaces of the objects under observation before reaching the
sensors. Because the location of the lamp is near the sensors, the robot
sees minimal, or no, shadow effect in its work environment.
Front lighting is used in situations where the surface details,particularly
differences in color or shading, of observed objects are of interest or
significance. For texture to show up, however, side lighting works best.
Front lighting does not work particularly well in situations involving
translucent or semitransparent objects, if their internal structure must be
analyzed. Back lighting works best in these cases. Compare BACK LIGHTING
and SIDE LIGHTING.

FUNCTION
A function is a mapping between set of objects or numbers. Functions are
important in mathematics, and also in logic.

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