When I was asked to developed a robot during a workshop I wanted to make one that represents the human being trough its greatest virtue and weakness: it is imperfection.
The imperfection is what makes us unique.
Issues like human like behavior and artificial intelligent are far from my knowledge and technical abilities, so I decided to work inside the mechanical realm and make the robot as low technical as possible. Another point that has encouraged me to take this approach was that many robots are so well designed, so nicely done that all the focus goes to the technology. And this is all that I do not want to happen with my works. The technology, when necessary, is only a tool.
To stress the uniqueness of the robot I developed a robot with 3 legs that are slightly different. This creates a really rare and bizarre movement. Sometimes we have the impression that the legs are working against themselves, each one with a particular self-wish.
This dichotomy between work together and work against in order to create movement is very interesting to me in this piece. And maybe because of that it creates a strong emotional connection with the audience.
When you see the suffering machine you have the almost instinctive desire of helping the machine that tries to walk or exist.
The suffering machine is really suffering.
To stress the emotional connection with the audience the robot has an extra behavior that consists in a self-proud. When someone approaches the robot (maybe to help it) it reacts speeding the movement of the legs and finally falls. When it falls is like it is dead, it has killed itself. Better die then ask for help.
The "Suffering Machine" is full of contradictions and strange behaviors; maybe that is why so many people identify with it.
“Suffering machine” is a spider like robot with 3 legs. The 3 legs are made out of iron and each is mechanically different. There are several adjustable joints in each of the legs that allow it to flex and shape and thereby achieve different movements.
Three motors power the legs. Two of the motors have the same strong power (they were found in an old garage, probably they come from a broken car) and one quite week (this one I just found in the workshop, no idea from where).
The motors are connected to an arduino board that is connected to a distance sensor based in ultrasonic frequency.
The power comes from a cable connected to the electricity. As the motors need 12V there is a voltage regulator in between the electricity and the robot. A battery powers the arduino, witch works with 5v. The sensor, witch works with 3v, is powered after the current passed by to another voltage regulator (5v to 3v).
The robot, due to its really strange engineering does not properly walk. It just moves and tries to walk. So the cable is not really a problem. However time-to-time the robot needs help to get rid of the cable in its legs.
As the concept deals with issues like imperfection, failure, disappointment and pride, the robot is a raw robot.
It is imperfect.
It does not have any fancy shell or shiny skin.
That is the reason I decided to leave the robot structure and skeleton as raw and unpolished as possible. The robot shares one great characteristic of the humans: imperfection. |
