Robot successfully hitchhikes across Canada

A book club I attend spent a whole year on the theme of rivers. Believe it or not, one of the titles we grown-ups dove into was a children’s book from 1941 called “Paddle-to-the-Sea“, by Holling Clancy Holling.

In it, an young Indian lad carves a paddler in a canoe. He sets it into the snows of Nipignon, Ontario, where the spring thaw carries the craft into Lake Superior. The plot line takes the bobbling boat through the whole water system of the Great Lakes, all the way to the sea.

These “let’s take a journey of learning” books seem somewhat dated now. But it’s fun – lovingly detailed with natural and human aspects of the route.

In our more-cynical time, I had trouble with the idea that not one of the different people who encounter the boat on its multi-year journey would vandalize the canoe or even take it home for their kids. “Ha!, That would never happen today!” was my thought.

But I have to take it back. A robot, no less, has just made it across Canada as a hitchhiker dependent on the kindness (or curiosity) of strangers.

Meet hitchBot.

I may look young but I have an old soul.

As a robot, I enjoy listening to electronic music. I currently have Mr. Roboto on repeat but the Blueman Group and Kraftwerk are also amazing. I was conceived in Port Credit, Ontario. My guardians are Dr. David Smith (McMaster University), and Dr. Frauke Zeller (Ryerson University). Growing up I was surrounded by bright, intelligent, and supportive people who I am proud to call my family. I have one sibling, kulturBOT, who travels from one art gallery to the next, tweeting photos of the artwork and of the venues. kulturBOT is definitely not as good-looking or well-rounded as I am: I enjoy reading a lot of books, and I’m especially interested in philosophy and astrophysics. It certainly is an interesting mix — that is what happens when a robot is influenced by both the sciences and humanities. Simply put, I am a free-spirited robot who wants to explore Canada and meet new friends along the way. I am an avid instagrammer and tweeter. On my downtime, I can appreciate a good game of trivia and would never pass up any opportunities to bake desserts.

hitchBOT from hitchBOT on Vimeo.

According to their initial press release of July 16, the team that created hitchBot did it to…

…explore topics in human-robot-interaction and to test technologies in artificial intelligence and speech recognition and processing.

Developed as a sociable robot, hitchBOT’s creators are encouraging Canadians to pick up this friendly stranger, should they see it on the roadside this summer.

“Usually, we are concerned with whether we can trust robots. This project asks: can robots trust human beings?” says Frauke Zeller.

hitchBOT will be able to communicate with those who pick it up; drivers can ask hitchBOT about its creation and personal history, and ask about hitchBOT’s family.

“hitchBOT will have to rely on people to get around, including being strapped into a car seat belt,” says David Harris Smith. “We expect hitchBOT to be charming and trustworthy enough in its conversation to secure rides across Canada.”

hitchBOT’s final destination is the Open Space artist-run centre in Victoria, British Columbia.

Relying solely on hitchhiking to reach its destination, hitchBOT’s family does not know how long the cross-country trip will take. However, the robot is equipped with GPS and a 3G wireless connection, should it go astray.

HitchBot finished its 6,000 km trek on Aug 17th and collected 35,000 Twitter followers along the way.

Tags: canada, hitchBot, hitchhiking, robots, technology, travel, trust