Robonaut 2 Prepares for Space Duty

By DE Editors

The Robonaut 2 technology could be used to develop advanced safety systems for future vehicles, improved safety and efficiency in manufacturing plants.    Photo courtesy of GM

General Motors and NASA engineers are preparing Robonaut 2 for its planned November mission to the International Space Station.  

The engineering teams are validating some of the technologies on the humanoid robot, including advanced sensor and vision systems. GM engineers on site at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston are sharing their results with colleagues at GM’s Technical Center in Warren, MI,  so teams working on cars and trucks can develop safety technologies for the future.

  Engineers in GM’s Research and Development operations plan to use the findings to help develop technologies to make plants safer. R2’s technologies also have applications for sensor development, such as enhancements to lane departure warning, side blind zone alert, adaptive cruise control and rear park assist.

GM and NASA engineers have been working together on the R2 program since 2007.  The partnership has generated 34 patents to date. Robonaut 2 even has his own Twitter account at twitter.com/AstroRobonaut.

Chris Ihrke, senior project engineer for General Motors,  disassembling an R2 arm to prepare for electronics upgrades. Photo courtesy of GM