William Grey Walter (1910-1977) was a neurophysiologist and robotician who lived in Bristol, England. Though his name is mostly forgotten nowadays, he built what is arguably the first real demonstration of artificial life way back in 1949. Here's a clip of the autonomous robots he built in 1949.
He named these robots Elmer and Elsie. They are widely regarded by many as the Adam and Eve of robotics. Its interesting to see how modern robots have not shown much advances from these forerunners. These robots were often described as tortoises because of the shape of their design as well as their slow rates of movement. They were capable of phototaxis and returning to recharge themselves once they run low on battery power.Whats even more interesting is that these robots were built without any processors or other digital components which are so widespread and essential in robot building nowadays.
He named these robots Elmer and Elsie. They are widely regarded by many as the Adam and Eve of robotics. Its interesting to see how modern robots have not shown much advances from these forerunners. These robots were often described as tortoises because of the shape of their design as well as their slow rates of movement. They were capable of phototaxis and returning to recharge themselves once they run low on battery power.Whats even more interesting is that these robots were built without any processors or other digital components which are so widespread and essential in robot building nowadays.
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