Robonaut 2 - General Motors' space robot
A flirtatiously eyed, athletic handsome man carries out all commands without murmuring or complaining. Cathy Coleman is in close contact with this world's most perfect man, and their relationship has only just begun.
Though they've never been to a movie theater together, and there's always a handbag-ready meal for dinner, Cathy's best part is that her new love in her life is committed to doing all the jobs she hates - including cleaning.
READ ALSO
GM supports electrical technology in Asia
Futuristic car from General Motors
In fact, going to the movies or having an ice cream until 2012 will not be such a simple matter for Cathy, as she spends 425 km (264 miles) above the earth on board the International Space Station (ISS), and her partner is a humanoid robot created in a collaboration between NASA and the car manufacturer GM / Chevrolet.
Robonaut 2, better known as R2, will assist astronauts on the International Space Station with their daily activities while making it easier for Chevrolet to develop cutting-edge 
control, vision and sensor technologies used to create safer cars and workplaces.
“We pinch ourselves every day to see if this is really happening. We feel like we live in amazing times and we are changing the world thanks to robots. Cutting-edge robotics technology is extremely promising, not only for GM / Chevrolet or NASA. The R2 program gives us the opportunity to find many ways to put this technology into practice, ”said Marty Linn, GM / Chevrolet Chief Robotics Engineer.
The R2 program is also a pioneering study of the possibilities of developing the design of artificial limbs and even exoskeletons for injured soldiers or people with reduced mobility, and perhaps also the use of advanced sensors, similar to those used in parking systems. Engineers are also looking to facilitate the work of production line workers who lift huge loads.
Washing dishes or buttoning shirt buttons are everyday activities that each of us does without thinking about them, but for R2 engineers they are very interesting activities. R2 is the most dexterous robot ever built because it has human-like hands. All the tools and equipment on the space station are designed to be used by real humans, so R2 must be able to perform activities in the same way as his companions.
"R2's arms and hands have joints just like humans," adds Linn, "thumbs have 4 degrees of freedom like humans, so this is a technology adapted and used in medical research." It is widely believed that primitive humans had the ability to use tools thanks to a separate thumb from the rest of the fingers, so the R2 hand was designed with the use of this skill in mind.
“Unlike many human-like robots before, R2 has thin fingers and thumbs that resemble a human thumb. In humans, muscles are attached to bones by a tendon. The tendons in R2 are used for 
joints of joints with sensors and actuators in the hand. This allows the robot controllers to sense the reaction force more precisely and to continually adjust the grip of the hand to each action R2 is doing. ”
R2 shows off this skill by shaking hands with visitors who visit GM Michigan's GM Tech Center - regardless of hand size and grip strength, R2 adjusts automatically.
R2 can only have a torso, head and shoulders and be mounted on a base, but not only Cathy Coleman fell in love with it. Hundreds of children and students who saw the robot in action as part of NASA's global educational program now show a tremendous interest in technical science.
