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Where are the robotic bricklayers?

constructionphysics.substack.com

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Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#31

Post by spyckie2 »

The value of work is not in the work done; it's in the decisions being made. It's the ability to handle edge cases, to work your way through ambiguity, to "unstuck" a stuck situation, and to resolve tricky unforeseen issues.

If you build a robot that only handles the main workflow and can't handle any of the exceptions, you're not automating anything; you're building a convenience tool. Basically, you're removing some of the labor part of the job, but still keeping the decision making part of the job for humans.

This is both economically unviable and largely unpopular. You're not reducing labor costs by much, because you still need humans around. And workers lose control over their job, and have to "work around" the robot's limitations. Instead of being freed up to do more work, they become babysitters of machines that they have to oversee so it doesn't mess up everything.

This is why partial robotic systems don't really exist; either it's a nifty tool that speeds up a small repeatable process of your work, or it's building the entire house.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#32

Post by Permit »

egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

> But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of ordinary people.

Can you think of any other reasons that people might believe something like automated driving is right around the corner?

Or is "contempt for the skill and intelligence of ordinary people" the only reason one might believe this?

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#33

Post by somenewaccount1 »

egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

I agree with you in general, but not about the hamburgers. https://www.creator.rest/

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#34

Post by andrewmcwatters »

egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

I don't have contempt for the skills; I have great respect for the skills. I have contempt for the prices of things.

If construction costs are cheaper than ever (are they really?) why can't I buy a box to live in without spending $300,000?

Why is the permits process nationally broken? And despite being skilled, that doesn't mean they're informed: why do contractors not know what they're supposed to do? Why do the people handing out permits not know what they're doing?

See also: trying to renovate or buy a home in Arizona.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#35

Post by nashashmi »

Probably the biggest problem in automating construction is not just that every job is in a different location but these materials are so bulky and heavy and composite that the cost is not in the labor of installation but moving the materials to location.

Asphalt paving requires 4 guys to level the asphalt but a truck to pour it. The best you can get is an attachment on the truck to level the asphalt. This attachment is called a paving machine. And it requires an operator and two-man crew to maintain. So no real advantage besides workers won’t be tired. And the leveling will be done super well.

Other automation problems are similar. If there is no need for precision, there is no need for automation.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#36

Post by inasio »

punnerud wrote: post #20
lordnacho wrote: post #12

Seems like it's another mini-mills waiting to happen, with perhaps ML as the required technological innovation. Current low hanging fruit is long, straight walls. So a few customers will bite, using the human masons (who are paid more) as the high quality, judgement based service. The easy sections will be done by the machine. Over time the machine maker uses their foothold to encroach on the more juicy work. As they…

Combine ML with a wire system used for stadium camera, and you get a cheap robot that is both strong and have a long range Wire camera example: https://youtu.be/j0K3XUqZI9w?t=187

They state in the article that the main problem is not in positioning the bricks/blocks, but on handling the cement mixture (non-Newtonian fluid...)

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#38

Post by ianbicking »

yarg wrote: post #21
robotresearcher wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And yet, almost no houses at all are 3D printed. People are very good at bricklaying, and are paid a reasonable rate by the hour. No one has made a machine that can beat that feature set. edit: more great features of human brickies that robots are terrible at: very small working volume; very small and agile footprint; safe for other humans to work near; half-day built-in power supply.

Which is still infinitely more than 30 years ago.

Are there buildings that aren't demonstrations that are being printed? There's always been demonstration homes and buildings using novel techniques, and that's no indication that the technique will go anywhere.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#39

Post by OnlineGladiator »

somenewaccount1 wrote: post #33
egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

I agree with you in general, but not about the hamburgers. https://www.creator.rest/

That thing is well-known to break all the time. You can even find people on Yelp talking about how the robot is broken. It's mostly old technology anyway; it's still a fundamentally mechatronic system similar to what AMF made several decades ago.

https://youtu.be/FmXLqImT1wE

That one didn't make money either, and it also broke a lot, and had all sorts of other problems. Believe it or not, the core technology has improved a lot less than you might think. They may have put a prettier skin on it but it's still the wrong approach.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#40

Post by [deleted] »

egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

[deleted]
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