Ryan Biek
How Robots And Humans Can Peacefully Coexist
The future doesn't have to include a robot showdown. Instead, we're teaching robots to safely interact with humans.
LEARN MOREIf robots give you the creeps, you might want to go to a Disney theme park now before the company's latest idea takes hold.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office recently published Disney's filing for a "huggable and interactive" robot that could entertain children in a safe way.
Many are comparing this idea to the TV show "Westworld." The show's plot centers around a fantasy land where people pay to play out their desires on life-like robots.
But Disney isn't HBO, and its real-life robots would probably be a lot less dark and graphic.
A Mickey robot that greets and hugs children certainly isn't a guarantee, either. Disney files hundreds of patents a year, and many ideas are never fully developed.
Instead, the huggable bot patent might just be a continuation of Disney's pushes for interactive tech, many of which don't involve the word "humanoid."
Last year, Disney got a patent for a lightbulb that would project interactive movie scenes in hotel rooms.
And in 2012, the company was awarded a patent to project photos or video on food. It would also shift the interactive elements if, for example, a piece cake is cut and taken away.
So far there's no word when, or if, the huggable robot characters will be in theme parks.
