Artificial Intelligence in Space Race: CIMON
Considering the types of equipment sent to the International Space Station today, there is an equipment list determined according to needs. According to this list, there are spare parts, food and medical supplies, recording and test equipment. However, to date, a spherical robot weighing 5 kilograms has not been included in this list, until CIMON, which IBM developed with Watson technology and will assume the task of assisting astronauts throughout space travel, is revealed.
The artificial intelligence robot CIMON, which has a face created with minimal lines and expressing its expressions with animations, was recently sent to the International Space Station SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. CIMON weighs 5 kilograms and can move in a gravity-free environment thanks to its 14 internal fans. Throughout the movement process, thanks to the built-in navigation cameras, it determines what and how far the objects around it are and ensures a safe movement. English-speaking CIMON was developed by Airbus and IBM for the German National Space Agency DLR. CIMON, the artificial intelligence astronaut assistant with the ability to fly, developed with IBM's Watson technology, is the only one of its kind.
CIMON, the first experiment and initiative of the space travel collaboration between robots and astronauts, recognizes its team members and interacts with them using the camera and microphone it has. CIMON was created to help astronaut teams carry out scientific experiments in space travel, document their working processes with photographs, video and audio recordings, and follow astronauts' instructions.
CIMON not only answers the questions, but also creates alternative questions in order to understand the questions more accurately and provides more accurate answers according to the answers it receives. CIMON has a character structure as well as dialogue, video recording and conversion of voice data to written data. He can make jokes, play games and generate emotional responses according to the dialogue structure in question.
Empathetic Companion Than a Technical Assistant: CIMON 2
Designed in the German Aviation Center, the robot uses IBM artificial intelligence. The first CIMON robot to be developed was actually an example of the cooperation of humans and robots in space. But when CIMON 2 got the "Watson Tone Analyzer" feature from the IBM Cloud, the robot became able to understand and react to human emotions.
“With the help of IBM Watson Tone Analyzer, he will now be able to assess the emotions of astronauts and respond appropriately if desired. This allows CIMON-2 to be more of an empathetic companion than a technical assistant”
says Matthias Biniok of IBM Watson Architect.
Biniok says that according to research, missions in space can be performed more comfortably with the help of a colleague.