MH-1, a computer-operated mechanical hand

Abstract

MH-i is a motorized and sensitized servomanipulator operated by the TX-O computer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It serves as an experimental vehicle to explore the feasibility of direct relations between a digital computer and the physical world with which this computer is concerned. Usually, a human interpreter stands between the computer and the physical world. Instead, the TX-O computer in the MH-1 system is programmed to perform by itself some of the functions normally assigned to the human intermediary; namely, to perceive the world, to appreciate it, and to determine a reasonable course of action after a goal has been specified for the hand. The data processing tools used are, rather than numerical operations on quantitative signals, pattern recognition and simulation of higher cognitive processes such as awareness and understanding. This paper describes some of the experiments performed with MH-1 and the mechanisms upon which the capabilities of MH-1 are based.