3 ms·

Whenever I see a news story about Amazon workers and robots, I'm reminded of Amazon's "workers in a cage" patent [1]. It has spawned a bunch of funny (or sad?)

by Jerry2 7y ago

Whenever I see a news story about Amazon workers and robots, I'm reminded of Amazon's "workers in a cage" patent [1]. It has spawned a bunch of funny (or sad?) "Amazon Wagie Cage" memes as a result [2][3]... and even an art exhibit of a real-sized patent drawing [4]. Needless to say, I shop a lot less on Amazon these days and try to buy from other shops whenever possible. [1] https://www.seattletimes.com/business/amazon/amazon-has-patented-a-system-that-would-put-workers-in-a-cage-on-top-of-a-robot/ https://www.seattletimes.com/business/amazon/amazon-has-pate... [2] https://i.imgur.com/QGeNley.png https://i.imgur.com/QGeNley.png [3] https://i.imgur.com/LuEpNL4.jpg https://i.imgur.com/LuEpNL4.jpg [4] https://i.imgur.com/EhoEHqG.jpg https://i.imgur.com/EhoEHqG.jpg

cperciva 7y ago
Amazon's "workers in a cage" patent You do realize that the cage is there to protect the worker, right? If you think "worker in a cage, on top of a robot" is terrible, have you ever seen a construction crane? It is literally a robot with a cage in which a worker sits -- and just like the (never implemented!) patent from Amazon, the point of the cage is to protect the worker.
- im3w1l 7y ago
  Having a comfy chair instead of a metal bench and glass instead of wire net makes cranes look a lot nicer than that concept art.
  - cperciva 7y ago
    Aren't patent drawings supposed to show only the essential functional elements?
    - im3w1l 7y ago
      Maybe. I personally think it's silly. Still, that's where I think the critique comes from.
- iamaelephant 7y ago
  Thanks for clearing that up, cperciva FC Ambassador.
  - cperciva 7y ago
    I highly doubt anyone working in an Amazon Fulfillment Centre won the Putnam Competition. ;-)
deleted 7y ago
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