T EVIS i - AmericanRadioHistory.Com

A ROBOT
ELECTRONIC
TURTLE
Closeup view of "Timothy" the robot electronic turtle.
By JACK H. KUBANOFF
"T IMOTHY" is an electronic turtle
Iwith an ability to perform in a
manner comparable to his living
counterpart. He can see; he can interpret
information; he can follow
instructions; he can think; search for
food, memorize, and is able to learn.
He may be relied upon to retain what
he learns for an indefinite period of
time.
"Tim" was originally constructed as
a toy for my daughter but finally
emerged as a full -fledged problem in
cybernetics (a study of the control
circuitry of the human brain and
nervous system as applied to electronic
machines. These machines,
more commonly known as computers,
are devices which are rapidly replacing
the human element required in
the operation of various mechanical
devices.)
In order to obtain scientific information,
simplification, wherever possible,
always yields results which are
both tangible and upon which predictions
can be made. "Timothy" is a
light sensitive animal and understands
only such information as can be transmitted
to him by light. This handicap
in limiting his scope of operation is
overshadowed by the simplicity in circuitry
that it affords.
His fundamental operation was that
of following a light wherever it was
moved about the laboratory. For this
purpose, a form of light discriminator
was incorporated which will he fully
described later. To this function was
added the search for a form of sustenance.
This gave "Timothy" a real
purpose in life and elevated his status
to that of a computing machine. At
present, "Tim" is quite simple in circuitry
but his ability to perform complex
functions is remarkable. "Tim"
can duplicate many of the functions of
the human brain and nervous system
April, 1953
Mechanical and electrical construction data on a novel
toy for the children -which will provide hours of fun.
and he reacts in much the same manner
as his animal equivalent when he
is confused or fatigued.
In their proper sequence, "Timothy"
will do the following:
1. He will search for food (initially
he is hungry). In this mission, he will
determine the light word (in this case,
a light flashing at a certain rate) for
food and follow it to his nest. If any
other information is transmitted to
him, such as instructions for playing,
etc., he will turn away from that
source of information and continue
in the pursuit of sustenance. Changing
the word for food (by changing
the flashing rate and duration) only
causes some slight hesitation as the
repetition of the word provokes
"Timothy" into learning the new word
for food. The removal of any light he
has been memorizing for a period of
time will cause him to rely upon his
memory for the position of the light.
Upon arrival at his nest, he will obtain
sufficient sustenance for about
one -half hour of playing time.
2. "Timothy" will now follow a light
for play anywhere he may be required
to travel, using his memory to remember
the position of the light if it is
hidden from him and disregarding
words which indicate food sources.
The absence of the "play" light will
cause him to stop until he again intercepts
the words for play.
Thus "Timothy" can work or play
but his most unique characteristic is
his ability to learn and make vital
decisions concerning his own welfare.
"Timothy" has two memories, a vital
memory in which he learns a new
word and commits it to a memory
that retains it indefinitely and a statistical
memory, less intense, and
through which he retains information
regarding the position from which he
last received information. Both require
repetition and differ only in the
length of time they are retained for
reference. These memories have their
counterparts in real life -the statistical
memory, in which we obtain in-
formation and store it for future
reference but whose retentivity deteriorates
from failure to use the information,
and the longer vital memory
which is sympathetic in nature
and is retained for the duration of
our lives. It might be interesting to
note too that "Timothy's" memories
like their human counterparts are not
instantaneous in action, but require
constant repetition before the infor-
mation is completely stored. In the
same way, words for "Timothy" must
be repeated several times before he
can commit them fully to memory.
"Timothy's" vital memory may be
compared to the word "food," being
repeated in various dialects. At first,
he will find the new dialect strange,
but because it contains some similarity
to the other words for food he has
learned, he will learn the new word
and from that time he will respond
to the new dialect. "Timothy" can retain
in his vital memory only one
word at a time. As a result all previous
words are rejected in prefer-
ence to the newest word he has
learned. He obviously can become
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