IMAGINE a robotic tailor and you probably think of something like Ginsberg and Cohen, the fractious cyborgs in Woody Allen's film Sleeper. Now a "sewbot" has been built for real and it's far more capable, and less crabby, than Allen's creations.
This is an impressive achievement; we have been trying to make machines that can manipulate soft materials for decades. The sewbot can measure, cut and stitch a garment with little help (see "Rag-trade robots: From body scan to bespoke suit"). We are entering a world of mass-produced tailor-made clothes.
There is admittedly something mundane, not to say comical, about a sewing robot. We still think of robots as doing macho and heroic things, like building cars or searching for earthquake survivors. The sewbot should help banish that myth and shape a more rounded view of robotics.
If you would like to reuse any content from New Scientist, either in print or online, please contact the syndication department first for permission. New Scientist does not own rights to photos, but there are a variety of licensing options available for use of articles and graphics we own the copyright to.