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posted by CoolHand on Tuesday March 14 2017, @02:52AM   Printer-friendly
from the asimov's-ghost-is-disappointed dept.

El Reg reports

The family of a repair technician killed in an auto parts factory accident is suing five robotics companies they say are responsible.

In a suit [PDF] filed to the Western Michigan US District Court this week, the family of Wanda Holbrook claims that the companies that built, installed, and maintained the robotics at a trailer hitch assembly plant should be held liable for her fatal accident at the plant in 2015.

According to the lawsuit, Holbrook, a journeyman technician, was performing routine maintenance on one of the robots on the trailer hitch assembly line when the unit unexpectedly activated and attempted to load a part into the unit being repaired, crushing Holbrook's head.

Now Holbrook's estate is suing the three companies that built the robots (Fanuc America, Nachi Robotic, and Lincoln Electric) for failing to design adequate safeguards and protections into the robots. They're also suing two other companies that installed and maintained the unit (Flex-N-Gate, Prodomax) for failing to prevent an accident they say would have been avoided had safety been a higher priority.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 14 2017, @07:41PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 14 2017, @07:41PM (#479095)

    Also - does this mean that escalators should stop working? Cars refusing to drive less than a few miles?

    Maybe the AI can allow transportation this way for disabled or elderly people, but may I fantasize about the AI doing exactly this for everybody else who is able bodied??

    I am now fantasizing. The world is quieter, the air is cleaner, the pace of life is slower, and it's beautiful.