A robot that debuted at the British Science Festival is coming to the rescue of those who can’t stand the thought of doing dishes. The robot named Boris is the brainchild of researchers at the University of Birmingham.

Loading the dishwasher is a mundane task that not too many humans look forward to doing. A robot that debuted at the British Science Festival is coming to the rescue for those who can’t stand the thought of doing dishes.

The robot named Boris is the brainchild of researchers at the University of Birmingham. The one that was just unveiled is actually the Boris 2 version.

It’s an innovative concept, as the robot is one of the very few out there that can use a humanlike grip to hold onto things. Its fingers delicately grasp a desired object, like a dish or cup, and once it's firmly in Boris’ hand, the arm slowly moves it to a different spot.

Boris illustrates a third generation of robots that are being designed to interact and operate alongside humans. Scientists spent five years and more than $550 thousand developing it.

Boris can detect things thanks to depth sensors located on its face and wrists. It takes about 10 seconds for the robot to sift through up to 1,000 different ways of grasping the object.

Once a gripping maneuver is chosen, Boris starts planning a course of arm movement. Right now, Boris is learning how to pick up various objects with the goal of loading them in the dishwasher by 2015. Further down the road, scientists hope to expand upon its capabilities and make it more flexible.