Mister Handy

Mister Handy (stylized as Mr. Handy) is a multipurpose robot developed by General Atomics International before the Great War and refined in collaboration with RobCo Industries. It was an incredibly popular model, used by government agencies, private companies, and individual citizens across the United States.

Background
The first Mister Handy was introduced to the robotics market in 2037 by General Atomics International, as a general-purpose construction and maintenance unit. Used widely on both the American and Mexican markets (especially after the Mexico City earthquake of 2042), it was a rugged, reliable design. So reliable that it only received one major hardware update in 2039, to eliminate a bug causing interference in the operation of the multiple arms. The Calpower 238B nuclear power unit and self-maintenance modes were key to its success, ensuring each robot's longevity. To minimize maintenance overhead, each Mr. Handy was designed to perform its nuclear fuel replacement and radiation cleansing. Each unit could carry out maintenance and repairs on other units (it could not carry it out on itself).

However, as rugged and reliable as the original Mr. Handy was, it was still a design rooted in the technology of the 2030s, with a compact computer brain that was incapable of learning or executing complex tasks without extensive programming. By the 2070s, it was an automaton surrounded by more advanced designs utilizing cutting edge neural networks. In order to maintain their market share, General Atomics entered into a joint venture with RobCo Industries, combining its talent with General Atomics' experience in robotics. Tour guide: ''"Ready for the REPCONN tour, Rocketeers? Courtesy of the fine folks at RobCo, I'll be your guide today on the path of... Scientific. Discovery. In the lead-lined case behind me is a spent radioactive rod from of our old reactors. No need to stand too close, let's move along, shall we? Look here - a row of multi-colored plasma fuels! Careful, they may look safe to drink, but your stomach is the last place they should be. Why the difference in cylinder size? Refining our production methods has resulted in higher yields of fuel over time, that's why! To my right you can see a sample of some old "safety barrels" REPCONN once used to store radioactive waste. Perfectly safe. On my left is an example of a mountain of REPCONN safety barrels some legislators claim are poisoning our environment. Ridiculous. Behind me is our most recent rocket project, which we're keeping under our hats... until "launch," if you'll pardon the expression. And in front of me is a model - not actual size - of the launch dome we are using to send our rockets screeeeaming into orbit. Now these colorful fellows behind me are REPCONN's earliest... experiments in flight. Feel free to read the plaques and learn, Rocketeers! Now for the highlight of our tour! Due to a generous donation from RobCo, this next exhibit showcases the wondrous world of - robots! Around you are the incredible Eyebot, the fearsome Sentry Bot, and the always-helpful Mr. Handy. That helpfulness runs through our whole line! This is the final stop on our tour. This model of our solar system is a small example of where the partnership between RobCo and REPCONN hopes to go. See those little rockets zipping about? They are manned by robots, tirelessly looking for resources to mine on planets beyond our own. And that's it for our tour today, Rocketeers - RobCo and its tiny partner REPCONN thank you! Any further questions, please, feel free to ask."'' (Tour guide's dialogue) The resulting model was a sleek, elegant design capable of self-programming and initiative, more than making up for halving the number of arms to just three. Despite its sophistication, it was also cost-effective, making it the perfect domestic servant robot. The success of this model resulted in the development of several additional models, including dedicated medical and military versions. Sometime before the Great War, General Atomics International and RobCo wanted to upgrade their Mister Handy line by adding an additional hand alongside additional features.  

GAI model


The original General Atomics International Mr. Handy has a distinct, lumbering appearance with easily identifiable sub-assemblies. The barrel-like main body contains the Calpower 238B nuclear power unit (200 KW output with two year endurance; comparable to a truck engine) and eight rechargeable energy cells with a 270,000 KWS output, together with an integral mechanic toolset and the computer brain. The fully rotating head mounted on top houses the single eye and sensors, together with a spotlight and basic communicator with a cheap voice synthesizer, short range radio, and communications jack. The two pods mounted on the sides of the main body each contain a 200 KW vectored-thrust ducted fan with ground-effect (GEV) skirts that allow the Mr. Handy to hover in the air. Finally, each of the six arms mounted below the main body is strong enough to lift heavy loads, while retaining superior flexibility and coordination that allows the Mr. Handy to use all of them in any configuration with a negligible loss of performance. Each is actuated by motors contained within and contains nimble manipulators capable of tasks ranging from walking the dog to operating heavy weapons such as miniguns, flamers, and plasma casters. The entire robot weighs 450 kgs (~900 pounds), giving it an excellent power to weight ratio.

Although the robot's performance was hampered by its simple, computer brain, a large number of units remained in service as late as 2077, 40 years after it entered the market. Although vulnerable to logic circuit failures, particularly in hazardous environments or without maintenance, it was used in both corporate and military settings, including locations like the demonstration Vault, Mariposa Military Base, and Poseidon Oil Reactor № 5. Even the Enclave used a number of Mr. Handy units in conjunction with their Vertibird teams, usually for cargo hauling. It's a testament to GAI's design that one unit survived a crash-landing near Klamath Falls relatively intact. 

GAI/RobCo model


Separated by only a few models from the original General Atomics Mr Handy, the next-generation robot is a radical departure from that of its ancestor, created from the ground up as a domestic servant, rather than heavy-duty construction robot (although its modularity allows it to be fitted with power tools and used in the original role with ease). It is an extremely compact design: The spherical main body houses not just the nuclear power unit, but also the single centrally-mounted jet thruster with a ground-effect skirt allowing it to hover, and a highly sophisticated neural network mimicking the functionality of a human brain. The compact brain of the Mr. Handy is easily one of its most stunning features, theoretically capable of achieving sentience, becoming a true artificial intelligence.

Special limiters are included in neural pathways responsible for learning to prevent such an occurrence. Behavior limiters act as a failsafe in case the aforementioned limiters are disabled in a Mister Handy or one of its derivatives. This can occur as a result of degradation of neural pathways or electrical damage. Depending on the severity of the damage, it can be resolved by rerouting functions and closing specific pathways. In cases where a Mr Handy does achieve sentience thanks to the removal of governors on learning abilities, but the behavior limiters remain in effect, the affected unit effectively becomes a slave: Incapable of independent action and forced to behave in accordance with the restrictions imposed on it. In such a case, the robot can use its supercharged learning abilities to devise methods to circumvent its programming and disable the behavior limiters to gain freedom, such as by exploiting loopholes in behavioral restrictions.

Its sub-assemblies include three arms and three eyes. The former are segmented and highly flexible. Their modular design allows them to accept a variety of manipulators, from a simple pincer, through a titanium saw and laser cutter, to military-grade weapons such as a plasma blaster or a flamethrower. Their only limitation is the fact that they cannot lift objects heavier than 18 kg (40 lbs). Eyes are mounted on flexible eye stalks, giving it excellent spatial awareness and a nearly 360 degree field of view. They are completed by a sophisticated sensor package, including olfactory, navigational, chemical, and nuclear sensors. Other features of the robot line include the ability to perform performing self-diagnostic and self-maintenance, allowing a single unit to function for an extended period of time (even two centuries in some cases), and a water condensator for preparing canisters of purified water.

The new model was marketed as a domestic servant first and foremost, capable of handling almost every task in the household, from accounting and cooking to pet care and entertainment (although GAI discouraged using its hover jet as a barbeque fire). However, its sophisticated neural network and agile, light design made it an excellent choice for a variety of private and military entities. The basic Mister Handy was also employed as a security robot, with specialized variants available. These included medical models like the Miss Nanny and Mister Orderly, as well as the combat version, Mister Gutsy. 

Mister Farmhand
The Mister Farmhands are, more or less, a standard Mister Handy model with a pale green paint job, with some variants being a dark brown. They are typically encountered on the roads from Vault 76 to Flatwoods, among other various areas in The Forest region. They can also be found, as their names might suggest, at a few local farms. The Mister Farmhands are typically adorned with straw or other cloth hats.

Mister Gutsy
A dedicated combat variant, developed by General Atomics International. It was commissioned by the United States Army shortly before the atomic apocalypse of 2077, with the first units seeing service in the liberation of Anchorage in January. The Mr. Gutsy is a personal protection automaton, and comes equipped with heavier armor than most utility robots. It also carries a plasma weapon to be used in defense. The shell was rebuilt with lightweight armor plating, while the usual array of tools was upgraded with a plasma caster on a flexible mount. The key advantage of Mister Gutsies that separates it from other combat robots is its sheer maneuverability and spatial awareness. The Mister Gutsy is also upgraded with dedicated military software, including the ability to refuse orders issued by commanders who are incompetent or under court-martial, remote link-up capability for updating orders in real time, and a brand-new Sergeant Major v.1.0 simulated personality that channeled the stereotypical Marine drill instructor and doubled as a vessel for state propaganda.

However, in its rush to present the Army with a working model, General Atomics cut corners and the resulting personality had issues stemming from vague definitions used in programming its neural network. The most notable of these was the fact that in the absence of orders, units defaulted to a patrol mode and attacked all unauthorized personnel with extreme violence, as per combat protocol Charlie Zulu 4. The military accepted these flaws, pressing them into service. They first bore MGZ-##### serials, before transitioning to the standard ABC-##### nomenclature. To distinguish between different variants of the robot, ranks were used: The baseline version was named Mister, with subsequent variants designated Sergeant, Lieutenant, Major, and Colonel. A specialized field medic model was derived from the basic Mister Gutsy, with all combat functionality disabled and an encyclopedic knowledge of medical procedures, particularly surgery. 

Miss Nanny
Miss Nanny is a new model launched by General Atomics International shortly before the Great War, they were also a utility bot designed to care for and raise newborns; these were incredibly useful in the vaults as there were many children in need of care after the war. It's considered a female equivalent of the Mister Handy, due to its feminine voice and the use of a Handy shell, still bearing the brand logo. Its design focuses on caretaking tasks, intended for parents of children of all ages. The specialized programming of a Miss Nanny includes disciplinary and behavioral management skills (with an optional corporal punishment mode that had to be manually turned on by parents), vocal tonality analysis routines allowing it to interpret the needs of its charges (even infants), and hazard detection matrices for childproofing rooms. General Atomics factory test area: "Greetings, Unit 761. Welcome to the General Atomics Quality Assurance Department, where we assure your functionality is up to our high standards. We must run a few tests before returning you to your caregiving duties. Now please, proceed into the first test chamber. 

''First we must test your disciplinary and behavioral management skills. A quality assurance associate will be playing the role of your hypothetical charge, little Timmy. Little Timmy has broken a valuable vase while playing catch in the house. The vase was a family heirloom and is quite irreplacable. Please punish the the child accordingly.''

''Fantastic. The appropriate punishment was separation of the child from any potential source of entertainment. And please remember: corporal punishment is strictly forbidden unless the user enables it in your configuration mode. Please proceed into the second test chamber.''

''A proper Ms. Nanny unit must be able to identify the needs of her charges. Please assess the state of the crying child and fufill its need. Correct. The child was hungry. Your vocal tonality analysis programming seems to be in working order. Please take this opportunity to reconfirm that any deprecated muffling procedures are not left in your programming. Now please, proceed into the third testing chamber.''

''We will now test your hazard detection matrices. Please childproof this environment by moving any hazardous object to where little hands cannot reach. Splendidly done. All potentially fatal objects have been put out of a child's reach. Please remember, children have a penchant for finding ways to harm themselves. They never are truly safe. Absolute diligence is required. Congratulations! It appears you are fully functional and ready to return to service. Please take a replacement fusion core from the safe in the hallway on your way out.''"

Note: This is a transcript of a scene from DN050 General Atomics Factory Quest; no dialogue export is available for scenes However, the complexity of its neural network and programming made it a natural candidate for other related tasks, such as medical research. At least one Miss Nanny was modified in this way: Curie. By combining it with custom software and RobCo expertise, it was intended to act as the steward and archivist of Vault 81. 

Mister Orderly
A distinct medical variant created for use in Big MT medical facilities. It is equipped with all the standard features of the Mister Handy line and modifications necessary for use in medical research carried out at the Y-17 medical facility. Its shell is covered in durable white paint with red trim, while mechanics (such as the hover jet, servos, and pincers) were covered in a protective blue finish, protecting it against corrosion from materials routinely handed in the facility. 

Mister Torturer
An experimental model created by the Appalachian RobCo Research Center. This variant of the Mister Handy was designed to utilize custom appendages to overcome the victim's pain threshold tolerance and increase the efficiency of torture. The development of the robot was a company secret and RobCo vehemently denied both its very existence when word of the Mister Torturer leaked to Appalachian employees and the use of torture by the state (they called it "improved interrogation"). The project continued regardless, as producing innovations in electrocuting enemies of the state produced lucrative contracts from government agencies.

GAI Model

 * Crashed vertibird robot
 * Unit 462

Appearances
The GAI Mister Handy appears in Fallout and Fallout 2. They were also to appear in Van Buren, the canceled Fallout 3 by Black Isle Studios. The GAI/RobCo Mister Handy appears in Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas, Fallout 4 and Fallout Shelter. Mister Handy is also mentioned in Fallout Tactics.

Behind the scenes
Mister Handy's voice in Fallout: New Vegas has an additional robotic effect.