Robotics news

Business

When a robot becomes the boss: Exploring authority, obedience and relationships with machines

How does a robot perform as a boss at work? The results of research by Polish scientists published in Cognition, Technology & Work suggest that while robots can command obedience, they are not as proficient at it as humans. ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Co-design empowers inclusive tech for individuals with intellectual disabilities

A series of QUT research studies have shed light on the importance of involving individuals with intellectual disabilities in the development of assistive technologies.

Robotics

Framework allows a person to correct a robot's actions using the kind of feedback they'd give another human

Imagine that a robot is helping you clean the dishes. You ask it to grab a soapy bowl out of the sink, but its gripper slightly misses the mark.

Robotics

Tiny 'rhinoceros beetle' robot does micro-scale manipulation in extreme conditions

Engineers have designed a tiny, low-weight and cordless robot that can act independently and with ultra-high precision in all directions in some of the most extreme conditions. The robot, which the designers call "Holonomic ...

Robotics

Morphing robot turns challenging terrain to its advantage

From mountain goats that run up near-vertical rock faces to armadillos that roll into a protective ball, animals have evolved to adapt effortlessly to changes in their environment. In contrast, when an autonomous robot is ...

Robotics

Robots learn how to move by watching themselves

By watching their own motions with a camera, robots can teach themselves about the structure of their own bodies and how they move, a new study by researchers at Columbia Engineering now reveals. Equipped with this knowledge, ...

Robotics

Low-cost drone system aids indoor search and rescue missions

Indoor search and rescue operations are some of the most dangerous tasks that law enforcement and first responders must face, but drone technology has revolutionized how they approach these intense situations, according to ...

Robotics

Turning robotic ensembles into smart materials that mimic life

Researchers have engineered groups of robots that behave as smart materials with tunable shape and strength, mimicking living systems. "We've figured out a way for robots to behave more like a material," said Matthew Devlin, ...

Robotics

Parenting a 3-year-old robot

Humans are social creatures and learn from each other, even from a young age. Infants keenly observe their parents, siblings or caregivers. They watch, imitate and replay what they see to learn skills and behaviors.

Robotics

Robotic sea turtle mimics uniquely adaptable gait

Sea turtles can glide majestically through ocean waters and maneuver like armored vehicles over rocks and sand on land. Their locomotive adaptability makes them particularly interesting to robotics experts, who seek to learn ...

Robotics

3D printed robotic gripper doesn't need electronics to function

A new soft robotic gripper is not only 3D printed in one print, it also doesn't need any electronics to work. The device was developed by a team of roboticists at the University of California San Diego, in collaboration with ...

Robotics

Robotic hand rotates objects using touch, not vision

Inspired by the effortless way humans handle objects without seeing them, a team led by engineers at the University of California San Diego has developed a new approach that enables a robotic hand to rotate objects solely ...

Robotics

Wet surface? No problem for gecko adhesion based robot

Geckos' unique ability to climb across anything from a dry desert floor to a cold mountain top without leaving any sticky residue behind is the inspiration for many wall crawling robots, but for the first time researchers ...