Robotics news

Robotics

Humanoid robot learns to sprint and perform spin kicks using AI trained on human motion data

Humanoid robots, robotic systems with body shapes and limbs resembling those of humans, could potentially assist people with manual tasks in various real-world settings. So far, however, most of these robots can reliably ...

Robotics

The future of robot-human collaboration

Humans are difficult to simulate. We are quick, complex thinkers, and our exact actions aren't predictable. So how can we sufficiently train robots to collaborate with us?

Robotics

Europe bids to be a robot superpower like the US, China

AI-powered robots briefly took over the European Parliament this week to showcase the continent's creators as the bloc races to compete in a field dominated by China and the United States.

Robotics

Four-legged robot learns dog-like movements to leap through tight spaces

Cats, dogs, wolves and other agile four-legged animals can easily jump and squeeze through tight spaces while moving at high speed. Reproducing similar agile motions and skills in quadrupedal robots has so far proved challenging.

Robotics

Like a bird, this drone uses touch to grip branches and rest

Drones often hover in the air, noisy and whining. They can already be used for many tasks, but not when you need some quiet. Their batteries would also last longer if they could take a "rest" from time to time. But when a ...

Robotics

Light-powered soft robots that can keep jumping forever

Researchers from North Carolina State University have created teardrop-shaped soft robots that leap upward or forward when exposed to infrared light—and will keep jumping as long as the light is present. The work demonstrates ...

Robotics

Six-legged robot learns to walk from a stick insect

Do you ever see an ant skittering across your kitchen counter and wonder how this little bug overcame all the obstacles in your home just to get there? Insects use their tiny nervous systems to walk with surprising dexterity—a ...

Robotics

New underwater robot could make ocean missions more reliable

A new, patent-pending underwater robot developed at Purdue University's College of Engineering could improve ocean research, underwater infrastructure inspection and search-and-rescue efforts by adapting to mission needs ...

Robotics

Robots sort packages and serve fast food at Beijing showcase

Robots sorting parcels and serving fried chicken enthralled visitors at a robotics expo in Beijing on Wednesday, where hundreds of companies set out their pitches for a future labor market transformed by artificial intelligence.

Robotics

Giving robots superhuman vision using radio signals

In the race to develop robust perception systems for robots, one persistent challenge has been operating in bad weather and harsh conditions. For example, traditional, light-based vision sensors such as cameras or LiDAR (Light ...

Robotics

'Chemist' robot poised to transform science labs

Imagine a lab assistant with the computing and operational power of 10 Ph.D. students, capable of functioning in extreme environments like Mars. This vision has become a reality at the University of Science and Technology ...

Robotics

AI-powered drowning prevention system enhances water safety

Researchers from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a high-tech drowning prevention and rescue system and introduced it to a scenic water area in Central China's Henan ...

Robotics

Drone with its own 'nervous system' trialed by scientists

Scientists are testing a drone fitted with its own "nervous system" which they claim can keep it operating in the sky for longer. It was created by experts at the University of Southampton who say the system, made of optical ...

Robotics

How virtual cows could help improve human-robot interactions

A video game in which participants herded virtual cattle has furthered our understanding of how humans make decisions on movement and navigation, and it could help us not only interact more effectively with artificial intelligence, ...

Consumer & Gadgets

Can you feel sorry for a robot? Research indicates you can

A pitiful sound from tinny speakers, sad virtual eyes, trembling robot arms: It doesn't take much to feel sorry for a robot. This is the conclusion of a study by Marieke Wieringa, who will be defending her Ph.D. thesis at ...