Robotics news

Robotics

Using Turing patterns to enhance soft pneumatic technology

According to a recent study in Scientific Reports, Turing patterns can be used to develop a new method for designing and producing fabric-based soft pneumatic actuators (FSPAs).

Robotics

LiDAR-based system allows unmanned aerial vehicle team to rapidly reconstruct environments

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones, have proved to be highly effective systems for monitoring and exploring environments. These autonomous flying robots could also be used to create detailed maps and ...

Robotics

Q&A: Teaching robots to touch and interact like humans

Robots are widely used in the automotive industry and have started entering new application domains such as logistics in the last few years. However, current robots still face many limitations. They typically perform a single ...

Robotics

Google DeepMind unveils two new AI-based robot hand systems—ALOHA Unleashed and DemoStart

Engineers working on Google's DeepMind project have announced the development of two new AI-based robot systems. One called ALOHA Unleashed was developed to advance the science of bi-arm manipulation. The other, called DemoStart, ...

Robotics

Team develops versatile knee exoskeletons for safer lifting

A set of knee exoskeletons, built with commercially available knee braces and drone motors at the University of Michigan, has been shown to help counteract fatigue in lifting and carrying tasks. They helped users maintain ...

Robotics

Teaching robots to use color in moving objects

Research at Michigan State University is focused on teaching robots to use colors to perceive, visualize, and interpret interactions when manipulating objects. A force-interpreting optical system is being developed so robots ...

Robotics

Versatile microscale robots can fold into 3D shapes and crawl

Cornell University researchers have created microscale robots less than 1 millimeter in size that are printed as a 2D hexagonal "metasheet," but with a jolt of electricity, morph into preprogrammed 3D shapes and crawl.

Robotics

Complex motions for simple actuators

Inflatable soft actuators that can change shape with a simple increase in pressure can be powerful, lightweight, and flexible components for soft robotic systems. But there's a problem: These actuators always deform in the ...

Robotics

Monitoring city mobility from the skies

EPFL researchers have used swarms of drones to measure city traffic with unprecedented accuracy and precision. Algorithms are then used to identify sources of traffic jams and recommend solutions to alleviate traffic problems.

Robotics

Responsive soft robots inspired by sputtering ketchup bottle

A smartly designed pressure valve allows soft robots to respond to their environment without the need for computer control, reveal AMOLF researchers in their article in the journal Matter. That brings robots with natural ...

Robotics

Human-like robots may be perceived as having mental states

When robots appear to engage with people and display human-like emotions, people may perceive them as capable of "thinking," or acting on their own beliefs and desires rather than their programs, according to research published ...

Robotics

What robots can learn from therapists

A transformative experience working with very sick children changed Paul Bucci's mind about how robots used in human therapy should be designed.

Consumer & Gadgets

Robochop makes garden trimming a snip

Automation and computer-aided designs are seeding the future of home gardens. With the onset of designer gardens as a service and rose-pruning robots, weekends spent toiling in the garden will be more productive and personalized.

Robotics

'Fake' data helps robots learn the ropes faster

In a step toward robots that can learn on the fly like humans do, a new approach expands training data sets for robots that work with soft objects like ropes and fabrics, or in cluttered environments.