Robotics news

Robotics

Creating and verifying stable AI-controlled robotic systems in a rigorous and flexible way

Neural networks have made a seismic impact on how engineers design controllers for robots, catalyzing more adaptive and efficient machines. Still, these brain-like machine-learning systems are a double-edged sword: Their ...

Robotics

New system enables intuitive teleoperation of a robotic manipulator in real-time

Imitation learning is a promising method to teach robots how to reliably complete everyday tasks, such as washing dishes or cooking. Despite their potential, imitation learning frameworks rely on detailed human demonstrations, ...

Robotics

DeepMind demonstrates a robot capable of giving context-based guided tours of an office building

A team of roboticists and AI specialists at Google's DeepMind have demonstrated a robot capable of giving context-based guided tours around its offices. They have posted a paper describing their work, along with demonstration ...

Robotics

A chemical claw machine: Vapor exposure enables soft actuator to perform diverse tasks

Scientists at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia have developed a tiny "claw machine" that is able to pick up and drop a marble-sized ball in response to exposure to chemical vapors.

Robotics

Japan deploys humanoid robot for railway maintenance

It resembles a malevolent robot from 1980s sci-fi but West Japan Railway's new humanoid employee was designed with nothing more sinister than a spot of painting and gardening in mind.

Robotics

Helping robots make a better first impression

An interdisciplinary research team from the University of Waterloo's Social and Intelligent Robotics Research Lab (SIRRL) has found that people prefer interacting with robots they perceive to have social identities like their ...

Robotics

Elon Musk says Tesla will unveil robotaxi in August

Elon Musk revealed Friday that Tesla will pull back the curtain on a robotaxi this summer, news that comes as the adoption of self-driving vehicles hits speed bumps over safety concerns.

Business

Apple explores making personal robots: Report

Apple engineers are working on making personal robots, a report said on Wednesday, just weeks after the iPhone-maker abandoned its efforts to develop an electric car.

Robotics

New robot swims and jumps like a Chinese rice grasshopper

Biologist, materials scientist and bionics specialist Professor Stanislav N. Gorb and his team at Kiel University's Institute of Zoology are known for analyzing the spectacular abilities of animals and translating them into ...

Robotics

Engineering household robots to have a little common sense

From wiping up spills to serving up food, robots are being taught to carry out increasingly complicated household tasks. Many such home-bot trainees are learning through imitation; they are programmed to copy the motions ...

Robotics

Future robots to stay one step ahead of bushfires

Bushfires can move at astonishing speeds. The land, amount of vegetation, and the weather all have a big impact on how a fire spreads. Staying one step ahead is no easy task, but our bushfire researchers are working on it.

Robotics

Using drone swarms to fight forest fires

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) are using multiple swarms of drones to tackle natural disasters like forest fires. Forest fires are becoming increasingly catastrophic across the world, accelerated by ...