https://techxplore.com/rss-feed/robotics-news/ en-us The latest news on robotics, robots, robotics sciences and technology science. Muscles are remarkably effective systems for generating controlled force, and engineers developing hardware for robots or prosthetics have long struggled to create analogs that can approach their unique combination of strength, rapid response, scalability, and control. But now, researchers at the MIT Media Lab and Politecnico di Bari in Italy have developed artificial muscle fibers that come closer to matching many of these qualities. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-electrofluidic-fiber-muscles-enable-silent.html Robotics Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:20:01 EDT news694959583 With their ability to shapeshift and manipulate delicate objects, soft robots could work as medical implants, deliver drugs inside the body and help explore dangerous environments. But the squishy machines are often limited by rigid mechanical parts or external systems that provide power or help them move. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-origami-robot-built-printable-polymers.html Robotics Thu, 09 Apr 2026 12:00:05 EDT news694954021 Guide dogs are powerful allies, leading the visually impaired safely to their destinations, but they can't talk with their owners—until now. Using large language models, a team of researchers at Binghamton University, State University of New York has created a talking robot guide dog system that determines an ideal route and safely guides users to their destination, offering real-time feedback along the way. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-ai-powered-dogs-dont.html Robotics Wed, 08 Apr 2026 13:20:01 EDT news694872782 In some settings and when completing some collaborative tasks, humans are required to coordinate their movements or actions with those of others. A clear example of this is musical performance, particularly instances in which two or more musicians play their instruments together. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-wearable-robots-pairs-violin-players.html Robotics Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:10:06 EDT news694777673 Picture a futuristic swarm of robots deployed on a time-sensitive task, like cleaning up an oil spill or assembling a machine. At first, adding robots is advantageous, since many hands make light work. But a tipping point comes when too many crowd the space, getting in each other's way and slowing the whole task down. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-cooks-robots-goldilocks-randomness-robot.html Robotics Mon, 06 Apr 2026 16:00:01 EDT news694708981 To be safely and reliably deployed in outer space, underwater and in other extreme environments, robots need to be able to withstand harsh conditions without breaking. In addition, they should be able to promptly and rapidly adapt to dynamic changes in their surroundings. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-resilient-actuator-potential-space-ready.html Robotics Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:00:03 EDT news694354306 While technology has made the world "smaller," it has also pulled individuals apart, thanks to mobile phones and other devices that command our attention. Cornell University researchers are using technology, in the form of a mirror-equipped robot, to help bring people together. Members of the Architectural Robotics Lab, led by Keith Evan Green, have built a four-foot-tall robot—dubbed MirrorBot—with dual mirrors that, when placed in front of a pair of strangers, let each participant see themself in one mirror and the other person in the other. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-mirrorbot-robot-foster-human.html Robotics Thu, 02 Apr 2026 17:00:10 EDT news694366621 Researchers at Arizona State University are developing bio-inspired robotic "muscles" that will enable robots to operate in boiling water, survive abrasive surfaces, bypass impediments that keep their motorized counterparts benched, and still lift up to 100 times their own weight. The new heavyweight champions of robotics will be lighter, smaller, and disconnected from a power source. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-air-powered-artificial-muscles-robots.html Robotics Thu, 02 Apr 2026 11:20:06 EDT news694343881 A LEGO brick is not smart. It doesn't compute. It doesn't plug in. It just fits. A team of Georgia Tech researchers has applied that logic to robotics. Bolei Deng, an assistant professor in Georgia Tech's Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering, and Xinyi Yang, an aerospace engineering Ph.D. student, build swarms of tiny robotic particles that latch, release, and reorganize without a single electronic component. No sensors, no processors, and no code. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-robotic-swarm-electronics-batteries-brains.html Robotics Wed, 01 Apr 2026 10:00:02 EDT news694255561 Over the past few decades, robotics researchers have developed a wide range of increasingly advanced robots that can autonomously complete various real-world tasks. To be successfully deployed in real-world settings, such as in public spaces, homes and office environments, these robots should be able to make sense of instructions provided by human users and adapt their actions accordingly. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-combining-robot-llms-natural-language.html Robotics Wed, 01 Apr 2026 08:10:01 EDT news694094773 A research team, including Huanyu "Larry" Cheng, James L. Henderson Jr. Memorial Associate Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics at Penn State, is using pressure sensors—tiny devices, roughly the size of a paperclip, that can measure the force applied over an area—to design a highly sensitive electronic "skin" to use alongside robots and prosthetic limbs. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-qa-robots-sensors.html Robotics Mon, 30 Mar 2026 17:00:04 EDT news694108622 Robots are increasingly being used in manufacturing, agriculture and health care. But programming a team of robots to carry out individual tasks raises a question: How can robots learn from other robots if they are built differently? A multi-institutional team including Chongjie Zhang, an associate professor of computer science and engineering at WashU McKelvey Engineering, have developed a new method that enables robots to achieve intentions shown by their peers. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-robots-bodies-skills-intention-based.html Robotics Mon, 30 Mar 2026 13:20:04 EDT news694094674 The fields of manufacturing, logistics, and even restaurants are increasingly moving toward automation, with robots being employed for a wide range of tasks. One of the most critical applications of robots is material handling, where grippers are used to move objects, such as automotive parts, logistics packages, food ingredients, and restaurant dishes. This reduces the burden on human workers while lowering the risk of accidents, thereby improving workplace safety. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-heapgrasp-faster-smarter-robots-tricky.html Robotics Mon, 30 Mar 2026 11:20:03 EDT news694087501 No matter how sophisticated they are, robots can often be indecisive and struggle with multi-step chores in the real world. For example, if you tell a robot to tidy a messy room, it might understand the goal but not know where to grab each object. It could even end up inventing steps. To address these common mistakes, Microsoft and a group of academics have developed an AI benchmark system to improve the accuracy of robot planning. The details of their work are published in a paper on the arXiv preprint server. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-ai-benchmark-robots-chores-real.html Robotics Sun, 29 Mar 2026 11:30:02 EDT news693838292 Leiden researchers Professor Daniela Kraft and Mengshi Wei have created microscopic robots that move without sensors, software, or external control. Instead, their behavior emerges entirely from their shape and the way they interact with their environment. They are only a few tens of micrometers long—far smaller than the width of a human hair—yet these robots can swim, sense, navigate and adapt in ways that look surprisingly life-like. And all this without having a brain. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-alive-tiny-3d-robots-animals.html Robotics Fri, 27 Mar 2026 09:40:04 EDT news693822013 In a major step toward more adaptable and intuitive machines, Kempner Institute Investigator Yilun Du and his collaborators have unveiled a new kind of artificial intelligence system that lets robots "envision" their actions before carrying them out. The system, which uses video to help robots imagine what might happen next, could transform how robots navigate and interact with the physical world. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-video-based-ai-robots-visual.html Robotics Thu, 26 Mar 2026 10:20:03 EDT news693736261 Inside a giant autonomous warehouse, hundreds of robots dart down aisles as they collect and distribute items to fulfill a steady stream of customer orders. In this busy environment, even small traffic jams or minor collisions can snowball into massive slowdowns. To avoid such an avalanche of inefficiencies, researchers from MIT and the tech firm Symbotic developed a new method that automatically keeps a fleet of robots moving smoothly. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-ai-warehouse-robot-traffic-boosting.html Robotics Thu, 26 Mar 2026 09:30:01 EDT news693734879 A team led by Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) researcher Nitin J. Sanket has shown that ultrasound sensors and a form of artificial intelligence (AI) can enable palm-sized aerial robots to navigate with limited power and computation through fog, smoke, and other challenging conditions during search-and-rescue operations. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-ultrasound-palm-sized-drones-fog.html Robotics Thu, 26 Mar 2026 09:06:49 EDT news693734657 While space structures and robotic arms require lightweight actuation devices capable of repetitive movement, conventional motor-based systems face limitations due to their heavy weight and complex structures. A KAIST research team has developed a smart material-based actuation technology that operates rapidly in less than a second without a motor, suggesting new possibilities for next-generation robotics and space deployable structures. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-robotic-motors-shifting-actuator.html Robotics Wed, 25 Mar 2026 10:00:04 EDT news693650702 The next time you're scrolling on your phone, take a moment to appreciate the feat: The seemingly mundane act is possible thanks to the coordination of 34 muscles, 27 joints, and over 100 tendons and ligaments in your hand. Indeed, our hands are the most nimble parts of our bodies. Mimicking their many nuanced gestures has been a longstanding challenge in robotics and virtual reality. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-wristband-enables-wearers-robotic-movements.html Robotics Wed, 25 Mar 2026 06:00:09 EDT news693584821 A bird banking in a crosswind doesn't rely on spinning blades. Its wings flex, twist and respond instantly to its environment. Engineers at Rutgers University have taken a major step toward building bird-like drones that move the same way, flapping their wings like real birds, using electricity-driven materials instead of conventional electromagnetic motors to power them. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-birdlike-robots-greater-flexibility-drones.html Robotics Mon, 23 Mar 2026 13:20:02 EDT news693490201 A collaborative research group has developed a bio-inspired robotic system based on insect behavior which can locate odor sources both indoors and outdoors with consistent accuracy, even if one of its two sensors fails. The team includes Assistant Professor Shigaki Shunsuke of the National Institute of Informatics (NII), Professor Kurabayashi Daisuke of the School of Engineering at Science Tokyo, and Associate Professor Owaki Dai of the Graduate School of Engineering at Tohoku University. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-insect-robot-tracks-odors-antenna.html Robotics Mon, 23 Mar 2026 12:00:03 EDT news693485341 Scientists have developed a network of mechanical motors that mimic the molecular machinery underpinning human muscle contraction. The University of Bristol-led findings, published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface this week, could open new possibilities for artificial muscles in robotics. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-simple-motor-networks-mimic-human.html Robotics Sat, 21 Mar 2026 13:00:03 EDT news693154987 Robots are increasingly learning new skills by watching people. From folding laundry to handling food, many real-world, humanlike tasks are too nuanced to be efficiently programmed step by step. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-smarter-faster-human-ai-robots.html Robotics Thu, 19 Mar 2026 14:20:06 EDT news693148681 Roboticists have struggled to get humanoid robots to effectively replicate athletic sports skills, such as those needed for tennis. These sports require highly dynamic motion, quick reactions, and high precision that robots are not usually equipped to handle. Past research attempted to use kinematic data and video-based extraction of human motion data, but these approaches were complex and often physically infeasible. Some robots have been trained to play sports like table tennis or football, but with limited agility and realism. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-humanoid-robot-tennis-skills-imperfect.html Robotics Thu, 19 Mar 2026 12:40:04 EDT news693140430 NUS researchers have developed a platform that lets lab-grown muscle tissues train themselves to record-breaking strength, with no external stimulation required. By mechanically coupling two muscle tissues so they continuously pull against each other, their own natural contractions become a round-the-clock workout. The resulting muscles powered OstraBot, an ostraciiform (a type of fish locomotion) swimming robot that reached 467 millimeters per minute—the fastest speed reported for any skeletal muscle-driven biohybrid robot. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-robot-propelled-lab-grown-muscle.html Robotics Thu, 19 Mar 2026 12:00:05 EDT news693139261 MIT researchers have spent more than a decade studying techniques that enable robots to find and manipulate hidden objects by "seeing" through obstacles. Their methods utilize surface-penetrating wireless signals that reflect off concealed items. Now, the researchers are leveraging generative artificial intelligence models to overcome a longstanding bottleneck that limited the precision of prior approaches. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-generative-ai-wireless-vision-obstructions.html Robotics Thu, 19 Mar 2026 09:20:04 EDT news693129421 Sheepdogs, bred to control large groups of sheep in open fields, have demonstrated their skills in competitions dating back to the 1870s. In these contests, a handler directs a trained dog with whistle signals to guide a small group of sheep across a field and sometimes split the flock cleanly into two groups. But sheep do not always cooperate. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-sheepdogs-reveal-robot-swarms.html Robotics Wed, 18 Mar 2026 08:40:01 EDT news693041882 The rapid proliferation of robots and electronic devices is placing the world under a new and growing environmental burden. According to the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), global electronic waste (e-waste) reached approximately 62 million metric tons in 2022, a significant portion of which was neither properly collected nor recycled but instead landfilled or incinerated. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-compostable-robot-million-food.html Robotics Tue, 17 Mar 2026 16:20:05 EDT news692982121 For the first time, researchers at Leipzig University have shown that tiny synthetic microswimmers can perceive their surroundings directly through their own body shape and autonomously adapt to rapidly changing fluid flows. The study, now published in Science Advances, establishes a new paradigm for autonomous microsystems whose control functions reliably in challenging environments where conventional sensors fail. This opens up new prospects for autonomous medical microrobots, for example for the targeted delivery of medication in the bloodstream. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-autonomous-microrobots-complex.html Robotics Tue, 17 Mar 2026 15:00:09 EDT news692977441