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Robot
Harnessing blowflies to teach robots how to see
19:24 August 11, 2009 PDT
One of the biggest challenges facing robotics is teaching machines to perceive surroundings and make sense of what they see. Attempting to duplicate the complexity of human perception is next to impossible, so researchers at Cognition for Technical Systems (CoTeSys) in Munich are, instead, studying how blowflies process images using a 'flight simulator'. Despite having a brain the size of a pinhead, a fly can process and interpret 100 discrete images per second – four times better than humans. Read More
Robotic Moles deliver goods through the sewers
By Darren Quick
20:23 August 4, 2009 PDT
Although the first sewers date back to ancient times, concerns about public health in the 19th century saw many cities construct extensive underground sewer systems to help control outbreaks of disease. Some of these sewers evolved from open drains along the center of streets that were covered to provide, not only cleaner, but also wider and therefore less crowded streets. Now designer Phillip Hermes has come up with a concept that could also reduce traffic congestion on crowded city roads by turning the sewerage system into a system for transporting goods. Read More
Astrorobotic rover aims to visit Apollo 11 site after 40 years
By Paul Lester
19:40 July 30, 2009 PDT
Forty years after Apollo 11 touched down on the moon, plans are afoot to revisit the site to see how the remains have stood up to four decades of radiation and micrometeorite bombardment. One vehicle that may well be used for this expedition is the third prototype lunar robot from Lunar X Prize entrant Astrobotic. The rover is one tough nut - it's designed to survive the blistering heat of the lunar ‘noontime extreme’, which sees temperatures reach 270 degrees Fahrenheit, as well as the minus 240 degree Fahrenheit temperatures of the lunar night. Read More
Solar Powered Robotic Pool Skimmer makes a splash
By Mick Webb
19:42 July 21, 2009 PDT
For many a pool owner, removing the assorted leaves, bugs and other foliage that finds its way into the water can be a drain on their time in the backyard. Enter the smart Solar Powered Pool Skimmer, which not only takes the elbow grease out of keeping the pool sparkling, but as the name suggests, adds the bonus of being powered by the sun. Read More
Smart vehicle puts blind drivers behind the wheel
By Mick Webb
02:16 July 21, 2009 PDT
Recent technological developments are presenting increasing opportunities for blind and vision impaired people to interact with the world in ways not previously possible. However, many everyday acts we take for granted such as driving a car remain out of reach. That’s well on the way to changing thanks to a development by a team of students at the Virginia Tech University, who have designed a car that allows blind and visually impaired people to take the wheel and drive unassisted. Read More
Learning robot puts on a happy face
By Darren Quick
00:18 July 14, 2009 PDT
Robots generally aren’t the most expressive of entities, but their faces are becoming increasingly realistic as the number of artificial muscles controlling them rises. Today, a highly trained person must manually set up these kinds of realistic robots so that the servos pull in the right combination to make specific facial expressions, but researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) are looking to automate the process by giving robots the ability to learn realistic facial expressions. Read More
Metal muscles drive ‘robo-bat’ Micro Aerial Vehicle
By Darren Quick
22:05 July 9, 2009 PDT
Researchers are increasingly looking to nature for design inspiration in a wide range of mechanical devices. Doing so allows them to draw on the millions of years of evolution that have resulted in designs offering superior performance and efficiency. Micro Aerial Vehicles (MAVs) is one field that has recognized the maneuverability and performance virtue of nature’s small flyers, with various attempts being made to mimic these designs and produce vehicles that outperform traditional fixed-wing or rotary-wing craft. We’ve seen the development of a tiny a ‘nano air vehicle’ inspired by the hummingbird, a UAV based on a Pterodactyl and a six-inch long robotic spy plane that, like this new design from North Carolina University, draws on the physical characteristics of a bat. Read More
Focus on search and rescue robots at RoboCup 2009
By Karen Sprey
04:50 July 6, 2009 PDT
Search and rescue robots (S&R robots) were put through their paces in two complex and realistic disaster scenarios as part of a special rescue robot supporting program at RoboCup 2009 – the robotics world championships - in Graz, Austria. In recognition of the potentially lifesaving uses of rescue robots, RoboCup 2009 promoted their development in the separate category “RoboCup Rescue”, building on the success of the RoboCup Soccer project through technical discussion forums of technical discussions and competitive evaluations for researchers and practitioners. Read More
Robotic jaws give dentists something to chew on
By Darren Quick
17:49 July 2, 2009 PDT
In news that might be a little worrying when coupled with our recent story of the flesh-eating robotic clock, UK researchers have developed a Chewing Robot. Thankfully the uses for the Chewing Robot are more benign - it has been developed to study the wear and tear on dental elements, such as fillings, crowns and bridges. By reproducing the motion and forces sustained by teeth within a human mouth, the robot has the potential to dramatically improve the process of developing and testing new dental materials. Read More
Feed me Seymour: The flesh-eating robotic clock
By Darren Quick
20:07 July 1, 2009 PDT
Giving robots a taste for flesh might not seem like a great idea given that they’re probably going to rise up and enslave us in the next few decades. But that’s just what a couple of UK-based designers have done with their prototype flesh-eating robotic clock. Read More
Robot does it by the book
By Darren Quick
21:52 June 22, 2009 PDT
Too tired to read the little ones a bedtime story after a long day? Japanese researchers may have had the time-poor parent in mind when they developed Ninomiya-kun, a robot capable of reading aloud from that most ancient of random access mass storage devices - a book. Read More
Squse robotic hand a soft touch
By Darren Quick
01:44 June 22, 2009 PDT
Kyoto-based factory automation firm Squse has developed a robotic hand that is dextrous and delicate enough to handle sushi. The scarily lifelike hand is constructed of a polycarbonate skeleton covered by a skin of soft silicone. Its 22 pneumatically powered artificial muscles enable its fingers to move like a human hand and it has 20 different moves up its sleeve, ranging from a full-hand squeeze to a delicate two-finger pinch used to transfer sushi from one plate to another. Read More
Robotic surgeon could remove shrapnel on battlefield
00:28 June 22, 2009 PDT
Bioengineers at Duke Univesity in North Carolina have developed a laboratory prototype of a robot that can locate and surgically extract shrapnel pieces from flesh without any kind of human supervision. Using 3-D ultrasound imaging as “eyes”, the tabletop robot was able to precisely locate tiny shards of metal and then successfully guide a needle to their exact location. Read More
Robotic ferret to sniff out hidden drugs, weapons and people
03:25 June 15, 2009 PDT
It won’t be cuddly, but it’ll certainly be efficient. The University of Sheffield is developing what it calls a cargo-screening ferret that uses a combination of laser and fiber-optic technology to sniff out the tiniest traces of drugs, weapons, explosives and even illegal immigrants. Read More
RoBeDo's latest 'just-add-netbook' robot
By Darren Quick
01:32 June 12, 2009 PDT
RoBe:Do Robotics has rolled its latest software-ready autonomous robot off the production line at its Colorado home base. Like its first two robotic offerings, RoBe:Do’s third robot, aptly named “Three”, comes fully assembled and ready for you to add the netbook of your choice to act as the robot’s brain... and making and delivering popcorn could be just the tip of the iceberg for this bot. Read More
Android KOBIAN feels its way in a human world
By Paul Best
21:58 May 25, 2009 PDT
When in science fiction films android robots show anything other than blind obedience – or something akin to feelings – it tends to spell trouble for the human race. I, Robot and Blade Runner come to mind. So here we are, not even properly ensconced in the age of humanoid robots yet, and already researchers at Japan’s Waseda University and Kyushu robotics manufacturer Tmsuk have conspired to create a robot, named KOBIAN, that can express a range of emotions. Uh-oh. Read More
Robotic Hawk serves and protects … and entertains
By Paul Best
00:31 May 11, 2009 PDT
It plays drums, serves drinks and learns whatever you care to teach it – it’s Hawk, your very own bot for the home. Designed and built on an i90 robot base, Hawk is a human-like robot with hawkish head and long claw-like arms. Ergo, it’s moniker. Read More
Panasonic unveils Fukitorimushi: a worm-like robot for cleaning floors
By Paul Best
20:28 May 10, 2009 PDT
Panasonic has shown off its robotic worm that cleans as it inches its way across the floor. Tagged the Fukitorimushi, which roughly translates as “wipe-up bug”, the robotic floor-sweeper is covered in a patented nanocloth – called Nanofront – made up of thousands of polyester filament fibers that can pick up extremely fine dust conventional cleaners leave behind – at least according to its makers. Read More
Robotic helicopter teaches itself how to fly aerobatics
By Paul Evans
23:47 May 7, 2009 PDT
Autonomous helicopters offer a highly maneuverable and versatile platform in scenarios like disaster relief operations, but programming these machines to perform complex aerobatics is a formidable challenge - unless of course they teach themselves. This example developed by Stanford computer scientists does just that, learning to fly by watching other RC helicopters in the air. Not only does this artificial intelligence system produce a spectacular flying exhibition, it's seen as an important demonstration of robotic learning through observation. Read More
Bionic penguins fly through water … and air
By Darren Quick
04:13 April 27, 2009 PDT
The latest example of biomimicry in robotics to cross our desk is from German electrical automation company Festo, which has used the shape of the acquatic, flightless bird to construct two different types of bionic penguins. The AquaPenguins use the bird's hydrodynamic body contours and wing propulsion to allow the robot to maneuver in cramped spaces, turn on the spot and, unlike their real-life counterparts, swim backwards. The larger helium-filled AirPenguins use the same principles to lift the usually flightless bird into the air. Read More
Honda’s prototype walking assist devices to go on show in the US
By David Greig
00:45 April 16, 2009 PDT
With increasing numbers of post-war baby boomers beginning to face old age, devices assisting people remain mobile as they grow older will become big business. Honda, which started out making motorcycles, has anticipated the needs of an aging population and invested heavily in mobility robotics research. The company is planning to demonstrate its prototype walking assist devices as part of a technical exhibition at the 2009 Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) World Congress, at Detroit's Cobo Center, from April 20 to 23. Read More
HAL exoskeleton can boost strength 10 times
By Darren Quick
19:01 April 15, 2009 PDT
Anyone who has seen Aliens will remember the exoskeleton forklift that Ripley wears to fight the alien queen at the end of the movie. Well, Japanese company Cyberdyne has unveiled a robotic suit that works on a similar idea of a robotic suit capable of augmenting human motion and strength. The Robot Suit Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL for short) is a wearable robot that uses a “voluntary control system” first to interpret the wearers' planned movement and then assist them in it. Read More
Robot can perform surgery on beating heart
By Kyle Sherer
21:19 April 12, 2009 PDT
Scientists at Japan’s Waseda University have created a machine that can perform surgery on a functioning heart by adjusting to the rhythm of its beat. The Waseda crew’s robot has been operating on pig’s hearts since 2004, with a claimed 95% tracking accuracy. Read More
da Vinci robotic surgery system gets visualization upgrade
By Kyle Sherer
17:56 April 11, 2009 PDT
Robotic Surgery specialist Intuitive Surgical has added enhanced 3D HD resolution, an updated interface and new ergonomic settings to the latest incarnation of its da Vinci System. Read More
Honda's Brain-Machine Interface: controlling robots by thoughts alone
By Loz Blain
00:25 April 2, 2009 PDT
Honda has taken some very significant steps into what could be an absolute revolution in human-computer interface. Honda Research Institute, Japan, has demonstrated a Brain-Machine Interface (BMI) that enables a user to control an ASIMO robot using nothing more than thought. Wearing a headset containing both electroencephalography (EEG) and near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) sensors, the user simply imagines moving either his right hand, left hand, tongue or feet - and ASIMO makes a corresponding movement. The system is still huge and slow, and the commands are quite crude and imprecise - but Honda's baby steps represent a huge leap in technology. The next task is to refine the system to work with fine motor controls, add the ability to decode non-motor brain signals and speed it all up. Then, the doors will be open for a whole range of machines that can sense your thoughts, intentions and feelings, and act directly upon them. BMI has staggering potential - this is just the beginning. Read More
Freedom Glen
- November 25, 2009 @ 02:47 UTC
