Robotics

Robots promise to transform our lives in myriad ways. Having already revolutionized the production line, robots are getting smarter, smaller and more capable, and they're walking, rolling and flying out of labs and into homes and businesses at an astonishing rate. With the ability to perform tasks that are considered too menial or impossible for humans, robots are destined to make many aspects of our lives easier. Will they ultimately supplant us? We'll just have to wait and see.

Robotics Audio available

Bees and fish learn to communicate long distance – via robots

Michael Irving March 21, 2019

A colony of bees in Austria and a school of fish in Switzerland have become unlikely allies. In experiments run by several European universities, the two very different animal species were able to communicate and coordinate their movements long-distance with the help of some robotic interpreters.

European researchers have used robots to help bees and fish communicate over long distances

Robotics Audio available

Robotic "particles" swarm together to move towards the light

Michael Irving March 20, 2019

Most robots are usually made to do one particular job, so they’re not very adaptable to new situations. But researchers at MIT, Harvard, Columbia and Cornell Universities have developed particle robots – simple circular devices that can connect to each other magnetically to move and work as a swarm.

A new system of "particle robots" can swarm together to achieve things that individual units can't ...

Robotics Audio available

MIT's robotic system can pick up items it has never encountered before

Nick Lavars March 18, 2019

Scientists at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) have developed a versatile new robotic machine they say can learn to pick up and put down all kinds of things, even ones it has never seen before.

Called Keypoint Affordance Manipulation (KPAM), the researchers say the new control software can afford robots fair ...

Robotics Audio available

Robots lined up to help out spectators at 2020 Olympics

Paul Ridden March 15, 2019

The Organising Committee for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo has revealed the first Tokyo 2020 Robot Project helpers, which will assist spectators in wheelchairs to ensure they have "an experience they are unlikely to forget."

Toyota's Human Support Robots and Delivery Assist Robots are the first robot helpers to be confirmed ...

Robotics Audio available

MIT's new robotic gripper works like a Venus fly trap

Nick Lavars March 14, 2019

From green blobs to boa constrictors, scientists have taken inspiration from some interesting sources in pursuit of robotic arms that can delicately lift heavy items. The latest solution from MIT resembles a venus flytrap in the way its snatches up objects many times its own weight.

The Magic Ball gripper consists of a skeleton made from cone-shaped origami structure that is connected ...

Robotics Audio available

Food-focused autonomous robot arm knows how to use the forks

Michael Irving March 13, 2019

Researchers at the University of Washington have developed an autonomous robot arm that can figure out the best way to pick up food of any shape and bring it up to a user’s mouth, which should make mealtimes easier for people with limited mobility.

The Assistive Dexterous Arm (ADA) knows how much force to apply to pick up different types ...

Robotics

Robotic leg leans on animal evolution to teach itself to walk

Nick Lavars March 11, 2019

In news that will do little to dampen fears of a robot apocalypse, researchers have built a robo-limb that can teach itself to walk. It's hoped the research will open up new possibilities in the fields of dynamic prosthetics and robots that learn on the fly in unfamiliar environments.

The new robotic limb attached to a four-legged machine

Robotics Audio available

Autonomous sub seeks plankton patches to save birds

Ben Coxworth March 7, 2019

Phytoplankton aren't just evenly distributed throughout the ocean. Instead, they occur in three-dimensional concentrated patches. A new autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) is able to find and map those patches, potentially helping to preserve wildlife such as seabirds.

The Harald AUV detects fluorescence that signifies the presence of phytoplankton

Robotics Audio available

Pneumatic robotic hand has a soft touch, and a willingness to learn

Ben Coxworth March 7, 2019

If you were using a robotic hand to manipulate delicate objects, you'd probably prefer that hand to be soft and gentle instead of hard and bony – plus it would help if the thing could teach itself how to perform tasks. Well, those are the selling features of Festo's new prototype BionicSoftHand.

The BionicSoftHand is the latest creation from German pneumatic and electric automation company Festo

Robotics

MIT's Mini Cheetah Robot can do a perfect backflip

Nick Lavars March 3, 2019

MIT's robotic cheetah has gained a new sidekick, and the nimble sibling of the four-legged galloping droid has a few impressive tricks of its own, including perfectly executed backflips.

The MIT Mini Cheetah robot has a few tricks up its sleeve