Robotics, AI and SmartTech News – Latest Headlines

Sounds of action: Using ears, not just eyes, improves robot perception

People rarely use just one sense to understand the world, but robots usually only rely on vision and, increasingly, touch. Researchers find that robot perception could improve markedly by adding another sense: hearing.

August 14, 2020 Read more

Aquatic robots can remove contaminant particles from water (w/video)

Researchers have developed a small wireless artificial aquatic polyp, which can remove contaminants from water. Apart from cleaning, this soft robot could be also used in medical diagnostic devices by aiding in picking up and transporting specific cells for analysis.

August 10, 2020 Read more

Is it a bird, a plane? Not superman, but a flapping wing drone

A drone prototype that mimics the aerobatic manoeuvres of one of the world's fastest birds, the swift, is being developed by an international team of engineers in the latest example of biologically inspired flight.

July 23, 2020 Read more

Powerful human-like hands create safer human-robotics interactions

Need a robot with a soft touch? Engineers have designed and developed a novel humanoid hand that may be able to help.

July 20, 2020 Read more

Wireless aquatic robot could clean water and transport cells (w/video)

Inspired by a coral polyp, this plastic mini robot moves by magnetism and light.

July 14, 2020 Read more

Transparent, reflective objects now within grasp of robots (w/video)

Transparent and reflective objects are the things of robot nightmares. Roboticists now report success with a new technique they've developed for teaching robots to pick up these troublesome objects.

July 14, 2020 Read more

Meet the robot chemist that can perform its own experiments (w/video)

A robot that can handle sensitive chemicals, work for weeks at a time, and even decide which experiments to carry out when given a hypothesis - is either a scientist?s dream come true or their worst nightmare. Researchers have designed a robot which can work with human tools in a lab, effectively automating a whole researcher rather than just their tools.

July 9, 2020 Read more

Jellyfish-inspired soft robots can outswim their natural counterparts

Engineering researchers have developed soft robots inspired by jellyfish that can outswim their real-life counterparts. More practically, the new jellyfish-bots highlight a technique that uses pre-stressed polymers to make soft robots more powerful.

July 1, 2020 Read more

Coordinating complex behaviors between hundreds of robots

A new approach to designing motion plans for multiple robots grows 'trees' in the search space to solve complex problems in a fraction of the time.

July 1, 2020 Read more

Mole-bot optimized for underground and space exploration

Biomimetic drilling robot provides new insights into the development of efficient drilling technologies.

June 8, 2020 Read more

Next-generation cockroach-inspired robot is small but mighty

About the size of a penny, the HAMR-JR can perform almost all of the feats of its larger-scale predecessor, making it one of the most dexterous microrobots to date.

June 3, 2020 Read more

These flexible feet help robots walk faster

Roboticists have developed flexible feet that can help robots walk up to 40 percent faster on uneven terrain such as pebbles and wood chips. The work has applications for search-and-rescue missions as well as space exploration.

June 2, 2020 Read more

Next generation of soft robots inspired by a children's toy

Researchers build a fast-moving jumping soft actuator.

May 21, 2020 Read more

Engineers develop low-cost, high-accuracy GPS-like system for flexible medical robots

Roboticists have developed an affordable, easy to use system to track the location of flexible surgical robots inside the human body. The system performs as well as current state of the art methods, but is much less expensive.

May 18, 2020 Read more

Researchers develop real-time physics engine for soft robotics

Researchers have adapted sophisticated computer graphics technology, used to create hair and fabric in animated films, to simulate the movements of soft, limbed robots for the first time. The advance is a major step toward such robots that are autonomous.

May 12, 2020 Read more

'Data clouds fusion' helps robots work as a team in hazardous situations

A group of researchers and engineers has created a new way for robots to pool data gathered in real time, allowing them to 'think' collectively and navigate their way through difficult, previously unmapped obstacles as a team.

May 11, 2020 Read more

Prototype smartband for COVID-19 pandemic reads body temperature and enforces social distancing

The smartband is able to alert users when their body temperature is higher than 37.5 degrees and the distance to another person is too close to be safe.

April 29, 2020 Read more

Spinal cord gives bio-bots walking rhythm

Miniature biological robots are making greater strides than ever, thanks to the spinal cord directing their steps.

April 28, 2020 Read more