Robotics, AI and SmartTech News – Latest Headlines

Sensor-packed glove learns signatures of the human grasp

Signals help neural network identify objects by touch; system could aid robotics and prosthetics design.

May 30, 2019 Read more

'Slothbot' takes a leisurely approach to environmental monitoring

For environmental monitoring, precision agriculture, infrastructure maintenance and certain security applications, slow and energy efficient can be better than fast and always needing a recharge. That's where SlothBot comes in.

May 30, 2019 Read more

Robots activated by water may be the next frontier

Researchers show hat materials can be fabricated to create soft actuators--devices that convert energy into physical motion--that are strong and flexible, and, most important, resistant to water damage.

May 23, 2019 Read more

Helping robots remember: Hyperdimensional computing theory could change the way AI works

New research could fundamentally alter and improve the basic artificial intelligence task of sensorimotor representation - how agents like robots translate what they sense into what they do.

May 16, 2019 Read more

Hummingbird robot using AI to go soon where drones can't (w/video)

Researchers have engineered flying robots that behave like hummingbirds, trained by machine learning algorithms based on various techniques the bird uses naturally every day.

May 10, 2019 Read more

The revolution of plantoids

Robots are usually inspired by humans and animals. But the very last frontier is the plantoids - plant robots able to move and explore the environment with their smart sensors.

May 10, 2019 Read more

Knit 1, purl 2: Assembly instructions for a robot? (w/video)

Researchers make soft, actuated objects using commercial knitting machines.

May 2, 2019 Read more

An army of microrobots can wipe out dental plaque

Researchers 3D print microbe-killing robots for biofilm elimination.

April 25, 2019 Read more

No assembly required: Researchers automate microrobotic designs

Assembling a microrobot used to require a pair of needle-nosed tweezers, a microscope, steady hands and at least eight hours. But now researchers have developed a method that requires only a 3D printer and 20 minutes.

April 24, 2019 Read more

Snake-inspired robot slithers even better than predecessor (w/video)

Programmable kirigami metamaterials enable responsive surfaces and smart skins.

April 22, 2019 Read more

Giving robots a better feel for object manipulation (w/video)

Model improves a robot's ability to mold materials into shapes and interact with liquids and solid objects.

April 17, 2019 Read more

Shape-changing robots take on changing terrains

Robots can change directions, speeds and even their colors. But what about changing their shapes? With help from a sculptor's intuition, researchers are on it.

April 11, 2019 Read more

Laying the ground for robotic strategies in environmental protection (w/video)

Sheet pile driving robot autonomously builds erosion barriers from interlocking metal sheets in natural terrain, and robot swarms could be developed to protect threatened areas.

April 8, 2019 Read more

Researchers uncover the power of dynamically rewiring swarm robotic systems

Studies on the collective behavior of a swarm of land robots showed that a specific number of interactions among units is required to produce an optimal collective response.

April 5, 2019 Read more

Dynamic hydrogel used to make 'soft robot' components and LEGO-like building blocks

Using a new type of dual polymer material capable of responding dynamically to its environment, researchers have developed a set of modular hydrogel components that could be useful in a variety of soft robotic and biomedical applications.

March 21, 2019 Read more

Robots enable bees and fish to talk to each other

Through an imaginative experiment, researchers were able to get two extremely different animal species located far apart to interact with each other and reach a shared decision with the help of robots.

March 21, 2019 Read more

Robotic 'gray goo' (w/video)

Researchers create new kind of robot composed of many simple particles with no centralized control or single point of failure.

March 20, 2019 Read more

Robot hand is soft and strong (w/video)

Gripper device inspired by 'origami magic ball' can grasp wide array of delicate and heavy objects.

March 15, 2019 Read more