Robotics News – Latest Headlines

A kernel of promise in popcorn-powered robots

Researchers have discovered how to power simple robots with a novel substance that, when heated, can expand more than 10 times in size, change its viscosity by a factor of 10 and transition from regular to highly irregular granules with surprising force.

Jul 26th, 2018

Accelerating the exploration of promising artificial intelligence concepts

New effort will expedite pioneering AI research, rapidly moving from idea to award.

Jul 24th, 2018

Developing microrobotics for disaster recovery and high-risk environments

SHRIMP program seeks to advance the state-of-the art in micro-to-milli robotics platforms and underlying technology.

Jul 23rd, 2018

Robots working as a group are able to determine the optimal order of their tasks

Researchers have recently shown that robots are able to collectively decide in what order they should complete their tasks.

Jul 19th, 2018

The pros and cons of artificial intelligence

AI is set to trigger a major transformation in society. As soon as algorithms influence our voting habits or design school curricula, it is up to politics to limit the damage. A new study on the opportunities and risks of AI is now being conducted.

Jul 17th, 2018

Emotional robot lets you feel how it's 'feeling' (w/video)

Researchers have developed a prototype of a robot that can express 'emotions' through changes in its outer surface. The robot's skin covers a grid of texture units whose shapes change based on the robot?s feelings.

Jul 16th, 2018

First machine learning method capable of accurate extrapolation

Scientists develop new machine learning method that can make robots safer; new method provides simpler and more intuitive models of physical situations.

Jul 12th, 2018

Reducing the data demands of smart machines

DARPA program seeks to reduce machine learning's dependence on labeled data by a million-fold for more efficient system development and adaptation.

Jul 12th, 2018

Humans need not apply

Will automation, AI and robotics mean a jobless future, or will their productivity free us to innovate and explore? Is the impact of new technologies to be feared, or a chance to rethink the structure of our working lives and ensure a fairer future for all?

Jul 6th, 2018

Rough terrain? No problem for beaver-inspired autonomous robot

Like the industrious rodent, the rover-like vehicle uses surroundings to build complex structures, overcome obstacles.

Jun 27th, 2018

Closing the loop for robotic grasping

Roboticists have developed a faster and more accurate way for robots to grasp objects, including in cluttered and changing environments, which has the potential to improve their usefulness in both industrial and domestic settings.

Jun 25th, 2018

New 'e-dermis' brings sense of touch, pain to prosthetic hands (w/video)

Electronic skin will enable amputees to perceive through prosthetic fingertips.

Jun 20th, 2018

Robot bloodhound tracks odors on the ground

Researchers have developed a modern-day bloodhound - a robot that can rapidly detect odors from sources on the ground, such as footprints. The robot could even read a message written on the ground using odors as a barcode.

Jun 20th, 2018

Controlling robots with brainwaves and hand gestures (w/video)

System enables people to correct robot mistakes on multi-choice problems.

Jun 20th, 2018

Intelligent maps will help robots navigate in your home

New research suggests methods for enabling robots to better understand and become more aware of their surroundings, so that they can efficiently adapt their movements in a complex work space.

Jun 19th, 2018

Researchers use machine learning to search science data

Researchers are developing innovative machine learning tools to pull contextual information from scientific datasets and automatically generate metadata tags for each file. Scientists can then search these files via a web-based search engine for scientific data.

Jun 19th, 2018