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A team of engineers from the University of Illinois has published the first known study documenting the long-jumping motion of 3-D-printed insect-scale robots.

The subtle adhesive forces that allow geckos to seemingly defy gravity, cling to walls and walk across ceilings have inspired a team of researchers in South Korea to build a robotic device that can pick up and release delicate materials without damage. The team, based at Kyungpook National University and Dong-A University, has published their research work in Science and Technology of Advanced Materials. The researchers are hoping it can be applied to the transfer of objects by robotic systems.

Nature is the primary source of inspiration for many existing robotic systems, designed to replicate the appearance and behavior of various living organisms. By artificially reproducing biological processes, these robots can help tackle complex real-world problems more effectively.

Actuators, which convert electrical energy into motion or force, play a pivotal role in daily life, albeit often going unnoticed. Soft material-based actuators, in particular, have gained scientific attention in recent years due to their lightweight, quiet operation, and biodegradability. A straightforward approach to creating soft actuators involves employing multi-material structures, such as "pockets" made of flexible plastic films filled with oils and coated with conductive plastics.

Robots able to display human emotion have long been a mainstay of science fiction stories. Now, Japanese researchers have been studying the mechanical details of real human facial expressions to bring those stories closer to reality.

Researchers at the University of Barcelona have made a sweet discovery: Honeybees make great subjects when studying the dynamic of group behavior and decision-making.

Centimeter-scale walking and crawling robots are in demand both for their ability to explore tight or cluttered environments and for their low fabrication costs. Now, pulling from origami-inspired construction, researchers led by Cynthia Sung, Gabel Family Term Assistant Professor in the School of Engineering and Applied Science's Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics (MEAM) Department, have crafted a more simplified approach to the design and fabrication of these robots.

Science fiction films portray the idea relatively simply: the terminator—who either tries to destroy or rescue humanity—is such a perfect humanoid robot that in most cases it is superior to humans. But how well do humanoid robots perform nowadays away from the cinema screen?

The black and yellow robot, meant to resemble a large dog, stood waiting for directions. When they came, the instructions weren't in code but instead in plain English: "Visit the wooden desk exactly two times; in addition, don't go to the wooden desk before the bookshelf."

Could robots, whose forms can be adapted to achieve almost any real-world task, soon be able to lend a hand in understanding the paleoecology tracing of extinct organisms?

Researchers at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology have developed an automated laboratory robot to run complex electrochemical experiments and analyze data.

Building a robot that's both human-like and useful is a decades-old engineering dream inspired by popular science fiction.

This shape-changing robot just got a lot smaller. In a new study, engineers at the University of Colorado Boulder debuted mCLARI, a 2-centimeter-long modular robot that can passively change its shape to squeeze through narrow gaps in multiple directions. It weighs less than a gram but can support over three times its body weight as an additional payload.

Hands possess an awe-inspiring ability to perceive friction forces with remarkable accuracy, all thanks to the mechanical receptors nestled within skin. This natural gift allows objects to be handled deftly and tools to be wielded effortlessly, infusing daily life with a delightful flexibility. But what if this tactile prowess could be unlocked in robots?

Imagine you're visiting a friend abroad, and you look inside their fridge to see what would make for a great breakfast. Many of the items initially appear foreign to you, with each one encased in unfamiliar packaging and containers. Despite these visual distinctions, you begin to understand what each one is used for and pick them up as needed.