Researchers at Rice University have developed a soft robotic arm capable of performing complex tasks such as navigating around an obstacle or hitting a ball, guided and powered remotely by laser beams without any onboard electronics or wiring. The research could inform new ways to control implantable surgical devices or industrial machines that need to handle delicate objects.
Researchers have unveiled a robotic hand, the F-TAC Hand, which integrates high-resolution tactile sensing across an unprecedented 70% of its surface area, allowing for human-like adaptive grasping. This pioneering development, published in Nature Machine Intelligence today, represents a significant leap forward in robotic intelligence and its ability to interact with dynamic real-world environments.
Ready for that long-awaited summer vacation? First, you'll need to pack all items required for your trip into a suitcase, making sure everything fits securely without crushing anything fragile.
What used to take 15 seconds now takes less than 2: Thanks to new single-shot technology, the goROBOT3D system, developed by researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF, will be able to measure three-dimensional objects even more efficiently in future—even if they are transparent or black. The institute will be presenting the technology for the first time at the automatica trade show in Munich from June 24 to 27.
Researchers at Edith Cowan University (ECU) are helping machines become more emotionally aware using a new method that allows them to better recognize human facial expressions.
Three robotic arms extended under the water in a Canadian lake, delicately selecting pebbles from the bed, before storing them back inside the machine.
Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Factory Operation and Automation IFF have developed cognitive robot capabilities that can handle complex tasks in manufacturing that were previously impossible to automate. In addition, they are also unveiling PARU and computer-aided safety (CAS), the first safety technologies and planning tools for close human-machine collaboration that can also ensure safety in AI-generated robot movements.
Earlier this year, a robot completed a half-marathon in Beijing in just under 2 hours and 40 minutes. That's slower than the human winner, who clocked in at just over an hour—but it's still a remarkable feat. Many recreational runners would be proud of that time. The robot kept its pace for more than 13 miles (21 kilometers).
Over the past decades, roboticists have introduced various systems that can replicate specific human motions and behaviors with remarkable accuracy. Some of these robots can even compete with other robots or humans in specific sports, such as the robots showcased at the RoboCup, an international robotics event at which robots play soccer with each other.
A University of Nebraska–Lincoln engineering team is another step closer to developing soft robotics and wearable systems that mimic the ability of human and plant skin to detect and self-heal injuries.
A research team has developed autonomous driving software that allows inexpensive sensors to detect transparent obstacles such as glass walls, providing an alternative to high-performance sensors. This technology can be used in existing robots, negating the need for additional equipment while ensuring detection performance that is equal to that offered by expensive conventional equipment.
A team of roboticists and AI specialists at the Robotics & Artificial Intelligence Lab in Korea has designed, built and successfully tested a four-legged robot that is capable of conducting high-speed parkour maneuvers. In their paper published in the journal Science Robotics, the group describes how they gave their robot a controller capable of both planning and tracking its own movements to allow it to freely traverse a range of environments.
Frameworks are a critical, if underappreciated, component of any space exploration mission. They can range from the overall mission architecture, capturing scientific and technical goals, to the structure of messages sent between two internal components of the system.
A small team of roboticists at Robotic Systems Lab, ETH Zurich, in Switzerland, has designed, built and tested a four-legged robot capable of playing badminton with human players.
An ultra-light robotic prosthetic hand has been developed that enables both precision fingertip control and shape-adaptive gripping through simple motion commands. The hand features an innovative mechanism that allows two degrees of freedom in the thumb (adduction/abduction and flexion/extension) to be independently controlled by a single actuator, achieving exceptional user convenience and weight reduction.