Robotics

In recent months NSK Japan has been working in close conjunction with the Kanagawa Rehabilitation Centre, performing trials of the company´s innovative LIGHBOT autonomous guide robot which features indoor navigation and obstacle avoidance. The product already offers a number of advanced guidance, safety and usability functions, and NSK Japan will now continue its development efforts in readiness for LIGHBOT´s European launch in the au...

Researchers from Sheffield Robotics have applied a novel method of automatically programming and controlling a swarm of up to 600 robots to complete a specified set of tasks simultaneously. This reduces human error and therefore many of the bugs that can occur in programming, making it more user-friendly and reliable than previous techniques. This could be particularly advantageous in areas where safety of using robotics is a concern, for example...

Boston Dynamics unveiled a new humanoid robot. Called Atlas, The Next Generation, the robot has capabilities like walking in snow, picking up objects, opening doors, and even helping itself up off the floor. Boston Dynamics writes that it's designed to operate outdoors and inside buildings.

"That is a ball." "I do believe that is a cone." "Seems like a wonderful book." The voice is mechanical and flat, and anyone offering such banal commentary and sounding so bored would surely bomb in a job interview. But in this case, the observations are impressive. They're made by what looks like a two-foot-tall stack of hors d'oeuvre trays on wheels, careening around the floor and proclaiming its discoveries as its "eye," an attached camera, fa...

Georgia Institute of Technology researchers have built a wearable robotic limb that allows drummers to play with three arms. The two-foot long "smart arm" can be attached to a musician's shoulder. It responds to human gestures and the music it hears. When the drummer moves to play the high hat cymbal, for example, the robotic arm maneuvers to play the ride cymbal. When the drummer switches to the snare, the mechanical arm shifts to the tom.

Autonomous robots performing a joint task send each other continual updates: “I’ve passed through a door and am turning 90 degrees right.” “After advancing 2 feet I’ve encountered a wall. I’m turning 90 degrees right.” “After advancing 4 feet I’ve encountered a wall.” And so on.

A new research project aims to develop the world's first flying robots capable of autonomously assessing and manufacturing building structures to help areas suffering from natural disasters. The four year collaborative research project entitled ‘Aerial Additive Building Manufacturing: Distributed Unmanned Aerial Systems for in-situ manufacturing of the built environment’ involves researchers from the University of Bath, Imperial Colle...

Developing humanoid robotic technology to perform difficult tasks in aircraft manufacturing facilities is the goal of a four-year joint research project, which is being conducted by the Joint Robotics Laboratory (CNRS/AIST)1 and Airbus Group. It will officially be launched on 12th February 2016 at the French Embassy in Tokyo2.

Advances in artificial intelligence will soon lead to robots that are capable of nearly everything humans do, threatening tens of millions of jobs in the coming 30 years. "We are approaching a time when machines will be able to outperform humans at almost any task," said Moshe Vardi, director of the Institute for Information Technology at Rice University in Texas.

Most drones are, and will remain, electric, as detailed in the recently released IDTechEx report, “Electric Drones: Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) 2015-2025”. Cameras of an increasing variety of types will be in more and more drones and they will become more versatile, lighter weight, more robust and lower cost as they are used for many purposes beyond navigation and surveillance.