Robotics

The rolling robots that deliver groceries and hot meals across Los Angeles are getting an upgrade. Coco Robotics, a UCLA-born startup that's deployed more than 1,000 bots across the country, unveiled its next-generation machines on Thursday.... Read more

Robotics technology that not only performs simple tasks but also supports humans in all their tasks is among the key technologies in industrial manufacturing. But this requires that robots be able to master complex movements, execute commands and maintain a safe distance from humans at all times. Fraunhofer researchers have... Read more

Researchers have taken inspiration from nature to create a robotic wing that can sense and adapt to changes in water to deliver unparalleled stability. Drawing on the adaptive movements of birds and fish, the wing senses disturbances in the flow of water and automatically changes its shape to adjust to... Read more

A 22-meter robot arm will help remove a third sample of radioactive debris from inside Japan's stricken Fukushima nuclear plant, its operator said Thursday, as it unveiled the snake-like device.... Read more

A new glove with more than three dozen actuators across all five fingers and the palm, developed by Cornell researchers, aims to reduce swelling for people suffering from edema. The glove, known as EdemaFlex, was proven safe for unsupervised home use in a seven-participant study, with hand volume decreasing by... Read more

University of California, Irvine computer scientists have discovered a critical security vulnerability in autonomous target-tracking drones that could have far-reaching implications for public safety, border security and personal privacy. The UC Irvine team demonstrated how attackers could use an ordinary umbrella to manipulate drones, drawing the aircraft close enough to... Read more

Rice becomes weaker when compressed quickly, while staying stronger under slow pressure—a discovery enabling scientists to design a new material that could be used to build "soft" robots that change stiffness automatically and protective gear that adapts to impact speed. Researchers harnessed this effect to design a new "metamaterial"—an artificially... Read more

A leading cause of disability in the United States is hemiparesis, a condition where impaired motor control, muscle weakness, and spasticity affect one side of the body. Occurring in 80% of stroke survivors, reduced mobility and decreased quality of life are challenges that impact millions of individuals.... Read more

Eyes are said to be the mirror of the soul. Eyes and gaze direction guide attention, evoke emotions and activate the brain's social perception mechanisms. Researchers at Tampere University and the University of Bremen conducted a study examining how people perceive the minds of humanoid robots. Mind perception refers to... Read more

Last year, Norwegian-US tech company 1X announced a strange new product: "the world's first consumer-ready humanoid robot designed to transform life at home."... Read more

While the statement, "Humanoid robots are coming," might cause anxiety for some, for one Georgia Tech research team, working with humanlike robots couldn't be more exciting. The researchers have developed a new "thinking" technology for two-legged robots, increasing their balance and agility.... Read more

Mobile robots must continuously estimate their position to navigate autonomously. However, satellite-based navigation systems are not always reliable: signals may degrade near buildings or become unavailable indoors. To operate safely and efficiently, robots must interpret their surroundings using onboard sensors and robust localization algorithms.... Read more

Human hands are a wonder of nature and unmatched in the animal kingdom. They can twist caps, flick switches, handle tiny objects with ease, and perform thousands of tasks every day. Robot hands struggle to keep up. They typically miss the sense of touch, can't move many fingers at once,... Read more

Fighting fires could be done remotely without the need to place firefighting crews directly in potentially dangerous situations by using collaborative teams of artificial intelligence-powered robots with extinguishing equipment on board, with an initial soft trial of the technology proving successful.... Read more

Standing on a tower overlooking the cliffs of the Cortina downhill course, there is someone who is just as involved in the biggest skiing races of the Winter Olympics as Mikaela Shiffrin and Breezy Johnson.... Read more