Tag: robotics
-
Two-Legged Robot Developed with Running Ability
Engineers at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor have developed a bipedal robot with the ability to run as well as walk. MABEL, as the robot is called, is funded by the National Science Foundation and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. MABEL was first developed in 2008 as a collaboration between Michigan’s Jessy Grizzle, a…
-
Robot Being Developed to Aid in Care of Elderly
The Japanese research foundation RIKEN, in collaboration with Tokai Rubber Industries Ltd. in Nagoya Science Park, has developed a robot with the ability to lift and carry a patient from floor-level bedding to a wheelchair and back. The robot, with high-precision tactile sensors and motor control, was designed to meet the needs of caring…
-
Laser-Printed Drone Aircraft Developed, Flown
Engineers at University of Southampton in the U.K. have designed and flown an unmanned aircraft made with a three-dimensional laser printing process. The university worked with 3T RPD Ltd, a company in Newbury, U.K., for the aircraft’s manufacturing. The Southampton University Laser Sintered Aircraft (SULSA) project led by engineering professors Andy Keane and Jim Scanlan…
-
Head Cap Devised to Capture Brain Signals to Control Devices
A neuroscience/engineering team at University of Maryland in College Park has developed headgear like a swim cap with sensors that read brain signals and let the wearer control electronic devices. The Maryland team’s findings appear in the current issue of the Journal of Neurophysiology (paid subscription required). The non-invasive cap, lined with sensors that connect…
-
Prototype Spherical Robot Developed to Monitor Reactor Pipes
Engineers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a small robotic device to inspect underground pipes for corrosion at nuclear reactors. A prototype of the remote-controlled device was presented in May at the 2011 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation. The device, about the size of an egg and with a spherical shape, was…
-
Grant Awarded for Mind-Machine Engineering Research Center
National Science Foundation announced an $18.5 million grant to establish an Engineering Research Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering based at University of Washington in Seattle. The grant is for five years of funding, with an option for another five years. The new center is expected to research robotic devices that interact with, assist, and understand…
-
University Develops Tiny, Lens-Free Camera
A postdoc engineer at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York developed a microscopic camera that fits on the head of a pin, contains no lenses or moving parts, and costs pennies to make. The prototype by Patrick Gill and his colleagues is described in the current issue of the journal Optics Letters (paid subscription required).…
-
Integrated Robotic Tactile Skin Sensitivity Developed
Researchers at Technical University Munich (Technische Universität München, TUM) have built small hexagonal plates, which when joined together, provide a tactile-sensitive skin for autonomous robots. A paper describing these developments appears in the June issue of the journal IEEE Transactions on Robotics (paid subscription required). The TUM scientists have developed an artificial skin for robots…
-
White House Unveils Manufacturing Partnership, Investments
At Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh today, President Obama launched an initiative that aims to invest in emerging technologies leading to high quality manufacturing jobs. The Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP) is expected to combine resources from industry, universities, and the federal government to encourage progress in information technology, biotechnology, and nanotechnology, and other advancements…
-
Engineers Developing Human Driving Model to Reduce Crashes
Researchers at University of Michigan and MIT are devising an algorithm that models human driving behavior to help cars avoid accidents on the road. Early results of the model are expected to be published in the journal IEEE Robotics and Automation Magazine. Mechanical engineers Domitilla Del Vecchio of MIT and Rajeev Verma at University of…