A team of researchers, led by Matthew Gombolay, an assistant professor in the School of Interactive Computing and director of the Cognitive Optimization and Relational (CORE) Robotics Lab at Georgia Tech, are using the sport of table tennis to showcase that humans may not always trust a robot's explanation of its intended action.
Robots could be valuable assistants for most first responders, as they could help them to remotely monitor or intervene in areas that are inaccessible or life-threatening for humans. Firefighters, who are at high risk of getting injured during their missions, would undoubtedly benefit from the assistance of reliable mobile robots.
A team of scientists has developed electronic skin that could pave the way for soft, flexible robotic devices to assist with surgical procedures or aid people's mobility.
Octopus arms coordinate nearly infinite degrees of freedom to perform complex movements such as reaching, grasping, fetching, crawling, and swimming. How these animals achieve such a wide range of activities remains a source of mystery, amazement, and inspiration. Part of the challenge comes from the intricate organization and biomechanics of the internal muscles.
A tiny robot that could one day help doctors perform surgery was inspired by the incredible gripping ability of geckos and the efficient locomotion of inchworms.
While robots have become increasingly advanced over the past few years, most of them are still unable to reliably navigate very crowded spaces, such as public areas or roads in urban environments. To be implemented on a large-scale and in the smart cities of the future, however, robots will need to be able to navigate these environments both reliably and safely, without colliding with humans or nearby objects.
Researchers at Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT-Italian Institute of Technology) in Genoa has realized a new soft robot inspired by the biology of earthworms, which is able to crawl thanks to soft actuators that elongate or squeeze, when air passes through them or is drawn out.
As technology advances rapidly, the gap between the speed of policy development and technological change is becoming more prominent. This is particularly true in robotics, where current legislation often lags behind and fails to adequately frame robot technologies. This gap increases legal uncertainty and poses safety risks, as developers may not know which regulatory frameworks to follow. The resulting technology may thus perform poorly and lead to biases and discrimination.
Robotics specialists from a group led by ETH professor Raffaello D'Andrea have created a new, cube-shaped robot that can balance on its pivot and compensate for external disturbances. What makes the One-Wheel Cubli unique? Unlike its predecessors, it only requires a single reaction wheel.
Researchers from North Carolina State University and Iowa State University have demonstrated an automated technology capable of accurately measuring the angle of leaves on corn plants in the field. This technology makes data collection on leaf angles significantly more efficient than conventional techniques, providing plant breeders with useful data more quickly.