Category: Robotics

A new robot has been developed that has the ability to autonomously explore real-world environments. The robot, called Exo-Mind, was developed by researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Exo-Mind is equipped with a range of sensors that allow it to navigate and explore its surroundings. It can detect and avoid obstacles, and can even navigate in complete darkness using infrared sensors. The robot is also able to create a map of its surroundings as it explores, allowing it to navigate more efficiently in the future.

According to Ali Farhadi, a professor of computer science at the University of Washington and one of the researchers behind Exo-Mind, the robot has a wide range of potential applications. “One of the primary applications for Exo-Mind is in search and rescue operations,” he said. “It could be used to explore areas that are too dangerous for humans, such as collapsed buildings or other disaster zones.”

Continue reading… “A robot that can autonomously explore real-world environments”

Balloon actuators attached to the wearable move the person’s arm smoothly and naturally.

Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers have developed a soft wearable robotic device capable of significantly assisting upper arm and shoulder movement in people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, a neurodegenerative condition that damages cells in the brain and spinal cord necessary for movement. According to Conor Walsh, senior author on Science Translational Medicine paper reporting the team’s work, “This study gives us hope that soft robotic wearable technology might help us develop new devices capable of restoring functional limb abilities in people with ALS and other diseases that rob patients of their mobility.” The soft, fabric-based prototype is powered cordlessly by a battery and consists of a shirt with inflatable, balloon-like actuators under the armpit. A pressurized balloon helps the wearer combat gravity to move their upper arm and shoulder.

The team developed a sensor system to detect residual movement of the arm and calibrate the appropriate pressurization of the balloon actuator to move the person’s arm smoothly and naturally. The researchers recruited ten people living with ALS to evaluate how well the device might extend or restore their movement and quality of life. After a 30-second calibration process to detect each wearer’s unique level of mobility and strength, the soft robotic wearable improved study participants’ range of motion, reduced muscle fatigue, and increased performance of tasks like holding or reaching for objects. It took participants less than 15 minutes to learn how to use the device.

Continue reading… “Soft Robotic Wearable Restores Arm Function for People with ALS”

Xpeng Robotics, a leading player in the field of robotics technology, has announced the completion of a successful $100 million Series A funding round. The funds will be used to further develop Xpeng’s cutting-edge home robotics technology and bring it to market.

The Series A funding round was led by a group of high-profile investors, including well-known venture capital firms and strategic investors. The funds will be used to advance Xpeng’s work in the field of home robotics, which includes the development of highly advanced robots designed for use in the home.

Continue reading… “Xpeng Robotics Secures $100 Million in Series A Funding to Advance Home Robotics”

Zero-Boundary installation. VISION AI brings sight to Landroid, detecting every area of your lawn!

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Jan. 5, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Worx, a global leader in autonomous mowing, today announced the introduction of its latest robotic lawn mower, the LANDROID Vision, equipped with the top-level neural network – artificial intelligence that is trained to distinguish between grass and non-grass. Through its on-board HDR camera and VISION AI, Worx’s new LANDROID Vision Robotic Lawn Mower sees yards, eliminating the need for cumbersome boundary wires or antennae. As a truly “drop and mow” solution, LANDROID Vision is ready to use right out of the box – no installation, no hassles.

With the same AI technology used in modern autonomous cars, the new LANDROID Vision analyzes frame-by-frame images from its on-board cameras to recognize and distinguish grass from anything else – roads, sidewalks, flowerbeds and even pets and humans! Not only does the new Vision avoid obstacles with zero mapping or wires, it can cross over sidewalks, driveways or other areas to access multiple lawn zones. The LANDROID Vision also adjusts automatically to variations in lawn elements, such as grass density, while affording cutting height adjustment from 1.5 inches to 3.5 inches.

Continue reading… “WORX Introduces New LANDROID Vision Robotic Lawn Mower, Industry’s First Robotic Mower with Neural Network Technology”

Protect yourself on the job by wearing the German Bionic Apogee robotic exoskeleton.

This smart power suit helps create a safe workplace with a fully-connected AI-based design. Created for physical labor workers, it helps protect your body if you work a physically demanding job.

It makes work safer, less strenuous, and more attractive and boasts a lightweight and versatile design. moreover, this smart robotic exoskeleton for the workplace is a next-generation smart robotic wearable tool.

Continue reading… “German Bionic Apogee robotic exoskeleton is an AI-based wearable smart power suit”

By Amelia Podder

Researchers used deep reinforcement learning to steer atoms into a lattice shape, with a view to building new materials or nanodevices.

In a very cold vacuum chamber, single atoms of silver form a star-like lattice. The precise formation is not accidental, and it wasn’t constructed directly by human hands either. Researchers used a kind of artificial intelligence called deep reinforcement learning to steer the atoms, each a fraction of a nanometer in size, into the lattice shape. The process is similar to moving marbles around a Chinese checkers board, but with very tiny tweezers grabbing and dragging each atom into place.

The main application for deep reinforcement learning is in robotics, says postdoctoral researcher I-Ju Chen. “We’re also building robotic arms with deep learning, but for moving atoms,” she explains. “Reinforcement learning is successful in things like playing chess or video games, but we’ve applied it to solve technical problems at the nanoscale.” 

So why are scientists interested in precisely moving atoms? Making very small devices based on single atoms is important for nanodevices like transistors or memory. Testing how and whether these devices work at their absolute limits is one application for this kind of atomic manipulation, says Chen. Building new materials atom-by-atom, rather than through traditional chemical techniques, may also reveal interesting properties related to superconductivity or quantum states.

Continue reading… “The Smallest Robotic Arm You Can Imagine Is Controlled By Artificial Intelligence”

MIT researchers have developed a robotic capsule that tunnels through mucus in the GI tract to deliver large oral protein-based drugs like insulin.

Scientists at MIT have demonstrated that a novel robotic capsule could potentially replace conventional biologic injection methods by tunnelling through the intestinal mucus barrier to deliver insulin.

The research, published in the journal Science Robotics described how the new drug delivery system can transport large protein and small-molecule drugs, like vancomycin, an antibiotic peptide.

Traditionally, delivering protein drugs orally has been challenging. The mucosal lining of the small intestine prevents large molecules passing into cells. The acidic nature of the digestive tract also presents a barrier by breaking down drugs before they can be absorbed.

To solve this problem, the team at MIT developed a multivitamin-sized capsule that tunnels through mucus.

The RoboCap capsule carries its drug payload in a small reservoir at one end and carries the tunnelling features in its main body and surface. The capsule is coated with gelatine that can be tuned to dissolve at a specific pH.

Once dissolved, the change in pH triggers a motor to start spinning inside the capsule. This motion helps the capsule to tunnel into the mucus and displace it.  The capsule is also coated with small studs that brush mucus away. The spinning action helps to erode the compartment that carries the drug, so the drug can be gradually released into the digestive tract.

Continue reading… “Robotic capsule could replace injected biologics”

The National Robotarium at Heriot-Watt University is focused on the development and testing of robotics and AI solutions

By Hollie Tye

Designing and manufacturing assisted living technologies, Pressalit were asked to contribute to the work being carried out by the Ambient Assisted Living Lab (AAL) at Heriot-Watt University

Demonstrating how assisted living technologies can help transform lives, solutions from manufacturer and designer, Pressalit, have been chosen to feature in the National Robotarium.

Now open on Heriot-Watt University’s Edinburgh campus, the National Robotarium houses technology and facilities, central to the development and testing of robotics and AI solutions across three distinct areas; Robotics and Autonomous Systems, Human and Robot Interaction and High-Precision Manufacturing.

Focusing on entrepreneurship, job creation and building digital skills in the workforce, the centre hopes to offer a data-driven approach for industry collaboration where humans and robots work in partnership.

Within the centre, the Ambient Assisted Living Lab (AAL) is focused on reforming the way assisted living care is delivered in the UK, with the help of robotics and AI.

Using a recreated care home setting, scientists and engineers within the AAL will research and create smart technology solutions in a bid to help improve the physical and mental wellbeing of people with assisted living needs who strive to live independently.

Designing assisted living technologies for kitchens and bathrooms for almost fifty years, Pressalit were asked to contribute to the work being carried out at the National Robotarium.

Continue reading… “Robotics and AI: The future of designing for assisted living”