Category: Robotics

US robotics company Boston Dynamics on Monday unveiled a new robot called Stretch, designed to perform one very specific warehouse job: moving boxes.

Stretch is the first robot for one task that the company has built, based on requests received from companies around the world, said Michael Perry, vice president of business development for Boston Dynamics.

“We heard pretty much universally across warehousing that truck unloading is one of the most physically difficult and unpleasant jobs … And that’s where Stretch comes into play,” Perry told Reuters.

Stretch has a small mobile base that allows it to move around tight spaces in existing warehouses without having to reconfigure them for automation. It is equipped with an arm and a smart-gripper with advanced sensing and computer vision cameras that can identify and handle a large variety of boxed and shrink wrapped cases.

“We’re looking at picking up boxes around 50 pounds and our maximum rate of picking up and moving boxes can reach up to 800 cases per hour. So, it’s a fast-moving, highly versatile robot,” Perry said.

Continue reading… “Boston Dynamics introduces new warehouse robot ‘Stretch’”

By Chris Albrecht

It’s pretty remarkable to think of how much food robots have evolved over the three years I’ve been covering them. At the start of that time period, we had Flippy the robotic arm that could grill up burgers, and even that required human help. Fast forward to 2021, and RoboEatz is showing off its fully autonomous robotic meal-preparation system that can put together 1,000 meals on its own before a human is needed to refill its ingredients. 

RoboEatz Ark 03 is a 200 sq. ft. standalone kiosk featuring an articulating arm, 110 fresh ingredients (30 of which are liquids like soups and salad dressings), an induction cooker and a number of cubbies that hold orders for pickup. After an order is placed (via mobile app or tablet), the robot arm grabs ingredients, places them in the rotating induction cooker, and puts the finished meal container in a cubby. You can see it in action in this video: 

Continue reading… “RoboEatz Shows Off Ark 03 Autonomous Robotic Meal Making Kiosk”

Shane McGlaun 

Researchers at UC Berkeley have created a device that uses wearable sensors and artificial intelligence software to recognize what hand gesture a person intends to make. The sensors and AI are able to determine the hand gesture a person intends to make based on electrical signal patterns in the forearm. Researchers say the device paves the way for improved prosthetic control and interaction with electronic devices.

The device has implications that could usher in a new era of controlling computers without using a keyboard or playing games without a controller. The system also has the potential to replace steering wheels inside cars. A more likely use is enabling amputees to control prosthetic devices or interact with electronics.

UC Berkeley doctoral student Ali Moin says reading hand gestures is a way to improve human-computer interaction. Human-computer interaction can be improved using cameras and computer vision, but Moin says the system her team has developed also maintains an individual’s privacy. The team created a flexible armband able to read electric signals from 64 points on the forearm.

Continue reading… “Researchers create a device that can detect hand gestures”

Ingrid Lunden@ingridlunden 

Exoskeleton technology has been one of the more interesting developments in the world of robotics: Instead of building machines that replace humans altogether, build hardware that humans can wear to supercharge their abilities. Today, German Bionic, one of the startups designing exoskeletons specifically aimed at industrial and physical applications — it describes its Cray X robot as “the world’s first connected exoskeleton for industrial use,” that is, to help people lifting and working with heavy objects, providing more power, precision and safety — is announcing a funding round that underscores the opportunity ahead.

The Augsburg, Germany-based company has raised $20 million, funding that it plans to use to continue building out its business, as well as its technology, both in terms of the hardware and the cloud-based software platform, German Bionic  IO, that works with the exoskeletons to optimize them and help them “learn” to work better.

Continue reading… “German Bionic raises $20M led by Samsung for exoskeleton tech to supercharge human labor”

A lot of people will think a robot won’t be able to manage its way around a kitchen. But not only is this feat achieved, by the looks of it, but the kitchen robot by a London-based robotics company will also outshine even those who like to call themselves an established cook.

You can’t beat a robot that promises to whip up a choice of up to 5,000 recipes at the press of a button? The Moley kitchen robot even cooks from scratch and even cleans up afterward without complaint.

Russian mathematician and computer scientist Mark Oleynik have together created this novel robot developed with the assistance of Tim Anderson, a culinary innovator and winner of the 2011 series of BBC MasterChef. The idea behind creating this not-so-cheap contraption is to get restaurant standard meals without its owner having to lift a finger or order a takeaway.

Still, this comfort and luxury will come for nothing less than nearly $3,31,800. People who find cooking fun and therapeutic will laugh at the sum that brings home the Moley kitchen robot and opt to buy a home, a supercar, or maybe even a yacht for that amount instead! Nicole Pisani and Andrew Clarke to create 30 dishes to show what the Moley Kitchen robot is capable of, with more recipes to be added each month. Kicking back and relaxing comes for a considerable price, and surprisingly, the Moley Kitchen robot has already received 1,205 qualified sales inquiries.

Continue reading… “This $330,000 Kitchen robot will make you a tasty meal and even do the dishes”