Robotics & Automation News

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Kärcher and Brain Corp debut first professional robotic scrubber

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Kärcher has expanded its autonomous product line by introducing a professional robotic scrubber. The KIRA B 100 R is powered by Brain Corp’s BrainOS, a software platform for powering autonomous mobile robots operating in indoor public spaces.

KIRA is an acronym for Kärcher Intelligent Robotic Applications.

Rex Shull, VP of product management and engineering, says: “We at Kärcher are pleased to offer yet another innovative robotic solution. [Read more…] about Kärcher and Brain Corp debut first professional robotic scrubber

Purdue scientists build a chip that makes connections like a human brain

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An electronic chip that can be reprogrammed on demand may enable artificial intelligence to learn more continuously like the human brain does, researchers have discovered.

When the human brain learns something new, it adapts. But when artificial intelligence learns something new, it tends to forget information it already learned.

As companies use more and more data to improve how AI recognizes images, learns languages and carries out other complex tasks, a paper published in Science this week shows a way that computer chips could dynamically rewire themselves to take in new data like the brain does, helping AI to keep learning over time. [Read more…] about Purdue scientists build a chip that makes connections like a human brain

Swiss university shows brain-computer interface for controlling robots

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A Swiss university called the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne has showcased a new brain-computer interface that can be used to control robots. (See video below.)

Unlike previous BCI’s famously demonstrated to former US president, Barack Obama, the EPFL brain-computer interface does not require a hole to be drilled in the user’s head.

Two EPFL research groups teamed up to develop a machine-learning program that can be connected to a human brain and used to command a robot. [Read more…] about Swiss university shows brain-computer interface for controlling robots

ExcelsiusGPS robotic system used for brain surgery

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Christus Health has become the first health provider to use a robotic system for brain surgery, describing the ExcelsiusGPS as “a world-class robotic guidance and navigation system”.

The ExcelsiusGPS system, built by Globus Medical, was used in the first Christus Ochsner Health case this week, setting a new standard for robotic neurosurgery procedures in Southwest Louisiana.

Bringing the ExcelsiusGPS to the region was made possible with the help of the Christus Ochsner Health Southwestern Louisiana Foundation and its generous donors who gifted more than $1.1 million to make the purchase possible. [Read more…] about ExcelsiusGPS robotic system used for brain surgery

Walmart to roll out inventory analytics function to fleet of robotic floor cleaners

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Walmart business unit Sam’s Club – a membership warehouse club – is planning the national, chain-wide roll out of “Inventory Scan”, a new inventory analytics function which will be added to the its existing fleet of robotic scrubbers.

The implementation will be undertaken in partnership with software company Brain Corp and Tennant Company, the manufacturer of the vehicle.

The rollout marks the largest and fastest technology deployment undertaken by Brain Corp – which provides the operating system for the robotic floor cleaners – and the first commercial application of its inventory scanning technology anywhere in the world. [Read more…] about Walmart to roll out inventory analytics function to fleet of robotic floor cleaners

Brain Corp launches mobile app to manage autonomous robot fleets

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Brain Corp, a developer of software for mobile cleaning robots, has launched BrainOS Mobile, a mobile application connecting operators and managers directly with their BrainOS-powered robotic fleets and providing real-time visibility on machine locations, status and performance.

Josh Baylin, vice president of product and marketing at Brain Corp, says: “Our BrainOS Mobile app represents an exciting new step in our company’s goal to make working with advanced robotics incredibly simple and to provide critical insights to our customers.”

“We’re now able to provide operators a more seamless way to interact with their robotic teammates and for managers to oversee their automated operations from almost anywhere, which leads to better operational experiences and performance.” [Read more…] about Brain Corp launches mobile app to manage autonomous robot fleets

Eavesdropping on our thoughts helps create robots like us

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Can intelligence be taught to robots? Advances in physical reservoir computing, a technology that makes sense of brain signals, could contribute to creating artificial intelligence machines that think like us.

In Applied Physics Letters, from AIP Publishing, researchers from the University of Tokyo outline how a robot could be taught to navigate through a maze by electrically stimulating a culture of brain nerve cells connected to the machine.

These nerve cells, or neurons, were grown from living cells and acted as the physical reservoir for the computer to construct coherent signals. [Read more…] about Eavesdropping on our thoughts helps create robots like us

Kärcher and Brain Corp debut industry’s ‘first professional robotic vacuum’

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Brain Corp, a provider of software for industrial floor cleaning robots, has launched its “first professional autonomous vacuum cleaner”, the Kira CV 60/1.

The new machine is a joint development with Kärcher, one of the world’s leading providers of cleaning technology.

The two companies say the Kira device is built to help businesses clean smarter than ever before, the autonomous vacuum is the first robotic machine released in partnership between Brain Corp and Kärcher. [Read more…] about Kärcher and Brain Corp debut industry’s ‘first professional robotic vacuum’

A system for designing and training intelligent soft robots

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‘Evolution Gym’ is a large-scale benchmark for co-optimizing the design and control of soft robots that takes inspiration from nature and evolutionary processes

Let’s say you wanted to build the world’s best stair-climbing robot. You’d need to optimize for both the brain and the body, perhaps by giving the bot some high-tech legs and feet, coupled with a powerful algorithm to help enable the climb.

Although design of the physical body and its brain, the “control”, are key ingredients to letting the robot move, existing benchmark environments favor only the latter. Co-optimizing for both elements is hard – it takes a lot of time to train various robot simulations to do different things, even without the design element.

Scientists from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL), aimed to fill the gap by designing “Evolution Gym”, a large-scale testing system for co-optimizing the design and control of soft robots, taking inspiration from nature and evolutionary processes. [Read more…] about A system for designing and training intelligent soft robots

Brain Corp’s European robotic cleaning fleet reaches 500 million square feet covered autonomously in 2021

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Brain Corp, which provides an operating system for commercial floor-cleaning robots, says its BrainOS-powered fleet of autonomous mobile robots has hit a new milestone of 500 million square feet covered (46.45 million square meters) autonomously in Europe during 2021.

Coming off the back of significant year-on-year growth, Brain Corp has seen momentum build throughout 2021 with the company recording 226 percent growth in floor area covered autonomously between April and October, 2021 alone.

While increases in robot deployments were seen across all industry sectors, the most significant growth came within retail outlets, shopping malls and logistics facilities. [Read more…] about Brain Corp’s European robotic cleaning fleet reaches 500 million square feet covered autonomously in 2021