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Robots sense human touch using camera and shadows

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Soft robots may not be in touch with human feelings, but they are getting better at feeling human touch.

Cornell University researchers have created a low-cost method for soft, deformable robots to detect a range of physical interactions, from pats to punches to hugs, without relying on touch at all. Instead, a USB camera located inside the robot captures the shadow movements of hand gestures on the robot’s skin and classifies them with machine-learning software.

The group’s paper, ShadowSense: Detecting Human Touch in a Social Robot Using Shadow Image Classification, published in the Proceedings of the Association for Computing Machinery on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies. The paper’s lead author is doctoral student, Yuhan Hu. [Read more…] about Robots sense human touch using camera and shadows

Verizon to acquire autonomous mobile robot software company

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US telecommunications giant Verizon has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire incubed IT, the creator of a software platform providing autonomous navigation tools to administer, manage and optimize mixed fleets of robots in industrial settings.

Rima Qureshi, chief strategy officer at Verizon, says: “This acquisition further demonstrates Verizon’s commitment to developing new and innovative businesses and use cases leveraging the power of 5G.

“Mobile robot orchestration is a real and emerging challenge faced by enterprises today. By integrating incubed IT’s autonomous software with Verizon’s 5G platform, we will have the ability to power robotic automation at scale. [Read more…] about Verizon to acquire autonomous mobile robot software company

Universal Robots launches first virtual expo on automating machine tending with collaborative robots

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Universal Robots will host its first virtual expo on automating machine tending tasks with collaborative robots.

The two-day Machine Tending Expo February 23-24 focuses on manufacturers looking for concrete insights on deploying cobots to tend machines such as CNC, press brakes, injection molding machines or 3D printers.

In live demos, keynotes and interactive booth sessions with exhibiting partners, Universal Robots offers solutions on how to seamlessly implement cobots, tackling the labor shortage, while improving crucial machine uptime. [Read more…] about Universal Robots launches first virtual expo on automating machine tending with collaborative robots

UBTech reveals robot ox on ‘the most watched TV show on Earth’

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UBTech Robotics, a developer of intelligent humanoid robots and artificial intelligence technologies, has displayed its first four-legged ox robot at the 2021 CCTV New Year Gala, commonly known as Spring Festival Gala, which is the most watched TV program in the world.

As 2021 marks the Year of the Ox in Chinese astrology, four “Pioneering Ox” robots remodeled from UBTech’s quadruped robot prototype have taken the festival stage and captured viewers’ hearts with their “dazzling dancing moves and state-of-the-art mechanical designs”, says the company.

Standing 83 cm tall and weighing 60kg, the futuristic ox-looking robot features strong physical features with sixteen joints and weight payload capability of 15 kg. [Read more…] about UBTech reveals robot ox on ‘the most watched TV show on Earth’

Artificial skin brings robots closer to ‘touching’ human lives

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Modern-day robots are often required to interact with humans intelligently and efficiently, which can be enabled by providing them the ability to perceive touch.

However, previous attempts at mimicking human skin have involved bulky and complex electronics, wiring, and a risk of damage.

In a recent study, researchers from Japan sidestep these difficulties by constructing a 3D vision-guided artificial skin that enables tactile sensing with high performance, opening doors to innumerable applications in medicine, healthcare, and industry. [Read more…] about Artificial skin brings robots closer to ‘touching’ human lives

Otto Motors integrates its warehouse robots with Boston Dynamics’ robot dog

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Otto Motors, a maker of autonomous mobile robots for warehouses and part of Clearpath Robotics, has integrated its warehouse robots with Boston Dynamics’ robot dog, Spot, as part of a demonstration. (See video below.)

The company says it combined its separate areas of expertise – from Clearpath and Otto – into “a dynamic real-world application using Boston Dynamics’ Spot”.

At the end of last year, Clearpath released a ROS software package for Spot which allows researchers to take full advantage of ROS capabilities out-of-the-box and leverage widely available open-source libraries and tools with Spot. [Read more…] about Otto Motors integrates its warehouse robots with Boston Dynamics’ robot dog

Effidence adds new functionality to its warehouse robot

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Effidence has added new functionality to its warehouse robot, Effibot.

The Effibot is described as “an adaptive handling robot with a customizable structure”.

The new functionality is called “3D-Cart Grip” and said to be an accessory that automates the picking and depositing of Effidence 3D-Cart trolleys (see main picture and video below). [Read more…] about Effidence adds new functionality to its warehouse robot

How modern robots are developed: ‘Human cyborgs will become commonplace’

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Today, neuroscience and robotics are developing hand in hand. Mikhail Lebedev, academic supervisor at HSE University’s Centre for Bioelectric Interfaces, spoke about how studying the brain inspires the development of robots.

Robots are interesting to neuroscience and neuroscience is interesting to robots – this is what the article “Neuroengineering challenges of fusing robotics and neuroscience” was about in the journal Science Robotics.

Such collaborative development contributes to progress in both fields, bringing us closer to developing more advanced android robots and a deeper understanding of the structure of the human brain. And, to some extent, to combining biological organisms with machines, to create cybernetic organisms (cyborgs). [Read more…] about How modern robots are developed: ‘Human cyborgs will become commonplace’

What Happens When Cybercriminals Target Industrial Robots?

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Historically, robots were just dumb pieces of programmable machinery that did the same task over and over again. They had virtually no ability to sense their environment. And they certainly couldn’t make decisions for themselves.

With the advent of machine learning and smart systems, that’s all changing. Now designers are imbuing their mechanical appendages with all manner of intelligence. And it’s only getting better.

For economists, these trends are extremely exciting. We could be looking at a future where robots do the vast majority of manual jobs, freeing up labour for other tasks, boosting productivity like nothing else in human history. [Read more…] about What Happens When Cybercriminals Target Industrial Robots?

Badger Technologies launches ultraviolet disinfection robot

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Badger Technologies, a product division of Jabil, introduces the Badger UltraViolet Disinfect robot, an autonomous ultraviolet (UV) disinfecting robot designed to combat Covid-19 and high-risk pathogens commonly found in grocery, food-service and retail environments.

The latest in the lineup of Badger Technologies autonomous robots, the Badger UV Disinfect robot is equipped with advanced UV-C technology developed by UltraViolet Devices Inc (UVDI), a leading provider of air and surface disinfection solutions.

Early testing of the new Badger Technologies autonomous robot with UVDI’s 254 nanometer UV-C technology indicates 99 percent and greater inactivation of coronaviruses, E.coli, Salmonella enterica and Influenza A. [Read more…] about Badger Technologies launches ultraviolet disinfection robot