anil john : robotics news site
NASA, GM take giant leap in robotic technology
Engineers and scientists from NASA and GM are working together to build a new humanoid robot capable of working side by side with people. Using leading edge control, sensor and vision technologies, future robots could assist astronauts during hazardous space missions and help GM build safer cars and plants.
Walking robot switches gaits autonomously and flexibly
Even simple insects can generate quite different movement patterns with their six legs. The animal uses various gaits depending on whether it crawls uphill or downhill, slowly or fast. Scientists have now developed a walking robot, which can flexibly and autonomously switch between different gaits. The success of their solution lies in its simplicity: a small and simple network with just a few connections can create very diverse movement patterns. To this end, the robot uses a mechanism for "chaos control."
Cockroaches offer inspiration for running robots
The sight of a cockroach scurrying for cover may be nauseating, but the insect is also a biological and engineering marvel, and is providing researchers with what they call "bioinspiration" in a quest to build the world's first legged robot that is capable of running effortlessly over rough terrain.
Surgery on beating heart thanks to robotic helping hand
If you've been waiting for the day to arrive when computers actually start performing surgery, that moment might soon be upon us. Scientists have developed a computerized 3-D model that allows surgeons to use robotics to operate on a beating heart.
Robotic Perception, On Purpose
Researchers have developed technology that enables a robot to combine data from both sound and vision to create combined, purposeful perception. In the process, they have taken the field to a new level.
Robot Builds Brick Wall In New York City
A robot is currently building a looping brick wall right in the middle of New York City. Over a period of three weeks, passers-by can watch the "Pike Loop" installation in the making on a traffic island.
Scientists Create Robot Surrogate For Blind Persons In Testing Visual Prostheses
Scientists have created a remote-controlled robot that is able to simulate the "visual" experience of a blind person who has been implanted with a visual prosthesis, such as an artificial retina. An artificial retina consists of a silicon chip studded with a varying number of electrodes that directly stimulate retinal nerve cells. It is hoped that this approach may one day give blind persons the freedom of independent mobility.
Is My Robot Happy To See Me?
Scientists tested our ability to interpret a robot's "emotion" by reading its expression to see if there were any differences between the ages. They found that older adults showed some unexpected differences in the way they read a robot's face from the way younger adults performed.
Illumination-Aware Imaging
Conventional imaging systems incorporate a light source for illuminating an object and a separate sensing device for recording the light rays scattered by the object. By using lenses and software, the recorded information can be turned into a proper image. Human vision is an ordinary process: the use of two eyes (and a powerful brain that processes visual information) provides human observers with a sense of depth perception. But how does a video camera attached to a robot "see" in three dimensions?
Findings About Veracity Of Peripheral Vision Could Lead To Better Robotic Eyes
Psychology researchers have found that peripheral vision is most important for telling us what type of scene we're looking at. Examining how people take in scene information paves the way for building better robots.