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Physicists have solved a key problem of robotic locomotion by revising the usual rules of interaction between simple component parts. In cycling through a sequence of shapes, an odd wheel propels itself up steep and bumpy terrain. In a physics lab in Amsterdam, there’s a wheel that can spontaneously roll uphill by wiggling. This “odd wheel” looks simple: just six small motors linked together by plastic arms and rubber bands to form a ring about 6 inches in diameter. When the motors are powered on, it starts writhing, executing complicated squashing and stretching motions and occasionally flinging itself into the...

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The robots are coming to labor-strapped North American warehouses. Growing numbers of self-driving machines are shuttling clothing and sports equipment down warehouse aisles, pulling bins of groceries, cosmetics and industrial parts from high stacks and handing off goods to human workers to help deliver orders faster... The push toward automation comes as businesses say they can’t hire warehouse workers fast enough to meet surging online demand for everything from furniture to frozen food in pandemic-disrupted supply chains. The crunch is accelerating the adoption of robots and other technology in a sector that still largely relies on workers pulling carts... “This...

The New York Police Department’s new robot dog will receive a special robotic arm for opening doors and moving objects next month, according to a new report from ABC7 in New York. The existence of the NYPD’s robot was first revealed in late October after it assisted in the apprehension of a suspect in Brooklyn. But details about what the Boston Dynamics robot actually did during that arrest remain a mystery. “This dog is going to save lives, protect people, and protect officers, and that’s our goal,” Frank Digiacomo, the NYPD’s Technical Assistance Response Unit Inspector, told ABC7 in a...

Textron Systems announced Thursday that it will deliver an all-electric version of its M5 Ripsaw Robotic Combat Vehicle prototype to the U.S. Army for experimentation next year. Earlier this year, the Army selected a Textron team to develop its subsidiary Howe & Howe's unmanned vehicle for the service's Robotic Combat Vehicle, or RCV, Medium platform. The Army wants to develop a light, medium and heavy version of the RCV to give commanders the option of sending unmanned vehicles into combat against enemy forces. The service selected QinetiQ North America to build four light versions of the RCV. Textron is scheduled...

“Pretty,” was the word an Alabama senior used to describe the lifelike robotic companion pet she received from a new pilot project administered by the Alabama Department of Senior Services. It was the first word she had said in a long time, according to department Commissioner Jean Brown. The Alabama agency, along with several other state agencies managing programs for seniors in New York, Florida and Pennsylvania, have partnered with robotic pet manufacturer Ageless Innovation to combat loneliness and provide comfort and companionship for isolated seniors. With insight into the growing epidemic of loneliness and need for interactive play amongst...

D3000 This crudely made model of the D3000 gives us a vague idea of the concept: a trimaran tumblehome hull, with armament that includes autocannons and anti-ship missiles, as well as launching tubes for small unmanned underwater vehicles, torpedoes, or mines. by78 At the turn of the 20th century, the great powers competed to build the modern-day battleship. Today, a new arms race may be breaking out, this time with robotic warships. The D3000 is a 98-foot-long, stealthy robotic trimaran warship designed to operate autonomously for months. Notably, this system—which appears to be tagged for export—is being offered by the...

The Welwalk WW-1000 system is designed for people with severe mobility loss in one leg, such as stroke patients. The motorised brace fits around the knee and lower leg, helping the wearer to bend and straighten the joint. ... "A system called Lokomat, which works on both legs, has been adopted by the NHS," he said. "There are similar systems in use in the Netherlands and the United States." These walking assist systems provide support for both legs, as this can help train the user to balance their weight and movement. "What is interesting here is the service model," he...

There’s one word to describe Carly Fiorina. Really. Just one. “Steely.” At least that’s the impression left after reading the coverage of her performance at last week’s Republican presidential debate. “Steely” is how numerous news outlets described the 2016 hopeful; in particular her icy put-down of Donald Trump, when asked her reaction to his impolite comments about her appearance. (Snip) So many news outlets used “steely” in writing about Fiorina that one might reasonably ask if there’s a herd mentality in political reporting. But that’s like asking whether candidates say stuff that’s not always true.

Now, should the medical workers in the Ebola infected countries use robotic technology to handle patients, administer certain drugs, and then do certain functions that could prevent the spread of the disease to the workers in the medical field? I thought this would be a much better way to have patients taken care of and reduce risk drastically in regards to patient to doctor/carer transmission.

One of the world's most capable deep-sea research subs has been lost.The robotic vehicle Nereus went missing while exploring one of the ocean's deepest spots: the Kermadec Trench, which lies north east of New Zealand. Surface debris was found, suggesting the vessel suffered a catastrophic implosion as a result of the immense pressures where it was operating some 10km (6.2 miles) down. Nereus was a flagship ocean explorer for the US science community. "Nereus helped us explore places we've never seen before and ask questions we never thought to ask," said Timothy Shank, from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI),...

<p>The Roboplow was invented by Rob Kinkey and isn't some frail little 'maybe' like early robotic vacuum cleaners.: if anything, it's overkill with 6-wheel-drive, 50" plow-blade, and serious power from it's electric motors that have it tearing down the driveway (can do 'donuts', see video below).</p>

Technique may enable robotic animals that move with the strength and flexibility of their living counterparts.Many robotic designs take nature as their muse: sticking to walls like geckos, swimming through water like tuna, sprinting across terrain like cheetahs. Such designs borrow properties from nature, using engineered materials and hardware to mimic animals’ behavior. Now, scientists at MIT and the University of Pennsylvania are taking more than inspiration from nature — they’re taking ingredients. The group has genetically engineered muscle cells to flex in response to light, and is using the light-sensitive tissue to build highly articulated robots. This “bio-integrated” approach,...

Swarming their way (gracefully) to a warzone: Amazing flying display by robotic choppers that could one day help our troops Like some epic computer-generated movie scene, futuristic aircraft swarm around in synchronised fashion and perform impressive mid-air stunts. But the spectacle is real and the robotic nano quadrotors – despite being not much bigger than your hand – could one day revolutionise warfare. The miniature helicopters, which have four propellers, are still in their infancy in development but have been extensively trialled in carrying items and manoeuvre through small gaps. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQIMGV5vtd4&feature=player_embedded

A Japanese man paralysed from the waist down has embarked on an ambitious trip to Normandy to climb a mountain... with the help of a cutting-edge robotic suit. Father-of-two Seiji Uchida, 49, will be carried up Mont Saint Michel - a World Heritage site - by a companion clad in a cybernetic exoskeleton which can boost the wearer's strength tenfold. For Mr Uchida, who lost the ability to walk 28 years ago after a car accident, reaching the picturesque abbey at the top of the mountain on the French coast is just the beginning of his trip of a lifetime.

A British firm has developed an armored, robotic speedboat that sailors can use for target practice. This enables sailors to learn how to aim their heavy machine-guns and small arms accurately enough to take down hostile speedboats quickly. The $45,000 FMTDs (Fast Marine Target Drones) move at up to 60 kilometers an hour, and are guided by remote (up to ten kilometers away) operators, using cameras in a moveable mast. The five meter (15.5 foot) boats have sensors that record hits. Data travels two ways between the operator (who can control up to six boats at a time) and the...

On the big screen, films like Robocop, Universal Soldier and forthcoming release Iron Man show humanoid robots with superhuman powers. But in Utah they are turning science fiction into reality. We are at a research facility on the outskirts of Salt Lake City, ringed by beautiful snow-capped mountains. Once they held the Winter Olympics here; now they are testing endurance in other ways. The aluminium limbs gleam in the brilliant sunshine, as the strange metal skeleton hangs from a safety harness at the outdoor testing site. It seems to be treading water; actually its programme is telling it to keep...

WASHINGTON - Tiny robots programmed to act like roaches were able to blend into cockroach society, according to researchers studying the collective behavior of insects. Cockroaches tend to self-organize into leaderless groups, seeming to reach consensus on where to rest together. For example, when provided two similar shelters, most of the group tended to gather under the same one. Hoping to learn more about this behavior, researchers led by Jose Halloy at the Free University of Brussels, Belgium, designed small robots programmed to act like a cockroach. The robots didn't look like the insects and at first the roaches fled...

RICHARDSON, Texas - David Hanson has two little Zenos to care for these days. There's his 18-month-old son Zeno, who prattles and smiles as he bounds through his father's cramped office. Then there's the robotic Zeno. It can't speak or walk yet, but has blinking eyes that can track people and a face that captivates with a range of expressions. At 17 inches tall and 6 pounds, the artificial Zeno is the culmination of five years of work by Hanson and a small group of engineers, designers and programmers at his company, Hanson Robotics. They believe there's an emerging business...

The government is providing 1.85 million pounds of funding to a Cambridge-based company that is building a robot to help treat baldness. Biosciences firm Intercytex aims to perfect a treatment that involves taking hair follicles from the back of the neck, multiplying them and replanting them where they are needed. The company said on Friday it had been awarded funding from the government's Technology Programme, which it planned to use to develop a robotic system to speed up the painstaking process of multiplying the hair cells before they are replanted. "The technology is challenging. No one has done this before,"...