Robot

Researchers at Stanford University have been looking into exactly how birds can maintain controlled flight by changing the shape of their wings. For their study, they invented a robot called PigeonBot that has a pair of "biohybrid morphing wings." The robot is being used to test out new control principles. One of the most interesting aspects of the PigeonBot is that the scientists fitted the flying robot with real bird feathers.

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Different people have different concepts about robots, ranging from humanoid androids that may or may not be out to get us to unsettling quadrupeds that may or may not be accompanying the police of the future. Few, however, will probably think of robots the size of a fly that has better survivability than the real, organic one. That is exactly the kind of robot that engineering researchers have developed, paving the way for a swarm of intelligent insects that will hopefully not overrun the planet.

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Sony has released a major software update in the US and Japan for its aibo robotic dog, the company has announced. Software version 2.50 is made for the ERS1000 aibo model, bringing 'whimsical' capabilities that include the ability to potty train the dog, feed it virtual cookies, and other fun things. As well, the robot dog also has a new web-based API with visual programming for beginners.

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NASA has announced plans to design robots that can roll, fly, float, and swim to explore the moons of Saturn someday. The larger bots are made up of smaller mini-robots that combine. The larger robot is dubbed Shapeshifter.

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We've seen Boston Dynamics' Spot Minis play reindeer and pull Santa's truck but those may have nothing on this robot hailing all the way from Italy. Although more a research platform than a commercial robot, the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) Dynamic Legged System Lab's latest HyQReal robot has may have a few things going for it, including its ruggedness, its durability, and, more importantly, its strength.

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Researchers at Stanford University have developed a new robot that is dog-like and designed to be able to navigate rough terrain and offer lots of agility. The robot is called Doggo, and it can trot, jump, and backflip with no need for treats as a reward. Doggo is designed with reproducibility in mind. Rather than keeping the construction methods and code under wraps, the researchers put it all onto the web freely so users can build their own versions.

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When it comes to recycling materials in the trash, sorting that trash into specific types for recycling is a labor-intensive process. MIT has been working on a robot that can sort the recycling automatically without relying on vision. That is important as things that look like metal might not be metal.

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