Researchers are working on all types of robots to allow them to climb through the human body to deliver drugs, among other things. This type of robot can be controlled with magnetic fields, and some can move through the colon and blood vessels. Researchers from City University of Hong Kong have developed a new spray-on coating that can give regular objects robotic capabilities.
A rural Japanese town called Takikawa on the island of Hokkaido has been dealing with nuisance bears roaming neighborhoods within the city. The town installed a pair of Monster Wolf robots after bears were increasingly roaming in the town back in September. According to town officials, since the pair of robotic wolves had been installed, no bear encounters have been reported.
Engineers from UNSW Sydney were inspired by nature to develop a soft fabric robotic gripper that behaves like an elephant's trunk. The gripper can grasp, pick up, and release objects without breaking them. Researchers believe the technology can be widely applied in many sectors where fragile objects are picked up.
One of the most efficient ways for robots to move around the environment is wheels on relatively smooth terrain. However, wheels aren't the most efficient way of traveling when it comes to getting over certain types of obstacles. Legs, for instance, can help a robot to climb obstacles like stairs. Scientists at Texas A&M University have teamed up with DARPA to create robots for military applications able to determine with or without human intervention whether wheels or legs are more suitable to travel across the terrain.
iRobot's automatically-emptying Roombas are meant to be a time-saver, but at least one model could be a headache the company has warned owners today. The company is contacting those with one model of its robot vacuum cleaners to alert them that the Clean Base docking station could "present a hazard" in certain situations.
Walmart will not continue using robots for certain tasks, a new report claims, instead opting to stick with human workers. The robots were tasked with tracking inventory on store shelves, an effort in automation that partially removed the human element. The company had around 500 robots in use, but has reportedly found a better human-powered way to keep its shelves stocked.
When humans are talking, typically, eye contact is something we do intuitively to show that we are involved and interested in the conversation. Researchers at Disney want robots to better connect with humans and have created a system that provides a life-like gaze for human-robot interactions. The system uses a humanoid Audio-Animatronic bust of the sort seen on various Disney rides around its parks.
One of the challenges emergency response workers face when trying to deploy a robot into a hazardous setting is getting the robot where it needs to be. Sometimes it's best to throw a robot into a debris-filled room or building, but robots have to be on their wheels or treads, or they're not functional. Researchers have developed a robot known as AGRO that can be thrown into an environment and always lands on its wheels.
The Los Angeles City Fire Department has debuted the first robotic firefighting vehicle in the United States and used it on its first day in service. The robot is made by Textron: Howe & Howe Technologies and is called the Thermite RS3. The robot is compact and has a low center of gravity along with a wide chassis and is classified as an industrial robotic firefighting vehicle.
Though IFA 2020 is a lot different from previous shows, the event is still happening in some regard and companies are still announcing new products. One such company is Neato Robotics, which today announced three additions to its lineup of robot vacuums - the Neato D10, D9, and D8.
A collaboration led by scientists at Cornell has created the first microscopic robots that incorporate semiconductor components able to be controlled by standard electronic signals. The tiny robots are also able to walk thanks to that electronic signal. Researchers say that the robots are roughly the size of paramecium and provided a template for building more complex versions of themselves that utilize silicon-based intelligence to be mass-produced.
A newly introduced home robot called Pumpkii is made specifically for pet owners (assuming they have a dog or cat, that is). The robot promises a variety of functionality that enables it to keep pets entertained, help owners interact with their pets from a distance, and more. One of the robot's most unique features is an extension arm equipped with a scoop for cleaning litter boxes.