It’s no secret the U.S. Army wants its small unmanned aerial systems to operate quietly in densely-populated regions, but tests to achieve this can be expensive, time-consuming and labor-intensive according to researchers. Miranda Costenoble, a researcher with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, now known as the DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory, presented work at…
Smart ArM team develops prosthetics to compete in Cybathlon 2020 Global Edition
The Smart ArM project, in which researchers developed specialized prosthetic arms, was among the teams participating in the Cybathlon 2020 competition that used maxon motors.
Plus One Robotics names Crystal Parrott VP of engineering
It’s been a pretty solid week for Plus One Robotics. On Wednesday, the San Antonio-based startup announced a partnership to integrate its PickOne perception system into FANUC’s robotic arms for a new e-commerce fulfillment system. And today Plus One Robotics named Crystal Parrott VP of engineering. Parrott will be in charge of engineering and spearhead…
Piab piSoftgrip 50-2 vacuum gripper targets food automation
Piab has extended its piSoftgrip family with a new pinch gripper developed for the automation of the food/chocolate industry. The vacuum-based soft gripper can grip sensitive and lightweight oblong objects with odd geometries and/or objects with an unusual surface. piSoftgrip has two gripping fingers and a sealed vacuum cavity, all made in one piece, resulting…
Skygauge Robotics raises $2.5M in funding for infrastructure inspection drones
Skygauge Robotics has closed a $3.3 million CAD seed round to expand its team as it develops drones to relieve humans of dangerous tasks such as infrastructure inspection.
Robots to dive deep in CSIRO study of how Southern Ocean life captures carbon
The CSIRO vessel RV Investigator is beginning a voyage that is the first to combine shipboard observations, deep-diving robots, automated ocean gliders, and satellite measurements.
RE2 Robotics obtains patent for robot joint for dexterous underwater manipulation
RE2 Robotics’ latest patent, for a fluid rotary joint, covers a new gear and actuator combination that it said will make it easier for robots to inspect and manipulate objects underwater.
How 2 former Navy SEALs built robot subs for ocean exploration
Welcome to Episode 26 of The Robot Report Podcast, which brings conversations with robotics innovators straight to you. Join us each week for discussions with leading roboticists, innovative robotics companies, and other key members of the robotics community. You can subscribe to The Robot Report Podcast on Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, SoundCloud, Spotify and more. Please subscribe…
NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Orin to power next generation of Einride autonomous Pods
Einride said NVIDIA’s Orin processors will help make the next generation of its autonomous Pods for freight transport safer and more functional.
Airdata offers Autel pilots free trial of fleet management software for drone safety
Airdata UAV and Autel Robotics have partnered to offer a one-month free trial of the AirData Enterprise fleet management software to users of the Autel EVO Series II drones.
AutoX deploys its first fully driverless RoboTaxi fleet in Shenzhen, China
AutoX said its RoboTaxi fleet in downtown Shenzhen is the first to be deployed without accompanying safety/backup drivers in China.
MATE-XT exoskeleton designed by Comau to be lightweight, adjustable, rugged
Comau said its new MATE-XT exoskeleton is designed to be resistant to environmental conditions, is EWS-certified for reducing biomechanical risk, and can provide a demonstrable ROI.
How the U.S. election could affect the future of autonomous driving, China relations
Pär-Olof Johannesson, CEO of TerraNet AB, offers his perspective on how the U.S. presidential election will affect the development of autonomous and electric vehicles worldwide, as well as relations with China.
Plus One Robotics, FANUC America partner on e-commerce fulfillment automation
Plus One Robotics is combining its machine vision with FANUC America’s robotics for a new e-commerce order-fulfillment system, which FANUC will demonstrate at its Custom Experience Center.
Stanford develops photoacoustic system for aerial ocean surveys
Stanford University’s “Photoacoustic Airborne Sonar System” could be installed on drones to enable aerial underwater surveys and mapping of the deep ocean.
Sex, Race, and Robots author Ayanna Howard discusses how to identify, fight bias
Ayanna Howard, the first female dean of Ohio State University’s College of Engineering, discusses her new book on Sex, Race, and Robotics.
Caja Robotics raises $12M for goods-to-person robots
Israeli startup Caja Robotics today raised $12 million in Series B funding for its goods-to-person (G2P) automation system. Founded in 2014, Caja Robotics has now raised $26 million to date. The funding will help Caja Robotics expand its operations worldwide, as well as improve its manufacturing and deployment processes. The round was led by New Era…
Ayanna Howard first female dean of OSU College of Engineering
Renowned roboticist Ayanna Howard today was named dean of Ohio State University’s College of Engineering. She will also be a tenured professor in the college’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering with a joint appointment in Computer Science and Engineering. Howard will be the first woman to lead the College of Engineering. Nationally, only 17%…
GrAI Matter Labs raises $14M for edge AI inferencing
GrAI Matter Labs, which raised a $14 million venture round, is enabling low latency edge computation for many robotic applications.
RoboGrammar wants to automate your robot’s design
Robot design is still a very manual process, but MIT researchers can automate and optimize robot design with a system called RoboGrammar.
MIT neural network learns when it shouldn’t be trusted
Increasingly, artificial intelligence systems known as deep learning neural networks are used to inform decisions vital to human health and safety, such as in autonomous driving or medical diagnosis. These networks are good at recognizing patterns in large, complex datasets to aid in decision-making. But how do we know they’re correct? Alexander Amini and his…
Epson Robots updates RC+ development software
Epson Robots announced major updates to its RC+ 7.0 development software. This latest update (version 7.5.0) expands the IntelliFlex Parts Feeding lineup to include the new IntelliFlex 80 and 380 Feeders, as well as the release of Add On Instructions for users of Allen Bradley PLC platforms to program and control Epson robots. These new…