A Swedish woman whose hand was amputated has become the first recipient of an osseo-neuromuscular implant to control a dexterous hand prosthesis, according to Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden. Surgeons placed titanium implants in the two forearm bones (radius and ulna), and extended electrodes to nerves and muscle to extract signals to control a…
Robot hand uses machine learning to detect wearer’s intention
A South Korean team of researchers has developed the Exo-Glove robot hand, which could help users with day-to-day tasks.
Researchers aim to create touch-sensitive, nerve-connected robotic prosthetic hand
Researchers at two academic facilities are aiming to create a first-of-its-kind bioengineered robotic hand that can grow and adapt to its environment, equipped with a living pathway to translate the robots touch sensation to the user’s brain. Teams from both Florida Atlantic University and the University of Utah School of Medicine said they have received…
Ninebot closes $100M funding to focus on mobile robotics
Ninebot, a Chinese transportation technology company, said it raised the equivalent of $100 million in a Series C round to finance the development of mobile robotics and intelligent short-distance transportation products. The startup raised the capital from the SDIC Fund Management Co. and the China Mobile Fund. CEO Lufeng Gao said the investment is being done with the…
Robotic rehab-focused exoskeleton dev Wandercraft raises $18m Series B
Robotic exoskeleton developer Wandercraft has raised $17.8 million in a Series B funding round, according to a ZDNet report. Funds from the round are slated to support certifications and regulatory clearances necessary to bring the exoskeleton to market, according to the report. The Paris-based company claims that its exoskeleton is the 1st to have managed…
BioRobotics spin-off Iuvo to develop intelligent wearable robotic exoskeleton tech
The BioRobotics Institute spin-off Iuvo has received an undisclosed joint investment from automation company Comau and orthopedics group Össur to support the development of wearable intelligent robotic exoskeletons. The spin-off, founded in 2015, looks to focus initially on research and development and an eventual launch of new wearable robotic technologies, according to a release from…
ReWalk Robotics touts Harvard-led Restore soft exosuit study
ReWalk Robotics (NSDQ:RWLK) today released results from a study of a soft suit exoskeleton system designed to aid ambulatory stroke patients, touting that the system was able to facilitate normal walking ability in patients. The study was authored by researchers at Harvard University’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and Boston University, and utilized a prototype that…
July 2017 fundings, acquisitions, IPOs and failures
July, 2017 was a big month for robotics-related company funding. Four raised more than $100 million and 15 others raised $271 million for a monthly total of $919 million. Acquisitions also continued to be significant with ST Engineering acquiring Aethon for $36 million, iRobot buying its European distributor for $141 million while SoftBank purchased 5% of iRobot…
Robotics industry growing faster than expected
Two reputable research resources are reporting that the robotics industry is growing more rapidly than expected. BCG (Boston Consulting Group) is conservatively projecting that the market will reach $87 billion by 2025; Tractica, incorporating the robotic and AI elements of the emerging self-driving industry, is forecasting the market will reach $237 billion by 2022. Both research firms…
June 2017 fundings, acquisitions and IPOs
June, 2017 saw two robotics-related companies get $50 million each and 17 others raised $248 million for a monthly total of $348 million. Acquisitions also continued to be substantial with SoftBank's acquisition of Google's robotic properties Boston Dynamics and Schaft plus two others acquisitions. UPDATED 7/4/2017: Added acquisition of OC Robotics by GE Aviation. Fundings Drive.ai raised $50 million…
6 brain-controlled devices helping people regain movement
People who have lost feeling in their limbs or have lost the ability to move them may soon have those sensations restored thanks to a slew of recent brain-controlled device innovations. While we are moving toward less invasive methods like electrode-filled caps on the head, there are still more invasive implants that are benefiting those…
This new bionic hand reacts automatically: Here’s how
British researchers are trying out a new bionic hand that they’ve developed that allows the wearer to reach out and grasp objects automatically – without the user consciously thinking – mimicking how people fluidly react to with the world around them. The key to allowing the hand to do this was a camera. The biomedical engineers at Newcastle…
April 2017 fundings, acquisitions, IPOs and failures
April 2017 had 17 robotics-related companies get funding totaling over $390 million – a fourth solid month for 2017 – $1.05 billion year-to-date. Acquisitions also continued to be substantial with ABB's $2 billion acquisition of Bernecker & Rainer, plus Baidu, iRobot and Cognex each making strategic acquistions. Fundings Mobvoi, a Chinese voice recognition startup, signed a strategic partnership to…
6 ways hydrogels are enabling medtech innovation
Hydrogels are water-based biomaterials developed specifically for human use, according to a Biomaterials journal article. They are a water-swollen polymeric material that doesn’t change its distinct 3D structure. They are formed from super-absorbent, chain-like polymers and are not soluble in water. However, their porous surface allows for nutrients and cell waste to pass through. They have shown the…
The changing landscape of mobility as seen at Automate and ProMat
America's retailers are closing stores faster than ever while demand for warehouse workers by online retailers is higher than ever. Retailers and logistics companies have been opening facilities at a record pace and in this fast-paced world, warehousing and logistics managers are looking for robotics solutions to remain competitive. UPDATED 4/18/2017 to show Chinese entry into mobile robot…
March 2017 fundings, acquisitions, IPOs and failures
March 2017 had 29 robotics-related startups saw funding totaling over $222 million – another solid month for 2017 and $658 million year-to-date. Acquisitions also continued to be substantial with Intel's eye-popping $15 billion acquisition of Israeli Mobileye. Plus there were three IPOs. Fundings Corindus Vascular Robotics, already an over-the-counter stock, raised $45 million in a private placement of 68 million shares at…
NASA tests robotic tools for drilling and manipulating ice
Want to go ice fishing on Jupiter’s moon Europa? There’s no promising you’ll catch anything, but a new set of robotic prototypes could help. Since 2015, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, has been developing new technologies for use on future missions to ocean worlds. That includes a subsurface probe that could burrow through […]
42 companies empowering robots and humans to work side-by-side
There is growing demand for more flexibility in factories and shops. Collaborative robotics, a sub-set of service robotics in labs, manufacturing and material handling, is where the action is today because co-bots are meeting these new demands, while caged legacy robots are not. Service and assistance robotics, with and without mobility, are an emerging and somewhat futuristic field, albeit one…
Popup AGV robot from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory may catch rover ride
The next AGV robot rovers to explore another planet might bring along a scout. The Pop-Up Flat Folding Explorer Robot (PUFFER) in development at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, was inspired by origami. Its lightweight design is capable of flattening itself, tucking in its wheels and crawling into places rovers can’t fit. Over […]
Bosch and Nvidia partner to develop AI for self-driving cars
Amongst all the activity in autonomously driven vehicle joint ventures, new R&D facilities, strategic acquisitions (such as Mobileye being acquired by Intel) and booming startup fundings, two big players in the industry, NVIDIA and Bosch, are partnering to develop an AI self-driving car supercomputer. Bosch CEO Dr. Volkmar Denner announced the partnership during his keynote address at…
Report estimates seven million drivers to adopt autonomous vehicles in three U.S. cities
A study by transportation, economics and urban planning experts has found that ridesharing and ridesourcing services using autonomous vehicles (AV) could shift millions of drivers away from personal cars in major U.S. cities.“Driverless Future: A Policy Roadmap for City Leaders,” the study prepared by Arcadis, HR&A Advisors and Sam Schwartz Consulting, shows that the move […]
February 2017 fundings, acquisitions and IPOs
February fundings for 16 robotics-related startups totaled over $313 million – another solid month for the new year. Acquisitions also continued to be substantial with Ford's acquisition of Argo and Midea Group's purchase of Servotronix. Plus there were two IPOs. Fundings CloudMinds, a Chinese startup developing cloud-intelligence-based services for robotics and other application areas, raised $100…