This funny lookin’ fella weighs just 27 pounds, has 12 legs, and can carry you around on its back if you let it. The Land Crawler xTreme robot offers its master a ride on top of  its square platform top, provided you don’t weigh more than 175 pounds. As it ambles around, it definitely doesn’t […]

Gripping and holding of objects are key tasks for robotic manipulators. The development of universal grippers able to pick up unfamiliar objects of widely varying shape and surface properties remains, however, challenging. Most current designs are based on the multifingered hand, but this approach introduces hardware and software complexities. These include large numbers of controllable […]

The consumer electronics market is expected to generate over $165 billion in revenue within the U.S. in 2010, thanks to cell phones, laptops, digital cameras, DVRs, and MP3 players. The sensitive components such devices contain require precise handling during manufacturing. The consumer electronic supply chain with its clean room requirements is growing and clean room […]

Raytheon’s second-generation exoskeleton (XOS 2), essentially a wearable robotics suit, was unveiled for the first time recently during an event at the company’s Salt Lake City research facility. XOS 2 is lighter, stronger and faster than its predecessor, yet it uses 50 percent less power, and its new design makes it more resistant to the […]

From the Biorobotics Lab at Carnegie Mellon University, a snake robot (Snakebot) demonstrates how it can climb a tree and look around. Please keep in mind that this robot climbed a specific tree with a specific trunk width about 1 meter off of the ground. The researchers working to design, build and program these robots […]

Robotics researchers have been pushing the envelope for the last 30 years since the inception of “artificial intelligence”.  The basics of artificial intelligence programming is the modeling of human expertise and mimicking human behavior in a variety of circumstances. One aspect of artificial intelligence gave rise to expert systems.  Complex systems like diesel locomotives are […]

Researchers at Tehran University, in Iran, unveiled last month an adult-sized humanoid robot called Surena 2. The initial press reports in Iran’s official news media didn’t include many details, saying only it could “walk like a human being but at a slower pace” and perform some other tasks, and there were questions about the robot’s real […]

In the field of Robotics, where is the line between between remote control, software control and autonomous control?  (No, I’m not going after the consciousness thing, it’s way too complicated) Part of the problem may have to do with our use of the word “intelligence”.  We talk about the increasing “intelligence” of processors and particularly […]

The hot-pink industrial arm whips you around while you sit in the driver’s seat This image shows the robotic arm Ferrari simulator without a steering wheel attached. The simulator includes a force-feedback steering wheel and pedals. Paolo Robuffo Giordano and colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tübingen, Germany, must really enjoy […]

Wielding two claws, a motor and a tail that swings like a grandfather clock’s pendulum, a small robot named ROCR (“rocker”) scrambles up a carpeted, 8-foot wall in just over 15 seconds – the first such robot designed to climb efficiently and move like human rock climbers or apes swinging through trees. “While this robot […]

Bionic legs are a new top-secret invention that is helping a paralyzed man walk again. The demonstrated was unveiled in New Zealand, who can now stand up and walk across the room to shake hands with Prime Minister John Key. This new invention is being called “Rex”, which is short for “robotic exoskeleton.” The battery-powered […]

The loneliness of the long-distance robot: A Cornell University robot named Ranger walked 14.3 miles in about 11 hours, setting an unofficial world record at Cornell’s Barton Hall early on July 6. A human – armed with nothing more than a standard remote control for toys – steered the untethered robot. Ranger navigated 108.5 times […]

Researchers at Harvard and MIT have reshaped the landscape of programmable matter by devising self-folding sheets that rely on the ancient art of origami. Called programmable matter by folding, the team demonstrated how a single thin sheet composed of interconnected triangular sections could transform itself into a boat- or plane-shape—all without the help of skilled […]

When it comes to robotic joints, engineers have had to put together complex custom configurations out of multiple components, which involved considerable development time with the mechanisms. This time requirement often reduced the amount of time artificial-intelligence programmers had with the system. So, two goals of robotics developers were to enable the programmers to be […]

Parallel kinematics (PKM) precision positioning systems have many advantages over serial kinematics stages, such as lower inertia, improved dynamics, smaller package size and higher stiffness. Hexapods, a type of parallel kinematics positioning system, can move masses of 50, 200 or even 1000 kg with micron accuracy such as that required in medical applications. This particular […]

Maxon Precision Motors is pleased to announce a strategic collaboration with National Instruments (Austin, TX). The initiative will look to highlight mutual areas of interest in the field of robotics. An informal relationship between the two companies was initiated as early as 2006, with the inclusion of NI LabVIEW VIs in Maxon’s EPOS family of […]

By Richard Comerford, Editor, Electronic Products One of the most frustrating things that we experience in our day-to-day existence is not being understood. As engineers, we’ve all run into people who have no idea what it is we actually do, and seem totally ignorant of the basic scientific principles and techniques we use every day. […]

Stäubli Robotics announces the introduction of the new TS series of high speed SCARA robots. This next generation robotic line features 100% Stäubli design and engineering, and are among the fastest commercially available SCARA robots in the industry. Stäubli’s high performance benchmarks of speed, rigidity and precision are exemplified by this series which includes the […]

Dayton, OH — Rixan Associates, Inc. recently introduced unique Swivel Stand Systems (the RSS-1000 and RSS-2000) that offer repeatable positioning for automated operations. In many automated machining operations, the operators require access to the machine to set-up the job and perform routine maintenance. The robot, or automated feeder, must be removed and later reinstalled to […]

There is now a more accurate way to simulate robots in action before they’re put to work, thanks to new software developed by Microsoft and DS SolidWorks. The new simulation capability helps companies program robots more quickly and effectively. With Microsoft RDS, you can incorporate 3D CAD models designed in SolidWorks software and simulate robot […]

Manchester, NH – FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) launched its eighteenth FIRST Robotics Competition season today with a Kickoff of a new robotics game called “Lunacy” at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, NH, hometown and headquarters of FIRST. “Forty years ago, NASA fueled a generation’s imagination with the success of […]

The Lauffen, Germany based clamping and gripping specialist SCHUNK will be holding a new edition of the Service Robotics Expert Days on February 18th and 19th, 2009. The international expert forum will be attended by leading authorities in the field, bringing together experts from all around the world. A wide range of presentations in English […]