Blog

Open source autonomous driving project to be developed with 96Boards

Catwell

The Autoware Foundation has been established with collaborations from Linaro, Japan-based company Tier IV and auto-driving software firm Apex.AI. The foundation is an open-source platform for autonomous vehicles based on Tier IV's Linux/ROS Autoware ...
- 28 Dec 2018
Jaguar Land Rover's prototype opens doors for those with accessibility needs

Catwell

The company has developed a car door that opens automatically when the driver approaches the vehicle. Mark Ormrod testing out Jaguar Line Rover's new car door prototype. (Credit: Jaguar Land Rover)Jaguar Land Rover has created a car door that opens a...
- 20 Dec 2018
Casual Friday : High-Tech Boris Robot turns out to be a Person in a Suit

Catwell

The robot named ‘Boris’ featured at the Putin Youth Forum was just a man wearing an Alyosha the Robot costume from Show Robotics. (Image credit: Show Robotics) The Russian state news agency Russia-24 was on hand reporting live at a Russian robo...
- 14 Dec 2018
Toyota Pairs T-HR3 Robot with DOCOMO 5G for Remote Operation

Catwell

Untethered control of the T-HR3 robot is done over a 5G mobile network, Master Maneuvering System, and VR headset. (Image credit: Toyota) Think of it as a present-day Avatar platform, but instead of controlling bio-humanoid beings, you’re contr...
- 13 Dec 2018
AI Roundup: This robot throws a fit while an AI algorithm creates realistic images

Catwell

Strange but true. A new video shows a robot aboard ISS getting emotional while Nvidia introduces their new AI systems that can radically change how 3D realistic images and environments are created. Just because Cimon is a robot doesn’t mean he can’t ...
- 7 Dec 2018
MIT’s Elowan is a Cybernetic Plant That Uses Electrical Signals to Move its Robot Body

Catwell

Elowan features electrodes placed around the plant's roots and soil and takes minute plant signals to drive the robot where it needs to go. (Image credit: MIT) Plats are just like people in certain ways; they need food, water, and light to thri...
- 7 Dec 2018
Australia’s one-armed robotic bricklayer finishes its first house in under three days

Catwell

Fastbrick Robotics’ Hadrian X robot needs little human interaction and can lay up to 1000 bricks per hour. The one-armed robot in action. (Photo from Fastbrick) Australian Robotic technology company Fastbrick Robotics (FBR) Limited has created a...
- 20 Nov 2018
Drones find lost hikers in the woods

Catwell

Researchers at MIT have employed a fleet of drones with the same system found in self-driving to be more effective in search and rescue missions. This new system doesn’t rely on GPS, which is often non-existent in forested areas. (Photo & video v...
- 9 Nov 2018
32-legged robot has great maneuverability

Catwell

Mochibot shows the world it can never have too many legs to move around. A 32-legged robot that can traverse on all types of terrain features a unique design and movement. (Image Credit: Keio University and University of Tokyo) Legged robots may...
- 1 Nov 2018
See Spot Dance; Boston Dynamics show off SpotMini’s dance moves

Catwell

www.youtube.com/watchNew video from Boston Dynamics shows the quadruped robot dancing and moonwalking. (Video from Boston Dynamics) This past summer, Boston Dynamics, known for making eerie robots, revealed that the SpotMini will be available fo...
- 26 Oct 2018
Swarm Technologies Receives Authorization from the FCC to Launch Communication Satellites

Catwell

Swarm’s 1/4U SpaceBEE Satellites feature radar reflectors and GPS, allowing them to be tracked in orbit. (Image credit: Swarm Technologies) Back in January, aerospace startup Swarm Technologies launched four picosatellites, known as SpaceBEE’s,...
- 25 Oct 2018
City of Chengdu Plans to Curb Light Pollution with Fake Moon Satellite

Catwell

(Image credit: Pexels) Light pollution is known to cause several problems when it comes to both humans and nature, including interfering with wildlife migratory patterns, wastes energy with unnecessary outdoor lighting, unsafe driving condition...
- 24 Oct 2018
Are Swarm Bots the Future of Live Entertainment?

Catwell

Zurich based company Verity Studios has been creating swam bots that create an unforgettable live experience. These tiny bots create an impressive light show. (Photo from Verity Studios) This past summer, rap superstar Drake brought some unexpec...
- 23 Oct 2018
Express Elevator to Space: Fiction Or Reality?

Catwell

A Japanese research team is working on building an “elevator” that would make space exploration cheaper and less polluting. Image is a preview of what a space “elevator” might look like. (via Obayashi Corporation)For adults, it is an escape from the ...
- 22 Oct 2018
Robotics: An Extra Pair Of Hands On The Body

Catwell

It is now possible to have an extra pair of hands on one’s body. A researcher in Japan created a set of hands that can be worn like a backpack. A person wearing the “backpack” with robotic limbs (Image via Yamen Saraiji) According to Merriam Web...
- 19 Oct 2018
Japan Hotel: Robots Serving In Hospitality Business

Catwell

A hotel in Japan uses robots to fulfill many of its staff positions, as a way to cut on costs, make the rooms more affordable and entertain the guests. A guest of Henn Na Hotel being helped by a female robot at the reception of the hotel. (Image via ...
- 17 Oct 2018
Florida Atlantic University’s Robotic Jellyfish May Help Save Coral Ecosystems

Catwell

The jellyfish robots navigate underwater using eight pneumatic network tentacle actuators. (Image credit: FAU via IOPScience) Researchers from the Florida Atlantic University have designed a robotic jellyfish to monitor and explore delicate cor...
- 16 Oct 2018
AIST’s HRP-5P Construction Robot Can Hang Drywall just like Humans

Catwell

AIST’s HRP-5P robot stands at almost six feet tall, weighs 222 pounds, and has a combined total of 37-DOF. (Image credit: AIST) Japan’s Advanced Industrial and Science Technology (AIST) unveiled their new HRP-5P robot that can perform basic con...
- 12 Oct 2018
Banksy’s “Girl with Red Balloon” Painting Gets Shredded at Auction, but Was it all Just a Stunt?

Catwell

The $1.4-million painting was seemingly cut to ribbons using a homemade shredder built into the frame. (Image credit: Sotheby’s) Love him or hate him, Banksy’s art has fetched a high price over the last decade, with artworks such as “Space Girl...
- 9 Oct 2018
No Need for Hands with This Self-Solving Rubik’s Cube

Catwell

Human Controller’s Self-Solving Rubik’s Cube features a 3D printed core with servomotors that are programmed to match colors on each side. (Image credit: Human Controller via DMM.make) The Rubik’s Cube has come a long way since it hit the market...
- 8 Oct 2018
Tokyo Café Employs OriHime-D Robots Controlled Remotely by People with Disabilities

Catwell

Ory Lab’s OriHime-D robot allows those with disabilities to control it remotely for work at Tokyo’s Dawn ver. Beta cafe. (Image credit: KYODO) Ory Laboratories describe their OriHime robot line as “your new body that you can easily control remo...
- 27 Sep 2018
Transforms just about anything into a robot with new robotic skins

Catwell

These flexible robotic skins were created with elastic sheets embedded with sensors and actuators. These robotic skins can turn everyday objects into robots. (Photo via Yale University) Robots have come a long away over the years. Some of them a...
- 25 Sep 2018
WPI Engineers Design Autonomous Robot to Keep Invasive Fish in Check

Catwell

WPI’s robot uses computer vision to identify lionfish and jabs them with buoyant spears, which float the fish to the surface to be harvested by fishermen. (Image credit: WPI) Lionfish are a venomous species of the Pterois genus native to the I...
- 20 Sep 2018
Researchers Design New Fabrication Method to Print Metals for Ultrafast Electronic Devices

Catwell

Purdue University’s roll-to-roll laser-induced superplasticity fabrication method is capable of printing metals at nano-scale levels. (Image credit: Purdue University) Researchers from Purdue University have developed a new manufacturing techniq...
- 20 Sep 2018
More efficient way to find Waldo - use a robot!

Catwell

At some point, you've probably sat down and rifled through a 'Where's Waldo' book. Some of us technical types probably wondered if there could be an automated way to find Waldo. A new robot named 'There's Waldo' has mastered the art of fi...
- 13 Sep 2018