Items tagged with robotics
If Google isn’t getting under your skin yet, it might be in the future. Medical devices juggernaut Johnson & Johnson announced this week that one its companies is partnering with Google to create technologies that improve robot-enhanced surgeries. Ethicon makes surgical shears, staplers, and related...
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Recently, we’ve seen robots being developed that are used for security, delivering food, and even for customer service. This time around, researchers at the Biomimetic Robotics Lab of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have created a robot that takes its cues from the world’s fastest land animal that will hopefully be able to
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The 1980s taught us many things, one of them being that robot guards don't mess around. Remember the ED-209 Enforcement Droid in RoboCop? That's a prime example of why we don't want armed robots in charge of keeping the peace. But what about unarmed robots? You'll find them patrolling Microsoft's Silicon Valley...
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Pat Morita, best known for his role as Mr. Miyagi in the Karate Kid, departed this world nearly a decade ago, but his martial arts lessons live on. Not just by humans, either -- IHMC's Atlas robot has mastered the balancing part of the infamous crane kick that allowed Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) to take home the...
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Cartoons taught us that robots mainly like to feast on oil, but then again, they also imparted other erroneous lessons, such coyotes being able to survive repeated falls off of cliffs -- beep, beep! Go ahead and color us intrigued, because it turns out robots have a taste for real human food. Or at least some do, such...
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Technology isn't just about improving the speed of graphics cards to push more pixels on a display, nor is it limited to the pursuit of bigger and faster storage devices, though we're fans of such advancements. More than that, we're passionate about technology because of the wonderful things it can accomplish. Case in...
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Everyone wants a vacuum that sucks, though some suck more than others. Such is the claim iRobot makes with its new Roomba 800 Series, the next generation Roomba cleaning system that really, really sucks (in a good way, of course!). In fact, iRobot claims its newest self-propelled vacuum is up to 50 percent better at...
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As it turns out, Lee Majors cost way too much as the six million dollar man; Rex, the world’s first bionic man, only costs about $1 million. Of course “Rex” isn’t actually a human, but he is a full-size replica of a human man, complete with a face, several artificial organs, robotic prosthetic...
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Yes, it's true machines pose a serious threat of human extinction (a group of Cambridge researchers thinks so, anyway), but they're so darn adorable, which is what might ultimately be our downfall. Until then, you might as well enjoy what our mechanical creations have to offer, like the real-life Pixar lamp that swings around and doesn't like...
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A real cheetah can run as fast as 70-75 mph in short bursts, so DARPA's Cheetah robot still has a ways to go in that regard. But as far as robotics go, DARPA's mechanical Cheetah is the fastest legged robot in the history of mankind, hitting a top speed of 28.3 mph on camera (see embedded video below). To put that...
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When machine finally decides to rise against man, the human race is going to have its hands full. For one, it's a well known fact that robots have super human strength and pose a particular problem for senior citizens (we're not making this up, but Old Glory Insurance might be). They're also cheaters, so don't go hoping for a fair fight. Maybe...
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Earlier, it was noted that Google was lobbying the state of Nevada to get driverless cars approved, and it appears they have been successful. The State of Nevada has passed Assembly Bill No. 511 which, among other things, provides that the Nevada Department of Transportation "shall adopt regulations authorizing the operation of autonomous...
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It's not often that you hear of the Boy Scouts of America making the tech news wires. So why now? Simple: a new merit badge. That new badge just so happens to be called "Robotics," and it's easily one of hippest things to happen to BSA in some time. The Scouts currently offer over 120 badges, but the newest is the most geek-friendly of all....
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Only 3 1/2 months late, the first humanoid robot has finally made it into space, on the last flight of the Space Shuttle Discovery. The mission, STS-133, was supposed to launch, along with Robonaut 2, on Nov. 1 of last year. However, the last flight of Discovery was delayed for numerous reasons, including a hydrogen leak, which was followed...
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Google's drive for innovation is extending to the road. The company has been testing automated, self-driving automobiles, and the cars, six Toyota Priuses and an Audi TT, have logged a total of 140,000 miles. The cars have even driven down Lombard Street in San Francisco, the "crookedest street in America." Google's blog post on the new technology:...
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Ugobe, the maker of Pleo, the robotic dinosaur (pictured), has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Yes, Chapter 7, not Chapter 11, so unless someone decides to buy the company's assets, Pleo is doomed to extinction. Ugobe's CEO, Caleb Chung, also created the Furby, which when launched in 1998 became the "must have" toy of the holiday season. According...
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A team of U.K. researchers have developed robotic fish that they plan to use to detect pollution. The researches plan a trial of five robotic fish in the northern Spanish port of Gijon. If successful, they hope to use the fish in waterways worldwide. Unlike earlier models, which had to be remotely-controlled, these new carp-shaped robots are...
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How would you feel about a robot asking, “Would you like fries with that?” when you ordered a Big Mac? Well, if the National Intelligence Council’s recent Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World is correct, we could be experiencing just that by 2025. Granted, it’s a few years down the road, but the idea that robots could be so capable to replace...
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