Robotics

The World’s First Family Robot Could Be Like HAL in Your Home

Meet Jibo. On track to exist next year, Jibo is being marketed as “the world’s first family robot.” The bulbous little guy can read to kids in the living room, recite recipes in the kitchen, take photos in the yard, and perform a handful of other simple tasks. Jibo is also a little bit creepy.…

This ‘Bio-Bot’ Walks On Command Using Actual Muscles

Engineers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed tiny biological machines capable of walking by using twitching muscle cells. Remarkably, these self-propelled “bio-bots” can be controlled externally using electrical pulses. Oh, and they’re 3D printed. We typically imagine robots as being comprised of metal gears and electronic parts. But by combining biological components,…

DARPA’s Robotics Challenge Finals Just Got A Whole Lot Harder

DARPA just announced the details of the final round of its years-long Robotics Challenge, and boy, do they sound difficult. Not only will all the robots have to work wirelessly and without human intervention, the course must be completed all at once. If a robot falls and can’t get it up, it’s done. If you…

The Origami Wheels on These Robots Change Shape As They Roll

If you thought origami was just a delicate, ornamental art, then come meet these robots. These (deliberately) deformable little wheelers can climb over obstacles, squeeze under crevasses, and basically change gears automatically. At the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation this month, two research projects from Seoul National University had led to clever origami-inspired…

This Robot Is Going To Hitchhike Across Canada By Itself

Starting next month, a robot named hitchBOT will attempt to hitchhike across Canada. Using speech recognition, speech processing, and social media, it will try to charm its way from one coast to the other. Its journey will commence on July 27th, 2014 at the Institute for Applied Creativity at the Nova Scotia College of Art…

Sexbot Slaves: How Sexbots Could Affect Actual Human Relationships

There is only one true sexbot that you can go out and buy today. Her name is Roxxxy, and she is a ‘robot companion’ intended to look human, or something very close. She’s 5’7″ and slender. She’s got a wide range of hair and eye colors. And depending on the model you choose, she can…

Scientists Built a Robot That Lets You Feel Virtual Breasts

Haptic technology has come a long way in recent years. And at long last, it’s finally reached its inevitable conclusion: Boobs. More specifically, Japanese researchers have developed a robot hand that uses haptic technology to simulate softness on individual fingertips. Other than acting as a stand-in lady friend for lonely scientists, the device has the…

What You Should Know About Google’s Military Robots—In Comic Form

Last year, Google bought eight robotics companies in just six months, making the search giant a US military contractor. So what is the relationship between Google and the Department of Defense? This comic sheds a bit of light on the current situation. Cartoonist and journalist Andy Warner outlines Google’s connection to DARPA in his short…

Why Settle For Two Arms When You Can Have Four?

Researchers at MIT’s d’Arbeloff Laboratory have unveiled a pair of wearable robotic limbs that would make Dr. Octopus proud. Supernumerary Robotic Limbs (SRLs) are wearable robotic limbs that, instead of replacing missing limbs, endow the user with an extra set. And unlike conventional exoskeletons, these limbs augment the workspace and skills of the user. The…

Google is going to make its own self-driving cars. With a maximum speed of 25 mph (40 kph), the cartoonish vehicle only has a stop/go button — so it has no steering wheel, accelerator, or brake pedal. Users can chart their progress with a touchscreen. You can see the car in action here.

This Robot Gymnast Blooper Reel Is as Hilarious As It Is Adorable

We’ve seen Youtuber hinamitetu’s robot gymnast successfully pull off a number of spectacular feats, including a perfect quadruple backflip and and Kovacs-Triple backflip-landing. But to succeed you have to fail — as this blooper reel so cogently illustrates. RoboGymnast recently executed a triple salto with full twist: More at hinamitetu’s YouTube channel.

These Are The Surprising Jobs You’ll Be Doing By The 2030s

As our technological and sociological realities change, so too do our jobs. But just what, exactly, will we be doing 15 years from now? Here are some completely unexpected jobs you’ve almost certainly never heard of—but likely will soon. Indeed, the landscape of careers is changing. But knowing which vocations are around the corner is…

Scientists Finally Understand Shark Skin, Thanks to 3D Printers

If you described a shark as a toothy torpedo covered in sandpaper, you wouldn’t be too far off the mark. It’s that rough sandpapery skin that gives sharks their highly efficient swimming abilities, and scientists finally understand why. A shark’s skin is covered in millions of microscopic denticles, rigid tooth-like scales that jut out from…

This Robotic Catching Arm Can React In Less Than 500ths Of A Second

Developed by EPFL researchers, this robot is capable of reacting on the fly and grasping objects with complex shapes and trajectories. Incredibly, it’s equipped with a learning algorithm that allows it to be taught by humans. To make it work, EPFL researchers first taught the robot how to predict the trajectory of a moving object.…

This Wickedly Fast Running Robot Is Now Commercially Available

Meet OutRunner — a sleek star-shaped robot you can use to mercilessly hunt down your friends. It’s the world’s first remotely controlled legged running robot that’s commercially available to the public. The remarkable device, which was developed by Pensacola, Florida’s Robotics Unlimited, is capable of self-balancing, reaching speeds around 20 mph (32 kph) on almost…

DARPA Wants To Teach Military Drones The Meaning Of Teamwork

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has recently announced that it wants to create drone squadrons that will have the ability to work together during combat and surveillance missions. The new project, posted as a solicitation on the Federal Business Opportunities website, seeks to make drones more effective and less dependent on human operators…

Greenpeace Envisions A Nightmarish Future Populated By Robotic Bees

As part of Greenpeace’s “Save the Bees” campaign, the environmental organization is showcasing a faux advertisement depicting a future in which robots have replaced natural pollinators. But while well-intentioned, it’s a rather myopic view of where we’re likely headed. The video is not as outlandish as it appears (though the suggestion that robotic bees will…

The Latest Incarnation Of ASIMO Is Actually Quite Badass

Honda’s humanoid robot, ASIMO, recently celebrated its 14th birthday. The diminutive android has experienced some minor upgrades over the years, but nothing quite like it’s latest batch of enhancements. Just watch what ASIMO can do now. Lance Ulanoff and the team at Mashable recently attended a demonstration of the new-and-improved ASIMO at the International Auto…

This Ridiculously Cool Hexapod Can Transform Into A Roving Ball

Norwegian engineer Kåre Halvorsen has unleashed his latest creation, a spider-like robot called MorpHex MKII that can retract its six legs and transform into a rolling ball. Halvorsen’s previous spiderbot could only roll around in circles, but this one can move in straight lines thus improving its stalking capabilities. It may also be the first…

Meet The Retro Robot Band From The Fabulous ’50s

The Trio Fantastique — made up of guitarist Wink, drummer Blink and saxophonist Nod — was the creation of a Belgian engineer with the Scifi name of Zenon Specht. The robot band was a feature of Antwerp’s Robot Club, but also appeared in fairs and made a tour of department stores in Paris and Lens,…