Stay updated on the fast-changing advancements in robotics, automation, and control. Access the technical briefs and applications that are trending in AI, robotic operating systems, and machine learning.
In the U.S., women make up 14 percent of the engineering workforce. The number of female engineers across the globe is on the rise but compared to male engineers it is still much lower.
See the products of tomorrow, including: a new wireless smart textile technology that can boost hand mobility of stroke patients, a metal-free magnetic gel, and a new fuel cell that harvests energy from microbes living in dirt.
This advancement, one of the first of its kind, enables a useful new capability for a variety of applications, including improved prostheses, haptics for new modalities in augmented reality (AR), and thermally modulated therapeutics for applications such as pain management. The technology also has a variety of potential industrial and research applications.
A research team has successfully overcome the limitations of soft strain sensors by integrating computer vision technology into optical sensors. The team developed a sensor technology known as computer vision-based optical strain (CVOS) during its study. Unlike conventional sensors reliant on electrical signals, CVOS sensors employ computer vision and optical sensors to analyze microscale optical patterns, extracting data regarding changes.
Meet Air-Guardian: A system developed by researchers at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL). As modern pilots grapple with an onslaught of information from multiple monitors, especially during critical moments, Air-Guardian acts as a proactive co-pilot; a partnership between human and machine, rooted in understanding attention.
A first-of-its-kind robotic glove is lending a “hand” and providing hope to piano players who have suffered a disabling stroke. Developed by researchers from Florida Atlantic University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science, the soft robotic hand exoskeleton uses artificial intelligence to improve hand dexterity.
Innovators at NASA’s Johnson Space Center have designed a circumferential scissor spring mechanism, that when incorporated into a hand controller, improves the restorative force to a control stick’s neutral position. The design also provides for operation on a more linear portion of the spring’s force deflection curve, yielding better feedback to the user.
Intrigued to see if many limbs could be helpful for locomotion in this world, a team at the Georgia Institute of Technology is using a centipede's style of movement to its advantage. They developed a new theory of multilegged locomotion and created many-legged robotic models.
MIT researchers developed a machine-learning technique called Diffusion-CCSP. Diffusion models learn to generate new data samples that resemble samples in a training dataset by iteratively refining their output.
See what's new on the market, including igus' two- and four-hole fixed flange bearings; FixtureBuilder 3D fixture-modelling software from Renishaw; XENON Corporation's X-1100/2x Pulsed Light Research System; Rad Source NDT's NDT 1000 X-ray Inspection System; and more.
With all the chatter these days about AI, it’s important to really understand what it is and how to use it. A project at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is exploring how operators and an AI automated control system interact.
Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have furthered a new type of soft material that can change shape in response to light, a discovery that could advance “soft...
Compared to robots, human bodies are more flexible, capable of fine movements, and can efficiently convert energy into movement. Drawing inspiration from human gait,...
Learn how to use capacitive sensors in various measurement tasks and profit from unsurpassed stability and nanometer resolution — also in industrial applications. Capacitive sensors...
As generative AI continues to evolve, we are seeing many new applications emerge across industries. How much do you know about generative AI? Take this quiz to test your knowledge.
With the growing demand for items such as fruits, dairy products, and other resources in the food and beverage industry, the requirement for increased production...
The Create the Future Design Contest recognizes and rewards engineering innovations that benefit humanity, the environment, and the economy. In this special report, learn about the...
What are the opportunities and risks AI offers in manufacturing? How can manufacturers successfully implement AI and prepare their workforce to integrate it into their processes? What’s its future outlook? Tech Briefs asked four industry experts in this roundtable.
Videos of the Month: Robotics, Automation & Control
See the videos of the month, including one on Purdue University researchers teaching robots how to navigate the swaying deck of a boat, one on a Carnegie Mellon-led team developing a soft robot to better understand an organism — the pleurocystitid — that existed 450 million years ago, and more.
NASA’s Langley Research Center has developed a simplified, tool-less automated tow/tape placement (ATP) system. This invention enables several benefits that mitigate limitations associated with conventional ATP systems. Read on to learn more.
See the products of tomorrow, including the University of Maryland's "cooling glass"; the Reconfigurable Robotics Lab's sensor that can perceive combinations of bending, stretching, compression, and temperature changes using color; Tufts' tiny biological robots; and more.
Disruptive technologies, including the advancement of chip-level optical functions and the miniaturization of device interconnections, have forced the adoption of new and...
Not all motors provide the same benefits. Discover the differences between the two primary DC motor technologies in this comprehensive white paper. The goal is for readers...
An inspection design method and procedure by which mobile robots can inspect large pipe structures has been demonstrated with the successful inspection of...
People who received gentle electric currents on the back of their heads learned to maneuver a robotic surgery tool in virtual reality and then in a real...
Engineers at Princeton University and Google have come up with a new way to teach robots to know when they don’t know. The technique involves quantifying the...
This white paper describes new and improved technology that offers engineers specific advantages in speed, accuracy and reliability over previous linear position...