Motion Control/​Automation

Human-Like Hands with Flexible, Hybrid Actuators

In industrial settings, robots often are used for tasks that require repetitive grasping and manipulation of objects. A humanoid hand design that is a soft-hard hybrid flexible gripper can...

Self-Latching Piezocomposite Actuator

NASA Langley has developed a self-latching piezocomposite actuator with power-off, set-and-hold capability. If integrated into an aerodynamic control surface or engine inlet, deflections could be...

Watch Live: A Mars 2020 Briefing with NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine

Mars 2020 NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and other NASA experts offer a briefing on this week's launch of the Perseverance rover.

Watch: NASA's Mars 2020 Sample Return Briefing

Watch below as NASA experts review how they plan to return samples from the surface of Mars back to Earth.

Answering Your Questions: How Automated is the Mars Rover Landing?

Can NASA "joystick" the landing of the next Mars rover? A Tech Briefs reader asks our NASA expert.

Robotic Gripper Gets a Handle on a Challenging Object: Cables

We plug in our headphones everyday. Now a robot can perform the task.

Guided by Light, A Mini Robot Catches Particles Underwater

A tiny underwater robot may someday filter out water contaminants by catching them with its tentacles.

Answering Your (Mars 2020) Questions: Will the Perseverance Rover Carry Around NASA's Mars Helicopter?

The Mars rover Perseverance has a helicopter. Will the rover have to carry it around?

Here's an Idea: A Morphing Airplane Wing Built by Tiny Robots

Ben Jennet is a PhD student at MIT and a former space research fellow at NASA. He is working with NASA to develop a new kind of aircraft wing that's flexible and changes mid-flight.

Autonomous Boats Automatically Target and Clasp Onto Each Other

A fleet of “roboats” could transport people, collect trash, and self-assemble into floating structures.

Optical In-Line VCSEL Testing

In-line testing of certain LEDs, using nanosecond pulses, will become more and more relevant with time-of-flight applications.

Low-Cost Imaging System Poised to Provide Automatic Mosquito Tracking

A new low-cost imaging system could make it easier to track mosquito species that carry disease, enabling a more timely and targeted response.

Soft Prosthetic Hand Feels Surroundings via Stretchable Optical Waveguides

Sensors in the hand can actually detect forces being transmitted through the thickness of the robot.

Robot Automates Blood Drawing and Testing

The device provides quick results and gives healthcare workers more time to treat patients in hospitals and other settings.

System Reduces the Carbon Footprint of Artificial Intelligence

An automated system cuts the energy required for training and running neural networks.

Facility Focus: National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering

NIBIB is committed to integrating the physical and engineering sciences with the life sciences to advance basic research and medical care.

Smallest Motor in the World

The smallest motor in the world — consisting of just 16 atoms – measures less than one nanometer or about 100,000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. The rotor rotates on the surface of the...

Answering Your (Mars 2020) Questions: Perseverance vs. Curiosity Rover Hardware

A reader asks NASA experts: How much hardware from the Curiosity rover is being used on the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover?

Coffee Grounds Put a Pep in the Step of Flexible Robotic Feet

Traditional robotic feet are made of rigid components. A team of engineers at UCSD turned to coffee grounds to make legged robots more flexible and able to walk on a variety of rough terrain.

Scavenger Technology Allows Robots to ‘Eat’ Metal for Energy

A new metal-air scavenger works like a battery, in that it provides power by repeatedly breaking and forming a series of chemical bonds. But it also works like a harvester,...

Don’t Blame it on the Bearings

New measurement methodologies can save you time that would otherwise be wasted on returning and reordering bearing.

Navigation Measurement Software

This program provides a relative navigation capability for spacecraft, remotely operated terrestrial vehicles, and machine vision.

Boosting Performance in Hydraulic Systems with Alternative Coatings

Taking a holistic approach to sealing systems in hydraulic systems using chrome alternatives helps engineers achieve optimum function.

Soft Hardware for More Flexible Robots

Combined muscles and sensors made from soft materials allow for adaptable robots.

Scavenger Technology Allows Robots to “Eat” Metal for Energy

This type of energy source could be the basis for robots that seek out and “eat” metal, breaking down its chemical bonds for energy like humans do with food.