fredag 28 oktober 2011

Fast high precision eye-surgery robot developed


A researcher in The Netherlands has developed a smart eye-surgery robot that allows eye surgeons to operate with increased ease and greater precision on the retina and the vitreous humor of the eye. The system also extends the effective period during which ophthalmologists can carry out these intricate procedures....[Read the full article]


fredag 21 oktober 2011

The eyes have it: Computer-inspired creativity


Constraints on creativity imposed by computer-aided design tools are being overcome, thanks to a novel system that incorporates eye-tracking technology....[Read the full article]


onsdag 19 oktober 2011

Unlocking the key to human intelligence


What if machines could think like us — comprehending social cues, visual prompts and spoken words just like a human would? For Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) Professor Patrick Winston, the Ford Professor of Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science and leader of the Genesis Group at CSAIL, uncovering the true nature of human intelligence is the next grand challenge.

To solve the puzzle of how humans think, Winston is employing classic engineering methodology to build systems that think and comprehend as people do using computational methods.

Motivated by a desire to advance artificial intelligence and create systems that operate in a manner consistent with high-level human thinking, Winston feels there is a substantial difference be...[Read the full article]


tisdag 18 oktober 2011

Robotic bug gets wings, sheds light on evolution of flight


When engineers outfitted a six-legged robotic bug with wings in an effort to improve its mobility, they unexpectedly shed some light on the evolution of flight. The wings nearly doubled the running speed of the 25-gram robot, but was that good enough for takeoff?...[Read the full article]


Tree-dwelling animals were the first to fly, new research suggests


A six-legged, 25 gram robot has been fitted with flapping wings in order to gain an insight into the evolution of early birds and insects....[Read the full article]


Robotic bug gets wings, sheds light on evolution of flight (w/ video)


(PhysOrg.com) -- A six-legged, 25 gram robot has been fitted with flapping wings in order to gain an insight into the evolution of early birds and insects....[Read the full article]


måndag 17 oktober 2011

A team for an emergency


Earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes -- natural disasters always catch us by surprise, no matter how many early warning systems are in place. This makes it all the more important for rescue teams to get a quick overview of the situation at hand. In SENEKA, a Markets Beyond Tomorrow project, Fraunhofer researchers are working to network the various robots and sensor systems first responders use so that they can react more quickly and efficiently in the case of an emergency to search for victims and survivors....[Read the full article]


söndag 16 oktober 2011

This Week In Bots: Thinking, Charming, Walking, And Life-Saving Droids


Meka is intended to design a robot that builds emotional links between humans and the machines themselves, and at the recent Intelligent Robots and Systems event, Professor Sentis of the University of Texas showed off Meka's most recent iteration. He's created a system called Self-Organizing Incremental Neural Network, SOINN, which means instead of mutely and un-intelligently following pre-programmed tasks, his Kawada Industrie's robot called Hiro can actually perceive and interpret information about the real world environment around it, and process existing knowledge, to complete an assigned task. For example, by training an inquisitive robot like Hiro to do a number of tasks--with the robot querying for help when it's not sure about something--he thinks it'll ultimately be possible to as...[Read the full article]


Don't parlez-vous? Google enhances Translate app


Google enhances Translate app The inclusion of Siri on the iPhone 4S has brought a lot of attention generally to the topic of voice recognition on mobile devices. Now, Google is updating a feature in its Translate app for Android devices that can handle speech-to-speech translation among 14 languages. In all, Google is adding a dozen languages to English and Spanish, which were the two languages initially featured in the app. In a company blog post, Google explains how it works: You speak into your phone's microphone, and the Translate app will translate what you've said and read it aloud....[Read the full article]


Do Androids Dream of Electric Authors?


By PAGAN KENNEDY Published: October 14, 2011 One day, I stumbled across a book on Amazon called Saltine Cracker. The book was co-edited by someone called Lambert M. These books, or booklike products, lie in wait for the distracted shopper, someone who might think, Oh good, I really need a tome on Spearmans law of diminishing returns, so Ill just go ahead and pay $84. And with one overhasty click on the Place your order button, the shopper can pay a lot of money for a book that turns out to be warmed-over Wikipedia. VDM Publishing puts a notice on the cover of its books, boasting high-quality content by Wikipedia articles!...[Read the full article]


Automation: Leading the way


Australia 's rapidly expanding multi-billion dollar mining technology and services industry is leading the drive for innovations to boost productivity and efficiency. As Australian mining exports increase, mining companies are investing significant resources into the development and implementation of remote automation and unmanned machinery to meet this demand. The isolated geographical locations of many Australian mines, in addition to safety considerations, make remote automation and unmanned machinery an attractive option for mining companies. While traditional automation and robotic technology in the mining industry has comprised standalone autonomous equipment managing a selected process, today it is possible to connect these discrete processes resulting in an integrated, productive m...[Read the full article]


lördag 15 oktober 2011

Ping-pong robots debut in China (w/ video)


(PhysOrg.com) -- Last week some oohs and ahhs were in order as two ping-pong playing robots made their debut at Zhejiang University in China. The two robots played against each other and with humans. True, this was not the first time the world witnessed robots playing table tennis. There was Topio, a robot made by Vietnamese robotics firm, TOSY....[Read the full article]


fredag 14 oktober 2011

Meka's robot head makes eyes at next-wave users (w/ video)


(PhysOrg.com) -- You've seen robots in the form of alpha dogs and insect swarms capable of military deployments but the next wave of robotics also includes a special breed of "sociable" robots for use in medicine, eldercare, and education. These are the robots that demand scientists’ skills toward making robotic parts that can mimic their human counterparts, and be responsive to social cues....[Read the full article]


onsdag 12 oktober 2011

Talk to the virtual hands: Body language of both speaker and listener affects success in virtual reality communication game


New research finds that the lack of gestural information from both speaker and listener limits successful communication in virtual environments....[Read the full article]


Violent games emotionally desensitizing, research suggests


After excessively violent events, shoot 'em up games regularly come under scrutiny. In Norway, several first-person shooter games disappeared from the market for a while after the killings. Does intense fighting on a flat screen display also result in aggressive behavior in real life? Researchers have found brain activity patterns in heavy gamers that differed from those of non-gamers....[Read the full article]


All for one, 'R-one' for all (w/ video)


Robots for everyone. That's James McLurkin's dream, and as the director of a Rice University robotics lab, he's creating an inexpensive and sophisticated robot called the "R-one" to make the dream a reality....[Read the full article]


Robotic telescope network with access via Internet to be built


Internauts will be able to connect to 17 telescopes on four continents to share observation time. A world network of robotic telescopes is to be developed as part of a European citizen science project that has just kicked off in Spain. The network, to which any citizen will be able to connect and share observation time, will offer free open access via the Internet....[Read the full article]


Goal to build more than 30 more KASPARs to help children with autism


Researchers in the UK have a goal to build over 30 more KASPAR robots to help children with autism....[Read the full article]


tisdag 11 oktober 2011

Japanese scientist unveils 'thinking' robot


Robots that learn from experience and can solve novel problems -- just like humans -- sound like science fiction....[Read the full article]


måndag 10 oktober 2011

US Army purchases robotic scouts (w/ video)


(PhysOrg.com) -- By being the first to scout out an unknown building or peek over a wall, a small dumbbell-shaped robot will be taking over some of the riskiest tasks in the US Army. The robot’s maker, ReconRobotics, Inc., recently announced that the US Army has requested to purchase 315 of the Recon Scout XT robot kits and an equal number of SearchStick devices for $4.8 million. The company expects to deliver the products by the end of October....[Read the full article]