MIT's Cheetah Untethered Running And Jumping!
From MIT:
Further info from Evan Ackerman at IEEE Spectrum:
We were wrong: it's not running untethered, it's bounding untethered. And unconstrained. And outdoors!
Two things strike us as particularly amazing about this: the first thing is that it's quiet, powered by electric motors and batteries. We've come to expect that compact systems capable of delivering high amounts of power rely on liquid fuels and hydraulics, because that's how you get the most power density: it's why Boston Dynamics uses gasoline engines to power hydraulic pumps on all of its dynamic robots. Also, high torque electric motors (like you'd need to get a robot to jump) have a tendency to overheat and destroy themselves, but MIT seems to have solved all of these issues, since they have a bounding, battery-powered robot that works. We're not sure yet how long it works for, but it works... ( cont'd )
Motors Level Ocean Bottom Seismometers Reliably and Efficiently
With a combination of high torque density and precision motion, compact stepper motors provide full 360° of correction for instrument tilt.
YuMi: ABB's Collaborative Robot
From ABB:
YuMi is a human-friendly dual arm robot designed for a new era of automation, for example in small parts assembly, where people and robots work hand-in-hand on the same tasks. YuMi is short for ‘you and me,' working together.
YuMi has been developed to meet the flexible and agile production needs of the consumer electronics industry in the first instance. It will increasingly be rolled out to cover other market sectors. YuMi is a collaborative, dual arm assembly solution with the ability to feel and see. The robot's soft, padded dual arms, combined with innovative force-sensing technology ensure the safety of YuMi's human co-workers. Safety is built into the functionality of the robot itself so that it can work cage-free... ( cont'd )
Robotics Provides 114-year-old Manufacturer 55 Percent Productivity Gain
Robotic palletizing solution from Intelligrated adds staffing and production flexibility, avoids worker injuries, and yields floor-space savings.
ReWalk Robotics Hopes to Raise $50M in IPO
From Boston Herald:
A company with U.S. headquarters in Marlborough that was recently awarded FDA approval to sell its robotic exoskeletons for paraplegics plans to raise $50 million in an IPO this week, possibly on Friday.
Israeli-based ReWalk Robotics is planning to sell 3.5 million shares for between $14 and $16 each, which puts it at the low end of the 13 local health care companies which have gone public since the beginning of the year, more than any other year in history. Most of those have been biotech companies, however, making ReWalk the first robotics-focused company to do so in at least a couple of years... ( cont'd )
Upcoming Tradeshow, Conference & Exhibition Summary
October, November, December
This year RoboticsTomorrow has setup a special newspage devoted to news and announcements from International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS 2014). Make sure to check it out.
Education with a Sand Pile, Robots and a Computer Game
Allowing our young to experiment with hands on is the best path to understanding. Theories and facts can be memorized and regurgitated but that does not mean they are understood.
Dyson 360 Eye
James Dyson explaining Dyson's new 360 Eye robotic vacuum :
Harvest Automation Robots Reduce Production Costs and Increase Capacity
As a result of their robot purchases Bailey Nurseries can switch to this new configuration and gain up to 15% more space for free.
High Speed Bipedal Robot Running Using High Speed Visual Feedback
From University of Tokyo:
ACHIRES is composed of high-speed vision and high-speed actuators to achieve instantaneous recognition and behavior. The similar technologies are used in our Janken (Rock Paper Scissors) Robot. High-speed vision detects the state of the biped robot including the timing of landing at 600 fps. The biped mechanism with the leg length of 14 cm is set to run in the sagittal plane. At present, the running velocity reaches 4.2 km/h. Simple control based on high-speed performance of sensory-motor system enables the biped robot to stably run without falling, unlike computationally expensive ZMP-based control which is commonly used for balance. The aerial posture is recovered to compensate for the deviation from the stable trajectory using high-speed visual feedback.
We also address a task of somersaulting. While running, the robot takes a big swing with one foot and jumps. After takeoff, both legs are controlled to curl up for high-speed rotation in the air. ACHIRES is going to be improved to push the envelope while demonstrating various biped locomotion tasks... ( cont'd )
Beginners Tutorial: Autonomous Robot Control Theory
From Nick McCrea at Toptal:
In this article, I’m going to describe the control scheme of my simulated robot, illustrate how it interacts with its environment and achieves its goals, and discuss some of the fundamental challenges of robotics that I encountered along the way... ( full article )
Robotic Biopsy System Drives the Point Home
Compact, high-torque motors precisely control biopsy needle to improve speed, efficiency, and radiation exposure.
Unbounded Robotics to Shut Down Due to Issues With Willow Garage Spin-Off Agreement
From Evan Ackerman at IEEE Spectrum:
IEEE Spectrum has learned that Unbounded Robotics, a spin-off of Willow Garage that developed the UBR-1 mobile manipulator, is currently "in the process of shutting down." The UBR-1 is no longer for sale.
Recently, a source (who asked not to be named) forwarded us an email from Unbounded Robotics CEO Melonee Wise. Our source received the message after requesting a quote for a UBR-1 robot:
"Unfortunately Unbounded Robotics is in the process of shutting down due to issues with our Willow Garage spin off agreement that prevents us from raising series A investment. Unbounded Robotics is no longer selling the UBR-1.... ( cont'd )
Upcoming Tradeshow, Conference & Exhibition Summary - September, October, November
Back to school and back to work with the tradeshow schedule for the Robotics and Advanced Manufacturing industry heating up.
This year RoboticsTomorrow has setup a special newspage devoted to news and announcements from International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS 2014) taking place beginning of September.
Vacuum-based Bag Handling
Traditionally, vacuum-based bag handling systems have been marred by problems to the extent that it has been almost impossible to use them.
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