news 2022

A new dual drone can both fly and land on water to take aquatic samples and monitor water quality, for example. The drone was developed by researchers at Imperial College London and Empa and recently tested together with researchers at the aquatic research institute Eawag for the first time on Lake Zurich.

An electronic skin which can learn from feeling 'pain' could help create a new generation of smart robots with human-like sensitivity. A team of engineers from the University of Glasgow developed the artificial skin with a new type of processing system based on 'synaptic transistors, which mimics the brain's neural pathways in order to learn.

Back to (previous) overview TU Delft's latest news TU Delft, Royal Brinkman and start-up Mapture have developed the next step in drone technology for agriculture. Their new AI-enabled drone takes off completely independently, flies over rows of plants and people in a greenhouse, takes high-resolution photos, and lands safely back on its charging station.

Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a low cost, low power technology to help robots accurately map their way indoors, even in poor lighting and without recognizable landmarks or features. The technology consists of sensors that use WiFi signals to help the robot map where it's going.

A new robot is capable of switching from an underwater drone to an aerial vehicle in less than one second. The robot also features a suction disc inspired by the remora fish, which enables it to hitchhike on wet or dry moving objects to significantly reduce its power consumption. It is designed for biological and environmental monitoring in marine ecosystems such as surveying ocean pollution in the open sea as the scientist of Beihang University, Imperial College London and Empa point out in a new study published in Science Robotics.

A team of researchers led by University of Toronto Professor  Tim Barfoot  is using a new strategy that allows robots to avoid colliding with people by predicting the future locations of dynamic obstacles in their path. The project, which is supported by Apple Machine Learning, will be presented at the International Conference on Robotics and Automation in Philadelphia at the end of May.

Microrobots have the potential to revolutionize medicine. Researchers at the Max Planck ETH Centre for Learning Systems have now developed an imaging technique that for the first time recognises cell-sized microrobots individually and at high resolution in a living organism. How can a blood clot be removed from the brain without any major surgical intervention? How can a drug be delivered precisely into a diseased organ that is difficult to reach? Those are just two examples of the countless innovations envisioned by the researchers in the field of medical microrobotics.

Method could enable autonomous drones to monitor safety of bridges Rust never sleeps, and cracking concrete doesn't get a day off either. The Jan. 28 collapse of Pittsburgh's Fern Hollow Bridge was a dramatic reminder of that fact. The exact cause of the collapse won't be known until the National Transportation Safety Board completes a months-long study, but Carnegie Mellon researchers have developed autonomous drone technology that someday might prevent similar catastrophes and lesser mishaps caused by deterioration.

04/21/2022 Propelling micrometre-sized drones using light only and exerting precise control: Physicists at the University of Würzburg have succeeded at this for the first time. Their microdrones are significantly smaller than red blood cells. A hand-held laser pointer produces no noticeable recoil forces when it is "fired" - even though it emits a directed stream of light particles.

EPFL engineers have developed a silicone raspberry that can help teach harvesting robots to grasp fruit without exerting too much pressure. Raspberries are the ultimate summer fruit. Famous for their eye-catching scarlet color and distinctive structure, they consist of dozens of fleshy drupelets with a sweet yet slightly acidic pulp.

Robotic wheelchairs may soon be able to move through crowds smoothly and safely. As part of CrowdBot, an project, researchers are exploring the technical, ethical and safety issues related to this kind of technology. The aim of the project is to eventually help the disabled get around more easily. Shoppers at Lausanne's weekly outdoor market may have come across one of EPFL's inventions in the past few weeks - a newfangled device that's part wheelchair, part robot.

Researchers have developed self-healing, biodegradable, 3D-printed materials that could be used in the development of realistic artificial hands and other soft robotics applications. It's a really good sensor considering how cheap and easy it is to make Thomas George-Thuruthel The low-cost jelly-like materials, developed by researchers at the University of Cambridge, can sense strain, temperature and humidity.

By Birgit Baustädter Forest fires, floods, falling rocks and other natural disasters are increasingly causing damage to built structures and, in the worst case, to people. TU Graz researchers are trying to help. Whether by means of rescue robots, autonomous drones or in securing structures, TU Graz researchers are involved in emergency management and disaster relief in a variety of ways.

Preparing for an online start to the winter term: for more information. Trailblazing research is transforming the field of rehabilitation medicine by developing robotic exoskeleton legs capable of autonomous control and decision making  Brokoslaw Laschowski is using his interdisciplinary education - spanning four academic degrees - as a toolkit to integrate robotics technology with rehabilitation medicine.