News in Brief
Transport - Sep 21
Whittle Lab research key for accelerating the development of zero-carbon flight, says Prince of Wales
Whittle Lab research key for accelerating the development of zero-carbon flight, says Prince of Wales
Life Sciences - Sep 21
Discovery of a druggable pocket in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein could stop virus in its tracks
Discovery of a druggable pocket in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein could stop virus in its tracks
Health - Sep 21
As nation mourns Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a look at advances in pancreatic cancer treatment
As nation mourns Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a look at advances in pancreatic cancer treatment
Career - Sep 21
Lockdown could have lasting effect on survivors of sexual violence and the services that support them, experts argue
Lockdown could have lasting effect on survivors of sexual violence and the services that support them, experts argue
Economics - Sep 21
Oakland County’s economy hit during pandemic, but it’s well-positioned for recovery
Oakland County’s economy hit during pandemic, but it’s well-positioned for recovery
Health - Sep 21
Novartis Kisqali receives the highest rating of any CDK4/6 inhibitor on the ESMO Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale
Novartis Kisqali receives the highest rating of any CDK4/6 inhibitor on the ESMO Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale
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Microtechnics - Computer Science - 25.08.2020
Materials Science - Microtechnics - 19.08.2020
Microtechnics - Computer Science - 14.08.2020
Life Sciences - Microtechnics - 15.07.2020 
A GoPro for beetles: Researchers create a robotic camera backpack for insects
In the movie "Ant-Man,” the title character can shrink in size and travel by soaring on the back of an insect. Now researchers at the University of Washington have developed a tiny wireless steerable camera that can also ride aboard an insect, giving everyone a chance to see an Ant-Man view of the world.
Microtechnics - Pharmacology - 14.07.2020 
Robot jaws shows medicated chewing gum could be the future
Medicated chewing gum has been recognised as a new advanced drug delivery method but currently there is no gold standard for testing drug release from chewing gum in vitro. New research has shown a chewing robot with built-in humanoid jaws could provide opportunities for pharmaceutical companies to develop medicated chewing gum.
Microtechnics - 23.06.2020 
Deep Drone Acrobatics
A navigation algorithm developed at the University of Zurich enables drones to learn challenging acrobatic maneuvers. Autonomous quadcopters can be trained using simulations to increase their speed, agility and efficiency, which benefits conventional search and rescue operations. Since the dawn of flight, pilots have used acrobatic maneuvers to test the limits of their airplanes.
Economics / Business - Microtechnics - 04.05.2020
Computer Science - Microtechnics - 27.03.2020
Microtechnics - Computer Science - 19.03.2020 
This Drone Can Play Dodgeball - And Win
Using a novel type of cameras, researchers from the University of Zurich have demonstrated a flying robot that can detect and avoid fast-moving objects. A step towards drones that can fly faster in harsh environments, accomplishing more in less time. Drones can do many things, but avoiding obstacles is not their strongest suit yet - especially when they move quickly.
Computer Science - Microtechnics - 16.03.2020 
Allowing robots to feel
With the help of machine learning, ETH researchers have developed a novel yet low-cost tactile sensor. The sensor measures force distribution at high resolution and with great accuracy, enabling robot arms to grasp sensitive or fragile objects. We humans have no problem picking up fragile or slippery objects with our hands.
Computer Science - Microtechnics - 09.03.2020
Computer Science - Microtechnics - 05.03.2020 
Showing robots how to do your chores
By observing humans, robots learn to perform complex tasks, such as setting a table. Roboticists are developing automated robots that can learn new tasks solely by observing humans. At home, you might someday show a domestic robot how to do routine chores. In the workplace, you could train robots like new employees, showing them how to perform many duties.
Computer Science - Microtechnics - 12.02.2020 
"Sensorized" skin helps soft robots find their bearings
Flexible sensors and an artificial intelligence model tell deformable robots how their bodies are positioned in a 3D environment. For the first time, MIT researchers have enabled a soft robotic arm to understand its configuration in 3D space, by leveraging only motion and position data from its own "sensorized" skin.
Microtechnics - Electroengineering - 18.12.2019 
A soft robotic insect that survives being flattened by a fly swatter
Researchers at EPFL have developed an ultra-light robotic insect that uses its soft artificial muscles to move at 3 cm per second across different types of terrain. It can be folded or crushed and yet continue to move. Imagine swarms of robotic insects moving around us as they perform various tasks.
Computer Science - Microtechnics - 21.11.2019
Computer Science - Microtechnics - 19.11.2019
Environment - Microtechnics - 18.11.2019
Microtechnics - Physics - 06.11.2019 
On the way to intelligent microrobots
Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI and ETH Zurich have developed a micromachine that can perform different actions. First nanomagnets in the components of the microrobots are magnetically programmed and then the various movements are controlled by magnetic fields. Such machines, which are only a few tens of micrometres across, could be used, for example, in the human body to perform small operations.
Computer Science - Microtechnics - 22.10.2019
Life Sciences - Microtechnics - 11.10.2019 
DeepFly3D: the deep-learning way to design fly-like robots
EPFL scientists have developed a deep-learning based motion-capture software that uses multiple camera views to model the movements of a fly in three dimensions. The ultimate aim is to use this knowledge to design fly-like robots. "Just think about what a fly can do," says Professor Pavan Ramdya, whose lab at EPFL's Brain Mind Institute , with the lab of Professor Pascal Fua at EPFL's Institute for Computer Science, led the study.
Microtechnics
Results 1 - 20 of 79.
Researchers Train Autonomous Drones Using Cross-Modal Simulated Data
To fly autonomously, drones need to understand what they perceive in the environment and make decisions based on that information. A novel method developed by Carnegie Mellon University researchers allows drones to learn perception and action separately. The two-stage approach overcomes the "simulation-to-reality gap," and creates a way to safely deploy drones trained entirely on simulated data into real-world course navigation.
To fly autonomously, drones need to understand what they perceive in the environment and make decisions based on that information. A novel method developed by Carnegie Mellon University researchers allows drones to learn perception and action separately. The two-stage approach overcomes the "simulation-to-reality gap," and creates a way to safely deploy drones trained entirely on simulated data into real-world course navigation.
Biomorphic batteries could provide 72x more energy for robots
Like biological fat reserves store energy in animals, a new rechargeable zinc battery integrates into the structure of a robot to provide much more energy, a team led by the University of Michigan has shown. This approach to increasing capacity will be particularly important as robots shrink to the microscale and below-scales at which current stand-alone batteries are too big and inefficient.
Like biological fat reserves store energy in animals, a new rechargeable zinc battery integrates into the structure of a robot to provide much more energy, a team led by the University of Michigan has shown. This approach to increasing capacity will be particularly important as robots shrink to the microscale and below-scales at which current stand-alone batteries are too big and inefficient.
Sounds of Action: Using Ears, Not Just Eyes, Improves Robot Perception
Carnegie Mellon builds dataset capturing interaction of sound, action, vision People rarely use just one sense to understand the world, but robots usually only rely on vision and, increasingly, touch. Carnegie Mellon University researchers find that robot perception could improve markedly by adding another sense: hearing.
Carnegie Mellon builds dataset capturing interaction of sound, action, vision People rarely use just one sense to understand the world, but robots usually only rely on vision and, increasingly, touch. Carnegie Mellon University researchers find that robot perception could improve markedly by adding another sense: hearing.
In the movie "Ant-Man,” the title character can shrink in size and travel by soaring on the back of an insect. Now researchers at the University of Washington have developed a tiny wireless steerable camera that can also ride aboard an insect, giving everyone a chance to see an Ant-Man view of the world.
Medicated chewing gum has been recognised as a new advanced drug delivery method but currently there is no gold standard for testing drug release from chewing gum in vitro. New research has shown a chewing robot with built-in humanoid jaws could provide opportunities for pharmaceutical companies to develop medicated chewing gum.
A navigation algorithm developed at the University of Zurich enables drones to learn challenging acrobatic maneuvers. Autonomous quadcopters can be trained using simulations to increase their speed, agility and efficiency, which benefits conventional search and rescue operations. Since the dawn of flight, pilots have used acrobatic maneuvers to test the limits of their airplanes.
How many jobs do robots really replace?
This is part 1 of a three-part series examining the effects of robots and automation on employment, based on new research from economist and Institute Professor Daron Acemoglu. In many parts of the U.S., robots have been replacing workers over the last few decades. But to what extent, really? Some technologists have forecast that automation will lead to a future without work, while other observers have been more skeptical about such scenarios.
This is part 1 of a three-part series examining the effects of robots and automation on employment, based on new research from economist and Institute Professor Daron Acemoglu. In many parts of the U.S., robots have been replacing workers over the last few decades. But to what extent, really? Some technologists have forecast that automation will lead to a future without work, while other observers have been more skeptical about such scenarios.
COVID-19 Should Be Wake-Up Call for Robotics Research
Pandemic response requires "dull, dirty, dangerous" jobs suited for robots Robots could perform some of the "dull, dirty and dangerous" jobs associated with combating the COVID-19 pandemic, but that would require many new capabilities not currently being funded or developed, an editorial Robotics argues.
Pandemic response requires "dull, dirty, dangerous" jobs suited for robots Robots could perform some of the "dull, dirty and dangerous" jobs associated with combating the COVID-19 pandemic, but that would require many new capabilities not currently being funded or developed, an editorial Robotics argues.
Using a novel type of cameras, researchers from the University of Zurich have demonstrated a flying robot that can detect and avoid fast-moving objects. A step towards drones that can fly faster in harsh environments, accomplishing more in less time. Drones can do many things, but avoiding obstacles is not their strongest suit yet - especially when they move quickly.
With the help of machine learning, ETH researchers have developed a novel yet low-cost tactile sensor. The sensor measures force distribution at high resolution and with great accuracy, enabling robot arms to grasp sensitive or fragile objects. We humans have no problem picking up fragile or slippery objects with our hands.
Robots that admit mistakes foster better conversation in humans
Three people and a robot form a team playing a game. The robot makes a mistake, costing the team a round. Like any good teammate, it acknowledges the error. " Sorry, guys, I made the mistake this round," it says. "I know it may be hard to believe, but robots make mistakes too." This scenario occurred multiple times during a Yale-led study of robots' effects on human-to-human interactions.
Three people and a robot form a team playing a game. The robot makes a mistake, costing the team a round. Like any good teammate, it acknowledges the error. " Sorry, guys, I made the mistake this round," it says. "I know it may be hard to believe, but robots make mistakes too." This scenario occurred multiple times during a Yale-led study of robots' effects on human-to-human interactions.
By observing humans, robots learn to perform complex tasks, such as setting a table. Roboticists are developing automated robots that can learn new tasks solely by observing humans. At home, you might someday show a domestic robot how to do routine chores. In the workplace, you could train robots like new employees, showing them how to perform many duties.
Flexible sensors and an artificial intelligence model tell deformable robots how their bodies are positioned in a 3D environment. For the first time, MIT researchers have enabled a soft robotic arm to understand its configuration in 3D space, by leveraging only motion and position data from its own "sensorized" skin.
Researchers at EPFL have developed an ultra-light robotic insect that uses its soft artificial muscles to move at 3 cm per second across different types of terrain. It can be folded or crushed and yet continue to move. Imagine swarms of robotic insects moving around us as they perform various tasks.
New Algorithm trains AI to avoid bad behaviors
Robots, self-driving cars and other intelligent machines could become better-behaved thanks to a new way to help machine learning designers build AI applications with safeguards against specific, undesirable outcomes such as racial and gender bias. Artificial intelligence has moved into the commercial mainstream thanks to the growing prowess of machine learning algorithms that enable computers to train themselves to do things like drive cars, control robots or automate decision-making.
Robots, self-driving cars and other intelligent machines could become better-behaved thanks to a new way to help machine learning designers build AI applications with safeguards against specific, undesirable outcomes such as racial and gender bias. Artificial intelligence has moved into the commercial mainstream thanks to the growing prowess of machine learning algorithms that enable computers to train themselves to do things like drive cars, control robots or automate decision-making.
Trash Talk Hurts, Even When It Comes From a Robot
Trash talking has a long and colorful history of flustering game opponents, and now researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have demonstrated that discouraging words can be perturbing even when uttered by a robot. The trash talk in the study was decidedly mild, with utterances such as "I have to say you are a terrible player," and "Over the course of the game your playing has become confused." Even so, people who played a game with the robot - a commercially available humanoid robot known as Pepper - performed worse when the robot discouraged them and better when the robot encouraged them.
Trash talking has a long and colorful history of flustering game opponents, and now researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have demonstrated that discouraging words can be perturbing even when uttered by a robot. The trash talk in the study was decidedly mild, with utterances such as "I have to say you are a terrible player," and "Over the course of the game your playing has become confused." Even so, people who played a game with the robot - a commercially available humanoid robot known as Pepper - performed worse when the robot discouraged them and better when the robot encouraged them.
Bees "Surf" Atop Water
Walking on Caltech's campus, research engineer Chris Roh (MS '13, PhD '17) happened to see a bee stuck in the water of Millikan Pond. Although it was a common-enough sight, it led Roh and his advisor, Mory Gharib (PhD '83), to a discovery about the potentially unique way that bees navigate the interface between water and air.
Walking on Caltech's campus, research engineer Chris Roh (MS '13, PhD '17) happened to see a bee stuck in the water of Millikan Pond. Although it was a common-enough sight, it led Roh and his advisor, Mory Gharib (PhD '83), to a discovery about the potentially unique way that bees navigate the interface between water and air.
Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI and ETH Zurich have developed a micromachine that can perform different actions. First nanomagnets in the components of the microrobots are magnetically programmed and then the various movements are controlled by magnetic fields. Such machines, which are only a few tens of micrometres across, could be used, for example, in the human body to perform small operations.
Rebel robot helps researchers understand human-machine cooperation
In a new twist on human-robot research, computer scientists at the University of Bristol have developed a handheld robot that first predicts then frustrates users by rebelling against their plans, thereby demonstrating an understanding of human intention. In an increasingly technological world, cooperation between humans and machines is an essential aspect of automation.
In a new twist on human-robot research, computer scientists at the University of Bristol have developed a handheld robot that first predicts then frustrates users by rebelling against their plans, thereby demonstrating an understanding of human intention. In an increasingly technological world, cooperation between humans and machines is an essential aspect of automation.
EPFL scientists have developed a deep-learning based motion-capture software that uses multiple camera views to model the movements of a fly in three dimensions. The ultimate aim is to use this knowledge to design fly-like robots. "Just think about what a fly can do," says Professor Pavan Ramdya, whose lab at EPFL's Brain Mind Institute , with the lab of Professor Pascal Fua at EPFL's Institute for Computer Science, led the study.
News in Brief
Transport - Sep 21
Whittle Lab research key for accelerating the development of zero-carbon flight, says Prince of Wales
Whittle Lab research key for accelerating the development of zero-carbon flight, says Prince of Wales
Life Sciences - Sep 21
Discovery of a druggable pocket in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein could stop virus in its tracks
Discovery of a druggable pocket in the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein could stop virus in its tracks
Health - Sep 21
As nation mourns Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a look at advances in pancreatic cancer treatment
As nation mourns Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a look at advances in pancreatic cancer treatment
Career - Sep 21
Lockdown could have lasting effect on survivors of sexual violence and the services that support them, experts argue
Lockdown could have lasting effect on survivors of sexual violence and the services that support them, experts argue
Economics - Sep 21
Oakland County’s economy hit during pandemic, but it’s well-positioned for recovery
Oakland County’s economy hit during pandemic, but it’s well-positioned for recovery
Health - Sep 21
Novartis Kisqali receives the highest rating of any CDK4/6 inhibitor on the ESMO Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale
Novartis Kisqali receives the highest rating of any CDK4/6 inhibitor on the ESMO Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale