Search Results for: emerging technology

Squishy Robot Uses Explosions to Jump

Soft robotics is a rapidly growing field and one of the latest designs is a squishy robot that can jump around. Spectrum.ieee.org details an innovative soft robot created by a research team at Harvard University that uses explosions to jump in the air. Presented at the IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), in Chicago last week, the soft bot is made from silicon and has three limbs. It has a built-in “explosive actuator” that uses a reaction between butane and oxygen to launch it into the air. The odd looking robot’s legs are pneumatically inflated to control the direction of the jump. It then gets an injection of fuel to a container on its underside. A spark is created to ignite the butane-oxygen mixture, creating a mini explosion. This launches the untethered device 0.6 meter into the air.

Pediatric Robot Surgeon

According to a recent report from NASA, some of their engineers and a team of researchers from The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) have recently developed a robotic surgical arm. Known as KidsArm, the robot has an external positioning system and is roughly the same size as a human arm. The robot will allow surgeons to easily explore surgical sites within a patient’s body and automate specific tasks to make pediatric surgery less invasive.  The arm is still undergoing testing so that its dexterity can be fine-tuned. Potentially, KidsArm could greatly reduce the cost of surgical procedures, as well as improve the precision and consistency of patient interventions.

Bacterial Robotics Create Minute Robots for Tumor Treatment

According to a report from Reuters, Cincinnati-based biotechnology firm Bacterial Robotics is developing a series of miniature medical robots called BactoBots™. Inspired by swarms of bacteria, the BactoBots are designed to destroy cancer cells in cases of cholesteatoma. This is a form of benign cancer which affects the skull, temporal bone and ear. It can cause dizziness, deafness, brain abscess, facial palsy and meningitis. The BactoBots may also have a number of uses in industry, such as cleaning municipal wastewater and assisting with the production of food and beverage production.

The World's First Social Robot

Do you need someone to order you a takeout, remind you that you have an appointment in 10 minutes, or take photographs for you? Then you could use Jibo, the world's first social robot. According to CBS News, the 11-inch-tall bot, created by Cynthia Breazeal, an associate professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has the ability to learn about the people around it, recognize different voices and faces, and interact. You can preorder the Jibo prototype, which is available for $499.

Autonomous Vehicles to Join the Army 

According to a report at Gizmag, the US army is set to deploy a number of unmanned tactical vehicles. The vehicles have already made a test run at the US Department of Energy's Savannah River Site in South Carolina. The convoy of seven different vehicles kept up a pace of over 40 miles per hour. The robotic vehicles utilize two distinct forms of technology. One is known as an "autonomy kit," and utilizes sensors such as Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) technology to construct a map of the geographic location and keep the vehicle on course. The other known as "by-wire drive," is the technology that controls the driving mechanisms. The vehicles should be joining soldiers in the field by 2025.

Touchless Technology for Surgeons

Combine the skills of computer scientists and surgeons and what do you get? The answer is a form of technology that allows medical experts to interact with patients without touching them. According to a report at Physics Org, touchless technology is being implemented in operating theaters for heart surgery. The system relies on the manipulation of live fluoroscopic images of the heart. Surgeons can use the technology, by means of gesture or voice control, to interact within surgical settings, without contact. The system, developed by a team piloted by Dr. Mark Rouncefield and Dr. Gerardo Gonzalez from the School of Computing and Communications at Lancaster University UK, uses Kinect for Windows hardware and the Kinect for Windows Software Development Kit to give surgeons the advantage of a sterile environment while performing an operation. The technology is also being extended to neurosurgery.

3D Retail Shopping Experience Coming to a Lowes Near You?

According to a report at SingularityHub, home improvement retail chain Lowe's is about to step into the future and implement "holorooms" to encourage shoppers to make more in-store purchases. The Star Trek-like technology is comprised of a 20-foot by 20-foot simulator room that combines a number of 3D technologies. If you're planning on remodeling your kitchen, but you’re not sure which way to go, you can enter the holoroom and use an iPad to select the color scheme and products from Lowe's catalogue. A model of the room will appear in the iPad app, which allows you to manipulate them and walk through a floor plan of your desired room via augmented reality.

PowerLoader Exoskeleton for Super Strength

If you've seen the movie Aliens, you are familiar with the exoskeleton suit that Sigourney Weaver dons to fight the predator. A team at Activelink, one of Panasonic's subsidiary companies has developed a PowerLoader exoskeleton suit reminiscent of Hollywood. According to a report from Reuters, the PowerLoader exoskeleton has been dubbed the "Ninja," and is designed to give the user extra strength. This translates as being able to life around 90 kilos (three times its own weight). Strength is added specifically to the arms and legs as the suit is designed for daily use in factories, farms and warehouses where repetitive lifting is a necessity. This suit is an advancement on Activelink's heavier predecessor, which was designed in 2009 specifically for military and disaster relief use.

Google Unveils Driverless Vehicle

Google unveiled the latest version of its driverless car last week at the Code Conference in California. According to Google's website, the unconventional vehicle has no need for any driver controls, such as a steering wheel. The company has spent a number of years equipping conventional cars with special equipment to drive themselves, but this prototype has no human controls other than emergence stop switch. Within the next year, Google aims to build a hundred of these models for further testing on the streets. Google hopes that the introduction of electric-powered, self-driving cars will increase safety and provide a more environmentally friendly mode of transport.

Neurogames on the Way

According to Palmer Luckey, founder of the renowned OculusVR, the future of neurogaming is practically upon us. Neurogames involve a combination of technologies that incorporate the player's nervous system into the game itself. The technology may include items such as EEG headsets, brain wave sensing and eye movement tracking devices and heart rate monitors. Throw virtually augmented reality into the mix, and you have a fully immersive gaming experience previously impossible. Developers of PrioVR just completed a successful Kickstarter campaign to produce a full body tracking suit, which enables a gamer to explore a virtual world.