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So long, and thanks for all the bots!
Markus Waibel
12 Feb 2013
So, depending on who you ask, Willow Garage is shutting down, pursuing commercial interests, or changing direction. But things are not as dire as some may think: ROS is fine (the OSRF will support it)...
Willow Garage changes direction
Frank Tobe
12 Feb 2013
For many years now Willow Garage has invested in open source and open platform robotics. Their goal has been a reflection of the vision of it's founder (and chief funder) to advance the state of robot...
Willow Garage changing
Andra Keay
12 Feb 2013
One of the most iconic and influential robotics companies has just let staff know that Willow Garage will be making big changes in the next few months:
Willow Garage has decided to enter the world of...
NERVE, New England Robotics Validation and Experimentation Center, opens Feb. 12th
John Payne
11 Feb 2013
NERVE, the New England Robotics Validation and Experimentation Center at UMass Lowell, when it opens tomorrow, will be one of three such facilities in the United States. Incorporating elements of NIST...
MotherboardTV documentary on drones
John Payne
09 Feb 2013
http://youtu.be/kwkxx84wXNo
This video, by MotherboardTV, was posted on YouTube in early December, but, at just over 50,000 views, it hasn't yet reached the audience it deserves.
Not knowing muc...
2012 record year for US robot industry
Frank Tobe
09 Feb 2013
... 25,500 robots were sold in the US in 2012; $1.66 billion in revenue. This is a 17% year-over-year increase in units and 27% in dollars.
... Robotics Industry Association (RIA) estimates that 225,...
Open source vet simulation center
Frank Tobe
08 Feb 2013
... Dental students have robotic simulators, med students and surgeons have theirs too, and now Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine has one. They have a simulation center with tw...
Preparing a workforce for advanced manufacturing | NSF Science Nation
John Payne
07 Feb 2013
http://youtu.be/NzaBeY8-Iqs
In this video NSF SCience Nation looks at the US National Science Foundation's Advanced Technological Education program, and its efforts to create a workforce of skilled...
iRobot’s stock takes another hit – stock down 12%
Frank Tobe
07 Feb 2013
... iRobot’s stock (IRBT:NASDAQ) has suffered once again from not meeting analyst expectations. The stock is down 12% on news that expectations for 2013 show continuing downward pressure on thei...
RobotsLab launches BOX at TCEA 2013
Andra Keay
06 Feb 2013
We all know that robots are the gateway to STEM education, so what's not to love about getting 4 robots in a box, complete with lessons preloaded on a tablet. As both the US and UK undergo core curric...
3’600-strong underwater robot sensor network returns 1’000’000th measurement, has scientists craving for more
Markus Waibel
05 Feb 2013
The Argo project, which has deployed a network of more than 3'600 robots covering all of the world's oceans, has returned it's 1'000'000th measurement....
Samsung launch accelerator and $1.1 billion in funds
Andra Keay
05 Feb 2013
Samsung today offered hope to robot startups with the launch of its new Catalyst Fund, a $100 million commitment to the development of components, subsystems and disruptive technology. This is almost ...
Surrounded by his quadrocopter drones on stage, Raffaello D’Andrea explains feedback control and talks about the coming Machine Revolution
Markus Waibel
04 Feb 2013
During the 20 minute presentation, Raffaello D'Andrea revealed some of the key concepts behind his group's impressive demonstrations of quadrocopters juggling, throwing and catching balls, dancing, an...
February 11th issue of Time to focus on drones
John Payne
03 Feb 2013
Chris Anderson, of DIYDrones, notes in his blog that he has, upon invitation from the editors, submitted an article for the February 11th issue of Time Magazine, which will focus on drones, civilian a...
Desktop PC-sized fully automatic genetic testing device
DigInfo TV
02 Feb 2013
The GeneLEAD from Precision System Science (PSS) is a fully automatic genetic testing device that completely automates the genetic testing process that ordinarily would require manual intervention. Th...
AlwaysInnovating’s MeCam mini video copter available for licensing
John Payne
01 Feb 2013
While not yet a shipping product, AlwaysInnovating's MeCam appears to be close to being so.
Operating under voice command, the MeCam can be set in a mode where it keeps its camera focused on you an...
B9Creator taking post-Kickstarter preorders
John Payne
30 Jan 2013
Following an extremely successful Kickstarter campaign, which brought in more than ten times their original goal, B9Creator has begun accepting preorders for their high-resolution 3D printer kits. The...
ROS on a stick
Andra Keay
29 Jan 2013
One of the exciting announcements at Automate 2013 is also one of the smallest. Gumstix, providers of Linux computers-on-modules (COMs) are offering ROS on a stick. For $45, Gumstix provide a bootable...
Automate and ProMat in Freezing Chicago: A Recap
Frank Tobe
29 Jan 2013
... Automate 2013 held last week in Chicago seemed all about integrating vision capabilities into robotic tasks. The epitome of this was the Industrial Perception robot quickly choosing and grabbing r...
Old and new at Automate 2013
Frank Tobe
29 Jan 2013
Industrial Robots; Robot Arms; Cameras, Scanners and Vision Systems; Collaborative Cage-free Robots; Mobile Robots; Robot Operating Systems; Warehousing and Materials Handling; New Technologies, and J...
UK funding of novel robotics concepts
Wolfgang Heller
28 Jan 2013
The Technology Strategy Board (UK) is to invest up to £1m in feasibility studies to accelerate the development of novel Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS) concepts towards demonstration and explo...
O’Reilly spins off Maker Media
John Payne
28 Jan 2013
I case you missed the news late last week, O’Reilly Media made an important announcement: Maker Media, Inc. has been spun off as its own company. All parties involved are thrilled by this evolution ...
John Markoff distills views regarding robots causing unemployment
John Payne
27 Jan 2013
John Markoff, senior writer for The New York Times, questioned a number of attendees at Automate 2013, regarding the recent 60 Minutes segment and the general concern over an increase in the use of ro...
Record order for KUKA Robotics
Wolfgang Heller
25 Jan 2013
Europe’s largest robot and equipment manufacturer German KUKA Roboter has won two record orders from German carmakers in November 2012.
The first order of 6,000 industrial robots came from Volk...
Innovative cooperation between workers and robots at Mercedes-Benz
Wolfgang Heller
25 Jan 2013
German automotive company Daimler has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with German KUKA AG, a leading systems integrator and robotics manufacturing company. The partnership focuses on huma...
EU-project: Walking like humans
Wolfgang Heller
25 Jan 2013
A consortium coordinated by by the Spanish Council for Scientific Research, CSIC, will develop and demonstrate human-like gait and posture in a controlled compliant biped robot as a result of a combi...
Stäuble pick and place robot at Automate
John Payne
24 Jan 2013
http://youtu.be/JLFKxyxmN9M
“A Stäuble pick and place robot moves at blinding speeds, even when filmed at 240 fps and a Apps engineer, Mark from Adept is one of the few who, with practice, can b...
First autonomous navigation remote presence robot to receive FDA clearance
Wolfgang Heller
24 Jan 2013
Based on the following press release, iRobot, a leader in delivering robotic solutions, announced that the RP-VITA Remote Presence Robot has received 510(k) clearance by the U.S. Food and Drug Adminis...
Patent Watch: Robotic fabricator
Wolfgang Heller
24 Jan 2013
iRobot Corporation and Rayheon BBN Technologies Corp. have filed a US patent entitled "Robotic Fabricator", a completely autonomous all-in-one product fabrication robot that handles manufacturing (inc...
Intuitive Surgical’s stock jumps 9% in one day
Frank Tobe
23 Jan 2013
... 4th quarter earnings were 23% higher than last year’s Q4 and income rose 16%. That’s 15 straight quarters beating analysts expectations. 2012 revenue was $2.178 billion.
... Intuitive...
Roadmap for creating Singooglarity?
Wolfgang Heller
23 Jan 2013
Ray Kurzweil, one of the world's leading inventors, thinkers, and futurists, announced in December 2012 that he will be joining Google as Director of Engineering to work on new projects involving mach...
Print your own InMoov animatronic robot | Gizmag
John Payne
23 Jan 2013
“Now that 3D printing technology is taking off, some truly unique projects are beginning to emerge from all sorts of talented people. Take Gael Langevin, a French sculptor and model marker who has s...
SparkFun’s headlong, patent-free approach to product design | Wired Design
John Payne
23 Jan 2013
“Electronics supplier SparkFun designs dozens of products a year and they haven't patented a single one. It's worked out pretty well so far.”
See full article on wired.com...
New report shows that robots CREATE jobs
Frank Tobe
23 Jan 2013
... At an International Federation of Robotics (IFR) CEO Round Table held at Automate 2013, in Chicago, IFR executives presented a recap of a new research report on the positive impact of industrial r...
Quadrocopter Drones from China
Wolfgang Heller
22 Jan 2013
The market of remote controlled quadrocopter drones is growing fast. The world´s first crash avoiding drone comes from Guangzhou Walkera Technology Co., Ltd. a Chinese manufacturer of R/C model t...
Day 1 at Automate 2013
Frank Tobe
22 Jan 2013
... In keynote, Dr. Henrik Christensen, Director of Robotics, GA Tech, described the technologies, advancements and myriad evidences of dramatic movement in robotics....
