Robohub.org
 

RoboBusiness Summit: Workshops feature experts in manufacturing, assistive robotics


by
23 October 2012



share this:

Robots In DC made the trip from Washington and we’re ready to kick off our coverage of the unique and exciting RoboBusiness event, which is bringing together leaders from robotics businesses, research & development, and investment. As the official festivities kick off here on Tuesday, Monday’s sessions brought together researchers, business owners, and engineers developing cutting-edge robots for quality of life technology as well as manufacturing. In fact, we also saw the first public demonstration of Baxter, the inexpensive manufacturing robot from Rethink Robotics, which garnered quite a bit of mainstream press coverage when it debuted back in September.

The new robot targets the thousands of small manufacturers that rely on simple, repetitive tasks in their assembly line. Baxter aims to augment the tasks human workers perform in product assembly and packaging. As Chairman and CTO Rodney Brooks discussed the company’s and product’s philosophy and features, product manager Mike Bugda removed a white sheet to unveil the red and gray robot with two (right) arms and a moving LCD screen with varying facial expressions.

In the Quality of Life Technology (QoLT) symposium, researchers from Carnegie Mellon, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, University of Texas at Arlington, Denmark, and Sweden discussed robotic technologies in the areas of assistive care, rehabilitation, therapy, and activities of daily life assistance. We’ll have a longer write-up later in the week, but here are some talking points:

  • The QoLT center at CMU has produced 10 technologies, with several entering commercialization: VibeAttire, FPV/Whozat, SleepMedia, Distant Architect, Virtual Valet, Romibo, MemExerciser, PT Coach, Health Kiosk, Ergonomic Lift Chair
  • Robotdalen in Sweden is partnering between academia, industry, and the public to accelerate prototype commercialization, which has proven very successful. One demonstrated product was a robotic sleeve that helps individuals with weak grips by augmenting them.
  • Similarly, in Denmark, academic-industry partnerships are helping get robots into homes and assistive care centers. An assistive device for eating is changing the lives of hundreds of people (and going for a modest $4,000), and the Paro robot, imported from Japan, has been hugely successful in care centers to help improve positive emotions.
Of course, there’s more to come! Stay tuned here and at Robots In DC for continued coverage.


tags:


David Pietrocola is a robotics engineer and CEO of Lifebotics LLC. He writes regularly on robotics policy, news, and events.
David Pietrocola is a robotics engineer and CEO of Lifebotics LLC. He writes regularly on robotics policy, news, and events.





Related posts :



Robot Talk Episode 119 – Robotics for small manufacturers, with Will Kinghorn

  02 May 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Will Kinghorn from Made Smarter about how to increase adoption of new tech by small manufacturers.

Multi-agent path finding in continuous environments

  01 May 2025
How can a group of agents minimise their journey length whilst avoiding collisions?

Interview with Yuki Mitsufuji: Improving AI image generation

  29 Apr 2025
Find out about two pieces of research tackling different aspects of image generation.

Robot Talk Episode 118 – Soft robotics and electronic skin, with Miranda Lowther

  25 Apr 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Miranda Lowther from the University of Bristol about soft, sensitive electronic skin for prosthetic limbs.

Interview with Amina Mević: Machine learning applied to semiconductor manufacturing

  17 Apr 2025
Find out how Amina is using machine learning to develop an explainable multi-output virtual metrology system.

Robot Talk Episode 117 – Robots in orbit, with Jeremy Hadall

  11 Apr 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Jeremy Hadall from the Satellite Applications Catapult about robotic systems for in-orbit servicing, assembly, and manufacturing.

Robot Talk Episode 116 – Evolved behaviour for robot teams, with Tanja Kaiser

  04 Apr 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Tanja Katharina Kaiser from the University of Technology Nuremberg about how applying evolutionary principles can help robot teams make better decisions.

AI can be a powerful tool for scientists. But it can also fuel research misconduct

  31 Mar 2025
While AI is allowing scientists to make technological breakthroughs, there’s also a darker side to the use of AI in science: scientific misconduct is on the rise.



 

Robohub is supported by:




Would you like to learn how to tell impactful stories about your robot or AI system?


scicomm
training the next generation of science communicators in robotics & AI


©2025.05 - Association for the Understanding of Artificial Intelligence


 












©2025.05 - Association for the Understanding of Artificial Intelligence