robotics
Wired for War
stoolpigeon writes “The US Army’s Future Combat Systems program calls for one third of their fighting strength to be robots by 2015. The American pilots seeing the most combat in Iraq and Afghanistan right now do so from flight consoles in the United States, and they are controlling Predator unmanned vehicles. Every branch of the US military has aggressive robotics programs in place. This is not anything unusual. Other nations are also developing and purchasing robotic systems designed to be used in combat. Advances in communications, software and hardware make it inevitable that robotics will have a profound effect on conflict in the future. The development of these systems has been rapid, and while technology hurtles forward, culture and understanding seem to lag behind. Similar to the way our legal codes are playing catch up with new technologies, combat-enabled robots raise questions and issues that did not even exist a short time ago. Wired for War by Dr. P. W. Singer is an excellent opportunity for anyone interested to dive into just what is going on all over the world with regards to robotics and their use by the military.” Read below for the rest of JR’s review.
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From the Palm Pilot to the Palm Pre – The History of Palm
From the first Palm Pilot onward, Palm, Inc. has been up, down, and sideways. Bouncing around between U.S. Robotics, 3Com, Handspring, and other offshoots before finally coalescing into Palm, Inc. as it stands today.
Photos: DIY bringing robotics to the masses
At this weekend’s Maker Faire, do-it-yourself robots will be one of the biggest attractions. The hobby has grown into the mainstream.
Photos: Robots on campus
A look at some of the coolest and weirdest robotics projects to come out of universities’ R&D programs over the years.
Robot Warfare Going Open Source
destinyland writes “Peter Singer, author of the new book Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century, says ‘You can build your own version of the Raven drone, which is a widely used military drone, for about ,000.’ Singer argues that ‘just like software, warfare is going open source.’ He warns that, ultimately, robot warfare may even expand beyond the military using more DIY and off-the-shelf systems. In addition to 43 countries now working on military robots, there are ‘non-state actors ranging from Hezbollah to this militia group in Arizona to a bunch of college kids at Swarthmore… One person’s hobby — such as the hobbyist who flew a homemade drone from North America to Great Britain — can be another person’s terrorist strike option.’”
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Soccerbots Learn How To Fall Gracefully
wjousts writes “Up until now, most work with humanoid robotics has focused on keeping them upright and balanced, but in the real world, falling down is inevitable. So now researcher in Chile are looking at teaching their Soccerbots how to fall down gracefully to minimize damage and allow for a quick recovery. According to a New Scientist article, ‘They found that one of the main ways to minimise damage is for the robot to fold its legs underneath it. Among other things, that means the robot is much less likely to hit its head on the ground. Another good strategy is to use a fall sequence consisting of several movements, so the falling body has several points of contact with the ground, spreading the energy of the impact over a large number of joints, rather than taking it all in one disastrous crunch.’”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Robots May Build Lunar Outpost
Robots the size of riding lawn mowers could be used to start building a lunar outpost before humans make their next trip to the moon, according to a study by researchers at Astrobotic Technology Inc. and Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute
Child-like robots only a few years away
The iCub robot, modelled on a human child, made its first appearance in Britain this week – the latest result of cutting edge robotics research funded by the European Commission
Robotic Smart Buildings Under Development
The Small Robotics Building project utilizing smart infrastructure technology and robotics, the companies are creating an automated living environment that can handle such duties as reception, deliveries, cleaning, and security, without the need for human intervention
