Researchers at the University of South Carolina (USC) Viterbi School of Engineering have designed a robot able to outperform humans in identifying a wide range of natural materials simply by sensing their textures. Named BioTac, the sensing technology could enable robots to ‘feel’ the objects they are interacting with, and it could eventually enable advancements… »

Japan has a growing number of elderly in need of nursing care and an urgent need for new approaches used to assist care-giving personnel. Researchers at RIKEN and Tokai Rubber Industries (TRI) are developing a robot which performs one of the most exhausting tasks for such personnel – lifting a patient from a futon at… »