New Horizons completes marathon Pluto data transfer

NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) has received the final piece of data collected by the agency's New Horizons probe during its encounter with the dwarf planet Pluto, which took place on July 14, 2015. Data from the New Horizons mission has revolutionized our understanding of Pluto, revealing the...

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NTU Singapore automates spray painting with PictoBot.

A new NTU robot will soon be spray-painting the interiors of industrial buildings in Singapore, saving time and manpower while improving safety. Known as PictoBot, the robot is invented by scientists from Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore) and co-developed with JTC Corporation (JTC)...

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Thumb-steered drone leaves you with a free hand

The shapes and sizes of drones have changed a lot in recent times, but most serious quadcopters are still controlled by way of a dual-joystick controller (autonomous flyers notwithstanding). A new crowdfunding campaign is coming at it from a different angle, by developing a drone that can be flown...

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Wiring the brain with artificial senses and limb control

There have been significant advances in developing new prostheses with a simple sense of touch, but researchers are looking to go further. Scientists and engineers are working on a way to provide prosthetic users and those suffering from spinal cord injuries with the ability to both feel and control...

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Drone receives wireless power, on the fly

Given that the battery life of most multicopter drones typically doesn't exceed 30 minutes of flight time per charge, there are many tasks that they simply can't perform. Feeding them power through a hard-wired tether is one option, although that only works for applications where they're hovering...

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Roving robots roam your clothes

If you don't like the thought of bugs crawling all over you, then you might not like one possible direction in which the field of wearable electronics is heading. Researchers from MIT and Stanford University recently showcased their new Rovables robots, which are tiny devices that roam up and...

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CubeSats could soon be zooming around space under their own power

Rubik's-cube-sized CubeSats are a nifty, cheap way for scientists to put a research vessel into space, but they're limited to orbiting where they're launched – until now. Los Alamos researchers have created and tested a safe and innovative rocket motor concept that could soon see CubeSats zooming...

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Harvard researchers 3D print a heart-on-a-chip

Microphysiological systems, or organs-on-chips, are emerging as a way for scientists to study the effect that drugs, cosmetics and diseases may have on the human body, without needing to test on animals. The problem is, manufacturing and retrieving data from them can be a costly and time-consuming...

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Unmanned Warrior puts the future of marine warfare to the test

What will the Royal Navy look like in 2036? This month's Unmanned Warrior 2016 exercise taking place off the West Coast of Scotland might provide some of the answers. The Navy's first ever large scale demonstration of marine robotic systems not only showcases new technology, but tests the ability...

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Autonomous tricycles could form the basis of urban taxi systems

Self-driving cars, trucks and buses might get the bulk of the headlines, but a team at the University of Washington Bothell (UWB) is developing a smaller kind of autonomous vehicle. With the aim of providing a relatively inexpensive alternative to owning an autonomous car, the team is creating...

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Robotic arm gives quadriplegic man a new sense of touch

In 2012, quadriplegic Jan Scheuermann used her own thoughts to control a robotic arm and feed herself a chocolate bar thanks to a system developed by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). Now, the same team has recreated the physical...

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Robotic ALIAS puts Cessna Caravan through basic maneuvers

The ALIAS system, developed by DARPA, could cut down on crew requirements in military and civilian small aircraft by taking control with a robotic arm. Although it's still a ways off production, the system has been successfully demonstrated on a Cessna Caravan aircraft. As aircraft have become...

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Autonomous robot takes the hard work out of yard work

Gardens can be a double-edged sword: when they're thriving, so is the work required to keep them in shape. A new autonomous robot helper by the name of Kobi, however, can take the edge off by mowing the lawn, collecting leaves and clearing snow for you. Of course, robotic lawnmowers have been...

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Drone-delivered blood takes flight in Rwanda

What is claimed to be the world's first national drone delivery service has launched in Rwanda. Operated by US robotics firm Zipline in partnership with the Rwandan government, the service makes emergency deliveries of blood from a distribution hub to transfusion facilities up to 75 km (47 mi)...

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Simple gadget puts bikes on cars' radar

In the near future, we're going to see an increasing number of Collision Avoidance System-equipped cars on the roads. Stated simply, the technology uses an integrated forward-looking radar system to alert drivers when they're rapidly approaching obstacles such as other vehicles. If those other...

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Smartwatch control may be all in the wrist

While smartwatches may indeed be designed for ease of use, utilizing their touchscreen controls does require the user to have the hand of their opposite arm free. What happens if that hand is otherwise occupied? Well, voice control is one option, but researchers from Dartmouth University are developing...

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