Walking robot tested in Finnish repository : Corporate

The ANYmal robot walks through Onkalo's underground tunnels (Image: Tapani Karjanlahti / Posiva)

A four-legged robot designed for autonomous operation in challenging environments has been put through its paces at a depth of more than 400 metres in the tunnels of the Onkalo underground used nuclear fuel repository near Olkiluoto, Finland.

A research team led by the Swiss robotics company ANYbotics visited Olkiluoto in June to test the functionality of its ANYmal robot in underground facilities. The test was organised by Euratom - the European Atomic Energy Community - together with Finnish radioactive waste management company Posiva Oy.

‍The ANYmal robot has been under development for many years. The roots of the ANYbotics company go back to the Swiss Institute of Technology, EHT. A group of researchers from the educational institution built the first four-legged robot back in 2009, and ANYbotics was founded for the commercialisation of this technology in 2016.

The ANYmal robot uses laser sensors and cameras to observe the environment and can locate its own position very precisely. By combining observation data with location data - such as a map or area scan data - it can plan its navigation route independently when necessary.

Posiva said Onkalo offered a unique framework for the robot to move, noting that there are tunnels in other parts of the world, but no other underground disposal facility has yet been built.

During the test, the robot - measuring 93cm in length, 53cm in width and 89cm in height and weighing about 50kg - travelled through the tunnels of Onkalo for about 1.5 hours. With a fully-charged battery, the robot can operate for up to 2 hours. The purpose was to test how far the robot can travel in Onkalo conditions with one charge, and whether there are any terrains in the tunnel where the robot would not be able to advance.

For the test, the robot first "walked" the planned route by remote control, and scanned the map into its internal system. In the test itself, the robot moved along the scanned route autonomously, although all the time in the line of sight with the research team. It was also available for remote control at any moment, for example in case of danger. Various safety functions were programmed into the robot. For example, it went around the obstacles on the route from a certain safety distance and stopped when something came into its safety area.

Authorities are interested in the use of robots for the reason that a robot can reach places that are inaccessible to humans, for example for nuclear material protection inspection work. Carrying out nuclear safeguards with the help of a robot is also of interest to Posiva, the company said. Robots can also be used in rescue operations and industry. They can be equipped with different devices for different tasks, such as optical and thermal cameras, microphones, gas or radiation detectors.

A video of the ANYmal robot in Onkalo can be found here.Researched and written by World Nuclear News  Source: - World Nuclear News

Read More........→October 30, 2023

Boston Dynamics robots dance to show off their agility

Boston Dynamics has released a new video of its entire range of robots, including Atlas, Spot, and Handle, dancing in unison to show off their versatility, and perhaps to celebrate Hyundai’s newfound interests in the MIT spinoff.

Massachusetts-based Boston Dynamics has thrown up an impressive and unnerving range of robots of varying shapes dancing to the tune of the Motown classic “Do You Love Me.”

The whole gang has hit the dance floor, including the humanoid Atlas first shaking its leg and then joined by Spot the quadruped mobile robot designed for sensing, inspection, and remote operation; Handle, the mobile manipulation robot for moving boxes in the warehouse; Pick, the vision processing solution that uses deep-learning to enable building and depalletising of mixed-SKU pallets, all dancing to the tune in an electrifying dance.

The world’s most dynamic humanoid robot, Atlas is a research platform designed to push the limits of whole-body mobility. Atlas’s advanced control system and state-of-the-art hardware give the robot the power and balance to demonstrate human-level agility.

Atlas has one of the world’s most compact mobile hydraulic systems. Custom motors, valves, and a compact hydraulic power unit enable Atlas to deliver high power to any of its 28 hydraulic joints for impressive feats of mobility.

Boston Dynamics dance video of the robots is meant to tell the world that the humanoids and the quadrupeds are as agile as living creatures and are capable of doing things that are now seen impossible.

Robots already operate in places where ordinary humans find it difficult to function. The bots are deployed to sniff out bombs, patrol oil rigs, monitor Covid-19 patients.

The moves are a bit janky at times, but the mobility and coordination of their routine is impressively fluid for lumps of metal and plastic.Boston Dynamics said it got the gang together to celebrate the start of what is a happier year, it has not disclosed the power behind the robotic dance show. Source:https://www.domain-b.com

Read More........→January 06, 2021

Realistic masks made in Japan

Super-realistic face masks made by a tiny company in rural Japan are in demand from the domestic tech and entertainment industries and from countries as far away as Saudi Arabia.

The 300,000-yen ($2,650) masks, made of resin and plastic by five employees at REAL-f Co., attempt to accurately duplicate an individual’s face down to fine wrinkles and skin texture.

Company founder Osamu Kitagawa came up with the idea while working at a printing machine manufacturer.

But it took him two years of experimentation before he found a way to use three-dimensional facial data from high quality photographs to make the masks, and started selling them in 2011.

The company, based in the western prefecture of Shiga, receives about 100 orders every year from entertainment, automobile, technology and security companies, mainly in Japan.

For example, a Japanese car company ordered a mask of a sleeping face to improve its facial recognition technology to detect if a driver had dozed off, Kitagawa said.

“I am proud that my product is helping further development of facial recognition technology,” he added.

“I hope that the developers would enhance face identification accuracy using these realistic masks.”

Kitagawa, 60, said he had also received orders from organizations linked to the Saudi government to create masks for the king and princes.

“I was told the masks were for portraits to be displayed in public areas,” he said.

Kitagawa said he works with clients carefully to ensure his products will not be used for illicit purposes and cause security risks, but added he could not rule out such threats.

He said his goal was to create 100 percent realistic masks, and he hoped to use softer materials, such as silicon, in future.

“I would like these masks to be used for medical purposes, which is possible once they can be made using soft materials,” he said.“And as humanoid robots are being developed, I hope this will help developers to create (more realistic robots) at a low cost.” Source: https://www.daily-bangladesh.com

Read More........→December 18, 2020