Robotics

The world of robots; the origin of robots; three components responsible for the advancements in robot design; how behavioral autonomy is essential to the development of modern robotics.

How robots actually work; deconstructing a Roomba to learn the five functional categories of parts all robots need; exploring a universal lesson about robotics; how trade-offs in robot design work.

Investigating robot actuators; the motors and transmissions that underlie all robotic movement; the early use of springs as motors in automata; how electricity spins the magnets that make motors move; how movement defines a robot.

Intelligent behavior in robots is rooted in the sensors that determine how much robots know about the world around them; how sensors work to communicate across the electromagnetic spectrum such as through infrared and visible light.

How a remotely controlled machine is turned into an autonomous robot; self-control in robots; robot controllers; the part of robots that uses sensory information to decide how the robot should achieve its immediate and long-term goals.

The most important problem mobile robots must solve is how to navigate, or move with purpose; how simultaneous localization and mapping is the key to a robot's autonomy in both structured and exploratory situations.

An approach to creating robots that is inspired not by maps but by the behavior of animals; the benefits of behavior-based robotic architecture; how simple animals including ants have inspired roboticists to build fascinating inventions.

How to build a robot; working with tools like multimeters and solid-core wires; how to perform tasks including stripping wire and building circuits; and how to hack into existing robots to perform tasks they are not intended to do.

The actual design and construction of more complex robots for research or business; the iterative decision-making process used by robotics engineers; intriguing robots including Madeline, the first transphibian vehicle, and RayBot.

Robots that take out the trash and put away books; how robots are designed to perform specific tasks; the choices roboticists must consider; the stability of the workplace and the minute steps of the task itself.

Robots help manufacture cars, medicines and other everyday materials; variations on the robotic arm; early prototypes of pick-and-place robots; consider the trade-offs between range and control of motion; industrial robotics.

Advancements in modern robotics have made robots useful, safe, reliable and affordable; vacuum cleaners like Roomba, gutter cleaners like Looj, and lawn mowers like MowBot; how robots adjust to tasks.

Hospital robots have designs and functions meant to tackle the complexity of the modern medical workplace; how robots like HelpMate and Da Vinci work in patient wards, surgical theaters, and other settings; the burgeoning field of neuroprosthetics.

How robotic cars handle different situations; the trade-offs between speed and safety in creating self-driving vehicles; the future of getting from one place to another.

Aerial robots; the autopilot features in commercial airplanes; unmanned drones that can deliver packages; the role of gyroscopic sensors; recent technological advancements that are extending the functionality and power of flying robots.

Some of the most exciting robots on the planet are found underwater; roboticists have developed unique solutions to creating autonomous underwater vehicles, overcoming critical challenges involving sensors, power supply and design.

Space missions redefine the limits of autonomous robots; the Robonaut 2 is a humanoid robot working on the International Space Station; the rovers Spirit and Opportunity are furthering human understanding of the complex geography of Mars.

Semi-autonomous military robots and the need to oversee their safety and control; the Predator unmanned aerial system; the Phalanx weapons system; the trade-offs involved in the speed and accuracy of action; distinguishing friend from foe.

Walking and running robots, whether they move on four legs or two, offer some of the most extreme physical challenges; the advantages of legged robots; how robots with legs balance themselves and move around in different environments.

A huge challenge in robotics is getting robots to work as a team to do things they cannot do alone; swarm robots are simple, similar mobile robots that combine to generate complex behaviors, an area of robotics that has vast potential.

Robots are starting to perform the core features of life; living robots; robots that harvest energy; robots that grow by building and improving themselves; robots that design themselves autonomously.

The world of social robotics; robots are built specifically to communicate with humans and other autonomous physical agents; how simple signals like words, expression and body language can create a dynamic user interface between human and robot.

Robots are becoming just like humans; examining recent developments in artificial intelligence; robot bipedalism and dexterity; the uncanny valley; three imitation games that determine where we stand with humanoid robots.

Robotics is a multidisciplinary field; it has multiple futures; companion robots can coordinate activities; surgical robots can work autonomously using updates from a robotic cloud system.