This isn’t eerie at all: Geminoid DK, in conjunction with Professor Henrik Scharfe of Aalborg University in Denmark, has created a robotic version of the associate professor that looks identical to him, Time reports. If it weren’t enough that the robot looked exactly like Scharfe, it also mimics the professor’s shrugs and facial expressions. The Japanese firm focuses on creating lifelike machine versions of real people and has had success making people look twice at machines like this one, which strikes an uncanny resemblance to robotics professor and creator Hiroshi Ishiguro. This device in particular will be sent back to Denmark where it will be used to study human interactions with robots in different cultural contexts, Fast Company reports…
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Robotics breakthrough: Scientists make artificial skin
Biotech wizards have engineered electronic skin that can sense touch, in a major step towards next-generation robotics and prosthetic limbs, AFP reports. The lab-tested material responds to almost the same pressures as human skin and with the same speed, they reported in the British journal Nature Materials. Important hurdles remain, but the exploit is an advance towards replacing today’s clumsy robots and artificial arms with smarter, touch-sensitive upgrades, they believe. “Humans generally know how to hold a fragile egg without breaking it,” said Ali Javey, an associate professor of computer sciences at the University of California at Berkeley, who led one of the research teams. “If we ever wanted a robot that could unload the dishes, for instance, we’d want to make sure it doesn’t break the wine glasses in the process. But we’d also want the robot to grip the stock pot without dropping it.” The “e-skin” made by Javey’s team comprises a matrix of nanowires made of germanium and silicon rolled onto a sticky polyimide film. The team then laid nano-scale transistors on top, followed by a flexible, pressure-sensitive rubber. The prototype, measuring 7.6 square inches, can detect pressure ranging from 0 to 15 kilopascals, comparable to the force used for such daily activities as typing on a keyboard or holding an object…
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