Aiming to solve the steering instability and hysteresis of agricultural robots in the process of movement,a fusion PID control method of particle swarm optimization(PSO)and genetic algorithm(GA)was proposed.The fusion...Aiming to solve the steering instability and hysteresis of agricultural robots in the process of movement,a fusion PID control method of particle swarm optimization(PSO)and genetic algorithm(GA)was proposed.The fusion algorithm took advantage of the fast optimization ability of PSO to optimize the population screening link of GA.The Simulink simulation results showed that the convergence of the fitness function of the fusion algorithm was accelerated,the system response adjustment time was reduced,and the overshoot was almost zero.Then the algorithm was applied to the steering test of agricultural robot in various scenes.After modeling the steering system of agricultural robot,the steering test results in the unloaded suspended state showed that the PID control based on fusion algorithm reduced the rise time,response adjustment time and overshoot of the system,and improved the response speed and stability of the system,compared with the artificial trial and error PID control and the PID control based on GA.The actual road steering test results showed that the PID control response rise time based on the fusion algorithm was the shortest,about 4.43 s.When the target pulse number was set to 100,the actual mean value in the steady-state regulation stage was about 102.9,which was the closest to the target value among the three control methods,and the overshoot was reduced at the same time.The steering test results under various scene states showed that the PID control based on the proposed fusion algorithm had good anti-interference ability,it can adapt to the changes of environment and load and improve the performance of the control system.It was effective in the steering control of agricultural robot.This method can provide a reference for the precise steering control of other robots.展开更多
The Chinese SME’s vision shows the bright side of humanoid robots:rather than replacing human workers,they are handling everyday mechanical tasks,leaving human staff to focus on improving service and emotional experi...The Chinese SME’s vision shows the bright side of humanoid robots:rather than replacing human workers,they are handling everyday mechanical tasks,leaving human staff to focus on improving service and emotional experiences.IN the Jinqiao Economic and Technological Development Zone in Pudong New Area,Shanghai,KEENON Robotics,a national-level“Little Giant”(innovative SME),is leading the transformation of the service robots industry.Amid the wave of embodied intelligence development,the humanoid service robots created by this company have become a focal point of the industry and businesses alike.展开更多
With the progress of Industry 4.0,collaborative robots(cobots) have become a key area of innovation.However,safety standards such as ISO/TS 15066 often lag behind rapid technological advances,failing to balance safety...With the progress of Industry 4.0,collaborative robots(cobots) have become a key area of innovation.However,safety standards such as ISO/TS 15066 often lag behind rapid technological advances,failing to balance safety and innovation.This paper analyzes the conflicts between standards and innovation of industrial cobots,including lag,rigidity,and safetyperformance trade-offs.It proposes flexible standards,regulatory sandboxes,and lifecycle safety approaches to align safety with technological progress.展开更多
Single-cell biomechanics and electrophysiology measuring tools have transformed biological research over the last few decades,which enabling a comprehensive and nuanced understanding of cellular behavior and function....Single-cell biomechanics and electrophysiology measuring tools have transformed biological research over the last few decades,which enabling a comprehensive and nuanced understanding of cellular behavior and function.Despite their high-quality information content,these single-cell measuring techniques suffer from laborious manual processing by highly skilled workers and extremely low throughput(tens of cells per day).Recently,numerous researchers have automated the measurement of cell mechanical and electrical signals through robotic localization and control processes.While these efforts have demonstrated promising progress,critical challenges persist,including human dependency,learning complexity,in-situ measurement,and multidimensional signal acquisition.To identify key limitations and highlight emerging opportunities for innovation,in this review,we comprehensively summarize the key steps of robotic technologies in single-cell biomechanics and electrophysiology.We also discussed the prospects and challenges of robotics and automation in biological research.By bridging gaps between engineering,biology,and data science,this work aims to stimulate interdisciplinary research and accelerate the translation of robotic single-cell technologies into practical applications in the life sciences and medical fields.展开更多
Human life is invaluable,and timely efforts are crucial to rescue individuals trapped under debris following an earthquake.To identify opportunities for improving post-earthquake search and rescue(SAR)robotics,we get ...Human life is invaluable,and timely efforts are crucial to rescue individuals trapped under debris following an earthquake.To identify opportunities for improving post-earthquake search and rescue(SAR)robotics,we get insights through four different sources:(i)A literature review of disaster robotics and victim psychology,(ii)A public survey on earthquake awareness and their view of rescue robots,(iii)Semi-structured interviews with first responders,and(iv)Responses from GenAI chatbots which were prompted to assume the role of expert rescuers.The triangulated analysis show that there are challenges in mobility,autonomy,communication,situational awareness,and human-robot collaboration.The public respondents showed high acceptance of robot-assisted rescue and prioritised survivor detection,sensing,and communication as essential functionalities of robots.The experts expressed limitations in current equipment,the need for improved victim localisation,and interest in XR-based training and robot-assisted debris handling.The GenAI chatbots highlighted structural risk assessment,multi-sensor fusion,and supervised autonomy.Therefore,this study identifies critical robot features,outlines multi-modal interaction requirements,and highlights gaps in current SAR practice.These findings offer robot design directions for developing effective,trustworthy SAR robots,which can be integrated to future response disaster-workflows.展开更多
This paper presents an intelligent patrol and security robot integrating 2D LiDAR and RGB-D vision sensors to achieve semantic simultaneous localization and mapping(SLAM),real-time object recognition,and dynamic obsta...This paper presents an intelligent patrol and security robot integrating 2D LiDAR and RGB-D vision sensors to achieve semantic simultaneous localization and mapping(SLAM),real-time object recognition,and dynamic obstacle avoidance.The system employs the YOLOv7 deep-learning framework for semantic detection and SLAM for localization and mapping,fusing geometric and visual data to build a high-fidelity 2D semantic map.This map enables the robot to identify and project object information for improved situational awareness.Experimental results show that object recognition reached 95.4%mAP@0.5.Semantic completeness increased from 68.7%(single view)to 94.1%(multi-view)with an average position error of 3.1 cm.During navigation,the robot achieved 98.0%reliability,avoided moving obstacles in 90.0%of encounters,and replanned paths in 0.42 s on average.The integration of LiDAR-based SLAMwith deep-learning–driven semantic perception establishes a robust foundation for intelligent,adaptive,and safe robotic navigation in dynamic environments.展开更多
Protective hardware is essential for mitigating damage caused by unavoidable falls in humanoid robots.Despite notable progress in fall protection hardware,the theoretical foundation for modeling and the feasibility of...Protective hardware is essential for mitigating damage caused by unavoidable falls in humanoid robots.Despite notable progress in fall protection hardware,the theoretical foundation for modeling and the feasibility of conducting full-scale fall experiments on robots or their surrogates remain somewhat limited.This paper proposes a method for optimizing the thickness of Expandable Polyethylene(EPE),which is used as back protection for the Chubao humanoid robot,based on small-scale impact test data to predict full-scale behavior.The optimal thickness is defined as a balance between compact design and protective effectiveness.An equivalent impact model characterized by four parameters:contact area S,mass m,fall height h,and cushioning material thickness d is introduced to describe impact conditions.The relationship between the peak impact acceleration ap and material thickness d,which forms the core of the method and gives rise to the name AP-D,is analyzed through their plotted curves.After introducing three characteristic parameters and two correction fac-tors,the relationship among the aforementioned variables is derived.Subsequently,both the optimal thickness do and its corresponding peak impact acceleration aop are predicted via nonlinear and linear regression models.Finally,the accuracy and effectiveness of the theoretically derived optimal thickness are validated on both a dummy and the actual robot.With the cushioning material applied,the peak chest acceleration is reduced to 41.57g for the dummy and 32.08g for the robot.展开更多
Deep learning has become integral to robotics,particularly in tasks such as robotic grasping,where objects often exhibit diverse shapes,textures,and physical properties.In robotic grasping tasks,due to the diverse cha...Deep learning has become integral to robotics,particularly in tasks such as robotic grasping,where objects often exhibit diverse shapes,textures,and physical properties.In robotic grasping tasks,due to the diverse characteristics of the targets,frequent adjustments to the network architecture and parameters are required to avoid a decrease in model accuracy,which presents a significant challenge for non-experts.Neural Architecture Search(NAS)provides a compelling method through the automated generation of network architectures,enabling the discovery of models that achieve high accuracy through efficient search algorithms.Compared to manually designed networks,NAS methods can significantly reduce design costs,time expenditure,and improve model performance.However,such methods often involve complex topological connections,and these redundant structures can severely reduce computational efficiency.To overcome this challenge,this work puts forward a robotic grasp detection framework founded on NAS.The method automatically designs a lightweight network with high accuracy and low topological complexity,effectively adapting to the target object to generate the optimal grasp pose,thereby significantly improving the success rate of robotic grasping.Additionally,we use Class Activation Mapping(CAM)as an interpretability tool,which captures sensitive information during the perception process through visualized results.The searched model achieved competitive,and in some cases superior,performance on the Cornell and Jacquard public datasets,achieving accuracies of 98.3%and 96.8%,respectively,while sustaining a detection speed of 89 frames per second with only 0.41 million parameters.To further validate its effectiveness beyond benchmark evaluations,we conducted real-world grasping experiments on a UR5 robotic arm,where the model demonstrated reliable performance across diverse objects and high grasp success rates,thereby confirming its practical applicability in robotic manipulation tasks.展开更多
The main cable is the primary load-bearing component of a suspension bridge,continuously exposed to harsh environmental conditions,such as wind and rain,throughout the year.These adverse conditions contribute to varyi...The main cable is the primary load-bearing component of a suspension bridge,continuously exposed to harsh environmental conditions,such as wind and rain,throughout the year.These adverse conditions contribute to varying degrees of degradation and damage to the main cable,necessitating regular inspections to prevent catastrophic failures.Traditional manual inspection methods not only suffer from low efficiency but also pose significant safety risks to personnel.To address these challenges and ensure the safe and effective inspection of suspension bridge main cables,this study introduces a novel cooperative climbing robot,designated as Main Cable Robot Version II(CCRobot-M-II),inspired by the locomotion of the inchworm.The robot employs an alternating opening and closing mechanism of four gripper sets,mimicking the inchworm's movement to achieve efficient crawling along the suspension bridge handrails.This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the structural design,key components,and motion mechanisms of CCRobot-M-II.A detailed force analysis of the robot's crawling process is also presented,followed by the design of the control system and the development of an efficient motion control algorithm.Laboratory experiments demonstrate that the robot achieves a positional error of 00.64%during crawling,with a maximum average crawling speed of 7.6 m/min.Furthermore,the biomimetic design enables the robot to overcome obstacles up to 30 mm in height and possess the capability to handle suspension bridge cables with spans ranging from 740 to 1100 mm.Finally,CCRobot-M-II successfully conducted an inspection of the main cable on a suspension bridge,marking the world's first successful deployment of a climbing robot for main cable inspection on a suspension bridge.展开更多
Parallel machining robot is a new type of robotized equipment for high-efficiency machining structural com-ponents with complex geometries.Terminal rigidity is of great importance index for such type of equipment,whic...Parallel machining robot is a new type of robotized equipment for high-efficiency machining structural com-ponents with complex geometries.Terminal rigidity is of great importance index for such type of equipment,which affects their load capacity and working accuracy.Before a parallel machining robot can be used for heavy-load and high-efficiency machining,its terminal rigidity should be evaluated systematically.The present study is to quantitatively reveal the stiffness properties of a previously invented Z4 redundantly actuated parallel ma-chining robot(RAPMR).For this purpose,two critical issues,i.e.,stiffness modelling and index construction,are clarified to carry out stiffness evaluation of the Z4 RAPMR.Firstly,drawing on the screw theory,a semi-analytic stiffness model of the proposed RAPMR is established at a component level.Secondly,a set of virtual work-based stiffness indices is constructed to evaluate the terminal rigidity of parallel robots.Those indices have a consistent physical unit in describing linear and angular terminal rigidity.With these indices,the local and the global stiffness performance of the Z4 RAPMR are predicted.Thirdly,a laboratory prototype of the proposed RAPMR is fabricated.And the experimental test is performed to verify the correctness of the established stiffness model.The present work is expected to provide fundamental information for further light-weight design and rigidity enhancement.展开更多
How to substitute the human operator with a robot in various assembly tasks has to be taken into full con-sideration in intelligent manufacturing.Autonomous robotic assembly not only brings with high working effi-cien...How to substitute the human operator with a robot in various assembly tasks has to be taken into full con-sideration in intelligent manufacturing.Autonomous robotic assembly not only brings with high working effi-ciency,better product quality and low labor cost,but also helps relieve the increasingly severe problem of population aging.However,numerous existing challenges still prevent its wide applications when a robot is assigned to finish general tasks in unstructured environment.In order to provide a fundamental understanding of the various problems involved in robotic assembly,this paper carries out a review on its recent progress and challenges with 5 key technologies focused on:perception,end-effectors,control methods,learning methods and performance evaluation.Main works in these fields are reviewed and their characteristics are analyzed while typical assembly scenarios are covered.The challenges and future directions in robotic assembly are also dis-cussed on precise perception,robotic hand,error recovery and collaborative robot.In addition to providing a systematic summarization of the required key technologies,this work is aimed at motivating more potential researches in the community of robotics,artificial intelligence,and automation engineering.展开更多
Wing design is a critical factor in the aerodynamic performance of flapping-wing(FW)robots.Inspired by the natural wing structures of insects,bats,and birds,we explored how bio-mimetic wing vein morphologies,combined ...Wing design is a critical factor in the aerodynamic performance of flapping-wing(FW)robots.Inspired by the natural wing structures of insects,bats,and birds,we explored how bio-mimetic wing vein morphologies,combined with a bio-inspired double wing clap-and-fling mechanism,affect thrust generation.This study focused on increasing vertical force and payload capacity.Through systematic experimentation with various vein configurations and structural designs,we developed innovative wings optimized for thrust production.Comprehensive tests were conducted to measure aerodynamic forces,power consumption,and wing kinematics across a range of flapping frequencies.Additionally,wings with different aspect ratios,a key factor in wing design,were fabricated and extensively evaluated.The study also examined the role of bio-inspired vein layouts on wing flexibility,a critical component in improving flight efficiency.Our findings demonstrate that the newly developed wing design led to a 20%increase in thrust,achieving up to 30 g-force(gf).This research sheds light on the clap-and-fling effect and establishes a promising framework for bio-inspired wing design,offering significant improvements in both performance and payload capacity for FW robots.展开更多
Underwater pipeline inspection plays a vital role in the proactive maintenance and management of critical marine infrastructure and subaquatic systems.However,the inspection of underwater pipelines presents a challeng...Underwater pipeline inspection plays a vital role in the proactive maintenance and management of critical marine infrastructure and subaquatic systems.However,the inspection of underwater pipelines presents a challenge due to factors such as light scattering,absorption,restricted visibility,and ambient noise.The advancement of deep learning has introduced powerful techniques for processing large amounts of unstructured and imperfect data collected from underwater environments.This study evaluated the efficacy of the You Only Look Once(YOLO)algorithm,a real-time object detection and localization model based on convolutional neural networks,in identifying and classifying various types of pipeline defects in underwater settings.YOLOv8,the latest evolution in the YOLO family,integrates advanced capabilities,such as anchor-free detection,a cross-stage partial network backbone for efficient feature extraction,and a feature pyramid network+path aggregation network neck for robust multi-scale object detection,which make it particularly well-suited for complex underwater environments.Due to the lack of suitable open-access datasets for underwater pipeline defects,a custom dataset was captured using a remotely operated vehicle in a controlled environment.This application has the following assets available for use.Extensive experimentation demonstrated that YOLOv8 X-Large consistently outperformed other models in terms of pipe defect detection and classification and achieved a strong balance between precision and recall in identifying pipeline cracks,rust,corners,defective welds,flanges,tapes,and holes.This research establishes the baseline performance of YOLOv8 for underwater defect detection and showcases its potential to enhance the reliability and efficiency of pipeline inspection tasks in challenging underwater environments.展开更多
Background:The Da Vinci Single-Port Robotic System(Da Vinci-SP),introduced by Intuitive(CA,USA)in 2018 in the USA and in 2024 in Europe,integrates advanced features like a flexible camera and articulating instruments....Background:The Da Vinci Single-Port Robotic System(Da Vinci-SP),introduced by Intuitive(CA,USA)in 2018 in the USA and in 2024 in Europe,integrates advanced features like a flexible camera and articulating instruments.It has garnered significant interest in urology.Our report presents the first described European series of Radical Prostatectomies using the Da Vinci SP at the leading Italian center,Istituto Nazionale Tumori di Napoli,IRCCS“G.Pascale”Foundation,detailing the technical differences and challenges faced by experienced multiport robotic surgeons.Methods:Sixteen patients have been enrolled and underwent Single-Port(SP)Robot-Assisted Radical Prostatectomy(SP-RARP).Baseline characteristics of the patients were collected.We provided a step-by-step description of the surgical technique.Oncological outcomes have been evaluated and compared with magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)and biopsy results.Intraoperative,perioperative,and postoperative complications,surgical outcomes,functional outcomes,and technical issues of the new system were also documented.Results:All surgeries were successfully performed without the need for conversion.An extraperitoneal approach was used for all patients.Median Console time was 110 min.No complications were reported.The estimated median blood loss was 175 cc.Discharge from the hospital was on the first post-operative day for all patients.Bladder catheter removal was on day 7 without the need for cystography.Conclusions:We presented the first European case series of SP-RARP,reporting our experience and confirming the procedure’s feasibility for a highly experienced robotic surgeon.Experience with an extraperitoneal approach using the multiport(MP)platform,combined with well-conducted training for the SP system,may facilitate the transition to SP surgery.Further procedures and studies are needed to evaluate the oncological and functional outcomes.展开更多
Microrobotic systems are emerging as transformative technology for minimally invasive medicine,driven by innovations in actuation mechanisms,advanced fabrication paradigms,and multifunctional system integration.This c...Microrobotic systems are emerging as transformative technology for minimally invasive medicine,driven by innovations in actuation mechanisms,advanced fabrication paradigms,and multifunctional system integration.This comprehensive review analyzes the evolution of microrobotic technologies through three critical dimensions:(1)actuation modalities,including magnetic,optical,acoustic,chemical,and biological actuation,with a focus on the synergistic advantages of hybrid actuation strategies in complex internal physiological environments;(2)Fabrication methods cover technolo-gies such as photolithography,microinjection molding,self-assembly,and 3D printing,emphasizing innovative strategies involving multi-technology integration and collaborative manufacturing of bio/non-bio hybrid materials;(3)Internal phys-iological applications involve disease diagnosis,targeted drug delivery,minimally invasive surgery,tissue engineering,and cell manipulation,highlighting the broad prospects of microrobots in precision medicine.Despite remarkable progress,critical challenges remain,including low actuation efficiency,as seen in acoustic systems,limited biocompatibility,exem-plified by the toxicity of hydrogen peroxide in chemical actuation,delayed clinical translation,and other related challenges that must be addressed to advance the field.展开更多
Soft robotic manipulators represent a rapidly evolving field characterized by inherent compliance,adaptability,and safe interactions within unstructured environments.Over the past decade(2015-2025),significant advance...Soft robotic manipulators represent a rapidly evolving field characterized by inherent compliance,adaptability,and safe interactions within unstructured environments.Over the past decade(2015-2025),significant advancements have trans-formed their capabilities through novel designs inspired by biological systems,advanced modeling frameworks,sophisti-cated control strategies,and integration into diverse real-world applications.Recent innovations in multifunctional mate-rials and emerging actuation technologies have markedly expanded manipulator performance,reliability,and dexterity.Concurrently,developments in modeling have progressed from simplified geometric methods toward highly accurate physics-based and hybrid data-driven approaches,substantially improving real-time prediction and controllability.Coupled with these developments,adaptive and robust control strategies-including learning-based techniques-have enabled unprec-edented autonomy and precision in challenging application domains such as Minimally Invasive Surgery(MIS),precision agriculture,deep-sea exploration,disaster recovery,and space missions.Despite these remarkable strides,key challenges remain,notably regarding scalability,long-term material durability,robust integrated sensing,and standardized evaluation procedures.This review comprehensively synthesizes recent advances,critically evaluates state-of-the-art methodologies,and systematically identifies existing gaps to provide a clear roadmap and targeted research directions,guiding future developments toward the broader adoption and optimal utilization of soft robotic manipulators.展开更多
Embodied intelligence is redefining policing On the first day of 2026 chunyun,a period of high mobility associated with the Chinese New Year,the city of Jingzhou in Hubei Province welcomed new participants in road saf...Embodied intelligence is redefining policing On the first day of 2026 chunyun,a period of high mobility associated with the Chinese New Year,the city of Jingzhou in Hubei Province welcomed new participants in road safety:police robots capable of moving autonomously and interacting with passengers.Deployed on a trial basis on 2 February,these robots quickly demonstrated their usefulness in various urban settings.展开更多
Strategically coupling nanoparticle hybrids and internal thermosensitive molecular switches establishes an innovative paradigm for constructing micro/nanoscale-reconfigurable robots,facilitating energyefficient CO_(2)...Strategically coupling nanoparticle hybrids and internal thermosensitive molecular switches establishes an innovative paradigm for constructing micro/nanoscale-reconfigurable robots,facilitating energyefficient CO_(2) management in life-support systems of confined space.Here,a micro/nano-reconfigurable robot is constructed from the CO_(2) molecular hunters,temperature-sensitive molecular switch,solar photothermal conversion,and magnetically-driven function engines.The molecular hunters within the molecular extension state can capture 6.19 mmol g^(−1) of CO_(2) to form carbamic acid and ammonium bicarbonate.Interestingly,the molecular switch of the robot activates a molecular curling state that facilitates CO_(2) release through nano-reconfiguration,which is mediated by the temperature-sensitive curling of Pluronic F127 molecular chains during the photothermal desorption.Nano-reconfiguration of robot alters the amino microenvironment,including increasing surface electrostatic potential of the amino group and decreasing overall lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energy level.This weakened the nucleophilic attack ability of the amino group toward the adsorption product derivatives,thereby inhibiting the side reactions that generate hard-to-decompose urea structures,achieving the lowest regeneration temperature of 55℃ reported to date.The engine of the robot possesses non-contact magnetically-driven micro-reconfiguration capability to achieve efficient photothermal regeneration while avoiding local overheating.Notably,the robot successfully prolonged the survival time of mice in the sealed container by up to 54.61%,effectively addressing the issue of carbon suffocation in confined spaces.This work significantly enhances life-support systems for deep-space exploration,while stimulating innovations in sustainable carbon management technologies for terrestrial extreme environments.展开更多
Trajectory tracking for nonlinear robotic systems remains a fundamental yet challenging problem in control engineering,particularly when both precision and efficiency must be ensured.Conventional control methods are o...Trajectory tracking for nonlinear robotic systems remains a fundamental yet challenging problem in control engineering,particularly when both precision and efficiency must be ensured.Conventional control methods are often effective for stabilization but may not directly optimize long-term performance.To address this limitation,this study develops an integrated framework that combines optimal control principles with reinforcement learning for a single-link robotic manipulator.The proposed scheme adopts an actor–critic structure,where the critic network approximates the value function associated with the Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman equation,and the actor network generates near-optimal control signals in real time.This dual adaptation enables the controller to refine its policy online without explicit system knowledge.Stability of the closed-loop system is analyzed through Lyapunov theory,ensuring boundedness of the tracking error.Numerical simulations on the single-link manipulator demonstrate that themethod achieves accurate trajectory followingwhile maintaining lowcontrol effort.The results further showthat the actor–critic learning mechanism accelerates convergence of the control policy compared with conventional optimization-based strategies.This work highlights the potential of reinforcement learning integrated with optimal control for robotic manipulators and provides a foundation for future extensions to more complex multi-degree-of-freedom systems.The proposed controller is further validated in a physics-based virtual Gazebo environment,demonstrating stable adaptation and real-time feasibility.展开更多
文摘Aiming to solve the steering instability and hysteresis of agricultural robots in the process of movement,a fusion PID control method of particle swarm optimization(PSO)and genetic algorithm(GA)was proposed.The fusion algorithm took advantage of the fast optimization ability of PSO to optimize the population screening link of GA.The Simulink simulation results showed that the convergence of the fitness function of the fusion algorithm was accelerated,the system response adjustment time was reduced,and the overshoot was almost zero.Then the algorithm was applied to the steering test of agricultural robot in various scenes.After modeling the steering system of agricultural robot,the steering test results in the unloaded suspended state showed that the PID control based on fusion algorithm reduced the rise time,response adjustment time and overshoot of the system,and improved the response speed and stability of the system,compared with the artificial trial and error PID control and the PID control based on GA.The actual road steering test results showed that the PID control response rise time based on the fusion algorithm was the shortest,about 4.43 s.When the target pulse number was set to 100,the actual mean value in the steady-state regulation stage was about 102.9,which was the closest to the target value among the three control methods,and the overshoot was reduced at the same time.The steering test results under various scene states showed that the PID control based on the proposed fusion algorithm had good anti-interference ability,it can adapt to the changes of environment and load and improve the performance of the control system.It was effective in the steering control of agricultural robot.This method can provide a reference for the precise steering control of other robots.
文摘The Chinese SME’s vision shows the bright side of humanoid robots:rather than replacing human workers,they are handling everyday mechanical tasks,leaving human staff to focus on improving service and emotional experiences.IN the Jinqiao Economic and Technological Development Zone in Pudong New Area,Shanghai,KEENON Robotics,a national-level“Little Giant”(innovative SME),is leading the transformation of the service robots industry.Amid the wave of embodied intelligence development,the humanoid service robots created by this company have become a focal point of the industry and businesses alike.
文摘With the progress of Industry 4.0,collaborative robots(cobots) have become a key area of innovation.However,safety standards such as ISO/TS 15066 often lag behind rapid technological advances,failing to balance safety and innovation.This paper analyzes the conflicts between standards and innovation of industrial cobots,including lag,rigidity,and safetyperformance trade-offs.It proposes flexible standards,regulatory sandboxes,and lifecycle safety approaches to align safety with technological progress.
基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China[62525301,62127811,62433019]the New Cornerstone Science Foundation through the XPLORER PRIZEthe financial support by the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation[GZB20240797].
文摘Single-cell biomechanics and electrophysiology measuring tools have transformed biological research over the last few decades,which enabling a comprehensive and nuanced understanding of cellular behavior and function.Despite their high-quality information content,these single-cell measuring techniques suffer from laborious manual processing by highly skilled workers and extremely low throughput(tens of cells per day).Recently,numerous researchers have automated the measurement of cell mechanical and electrical signals through robotic localization and control processes.While these efforts have demonstrated promising progress,critical challenges persist,including human dependency,learning complexity,in-situ measurement,and multidimensional signal acquisition.To identify key limitations and highlight emerging opportunities for innovation,in this review,we comprehensively summarize the key steps of robotic technologies in single-cell biomechanics and electrophysiology.We also discussed the prospects and challenges of robotics and automation in biological research.By bridging gaps between engineering,biology,and data science,this work aims to stimulate interdisciplinary research and accelerate the translation of robotic single-cell technologies into practical applications in the life sciences and medical fields.
文摘Human life is invaluable,and timely efforts are crucial to rescue individuals trapped under debris following an earthquake.To identify opportunities for improving post-earthquake search and rescue(SAR)robotics,we get insights through four different sources:(i)A literature review of disaster robotics and victim psychology,(ii)A public survey on earthquake awareness and their view of rescue robots,(iii)Semi-structured interviews with first responders,and(iv)Responses from GenAI chatbots which were prompted to assume the role of expert rescuers.The triangulated analysis show that there are challenges in mobility,autonomy,communication,situational awareness,and human-robot collaboration.The public respondents showed high acceptance of robot-assisted rescue and prioritised survivor detection,sensing,and communication as essential functionalities of robots.The experts expressed limitations in current equipment,the need for improved victim localisation,and interest in XR-based training and robot-assisted debris handling.The GenAI chatbots highlighted structural risk assessment,multi-sensor fusion,and supervised autonomy.Therefore,this study identifies critical robot features,outlines multi-modal interaction requirements,and highlights gaps in current SAR practice.These findings offer robot design directions for developing effective,trustworthy SAR robots,which can be integrated to future response disaster-workflows.
基金supported by the National Science and Technology Council of under Grant NSTC 114-2221-E-130-007.
文摘This paper presents an intelligent patrol and security robot integrating 2D LiDAR and RGB-D vision sensors to achieve semantic simultaneous localization and mapping(SLAM),real-time object recognition,and dynamic obstacle avoidance.The system employs the YOLOv7 deep-learning framework for semantic detection and SLAM for localization and mapping,fusing geometric and visual data to build a high-fidelity 2D semantic map.This map enables the robot to identify and project object information for improved situational awareness.Experimental results show that object recognition reached 95.4%mAP@0.5.Semantic completeness increased from 68.7%(single view)to 94.1%(multi-view)with an average position error of 3.1 cm.During navigation,the robot achieved 98.0%reliability,avoided moving obstacles in 90.0%of encounters,and replanned paths in 0.42 s on average.The integration of LiDAR-based SLAMwith deep-learning–driven semantic perception establishes a robust foundation for intelligent,adaptive,and safe robotic navigation in dynamic environments.
基金Natural Science Foundation of Beijing Municipality under Grant L243004the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant 62403060.
文摘Protective hardware is essential for mitigating damage caused by unavoidable falls in humanoid robots.Despite notable progress in fall protection hardware,the theoretical foundation for modeling and the feasibility of conducting full-scale fall experiments on robots or their surrogates remain somewhat limited.This paper proposes a method for optimizing the thickness of Expandable Polyethylene(EPE),which is used as back protection for the Chubao humanoid robot,based on small-scale impact test data to predict full-scale behavior.The optimal thickness is defined as a balance between compact design and protective effectiveness.An equivalent impact model characterized by four parameters:contact area S,mass m,fall height h,and cushioning material thickness d is introduced to describe impact conditions.The relationship between the peak impact acceleration ap and material thickness d,which forms the core of the method and gives rise to the name AP-D,is analyzed through their plotted curves.After introducing three characteristic parameters and two correction fac-tors,the relationship among the aforementioned variables is derived.Subsequently,both the optimal thickness do and its corresponding peak impact acceleration aop are predicted via nonlinear and linear regression models.Finally,the accuracy and effectiveness of the theoretically derived optimal thickness are validated on both a dummy and the actual robot.With the cushioning material applied,the peak chest acceleration is reduced to 41.57g for the dummy and 32.08g for the robot.
基金funded by Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation(2023B1515120064)National Natural Science Foundation of China(62273097).
文摘Deep learning has become integral to robotics,particularly in tasks such as robotic grasping,where objects often exhibit diverse shapes,textures,and physical properties.In robotic grasping tasks,due to the diverse characteristics of the targets,frequent adjustments to the network architecture and parameters are required to avoid a decrease in model accuracy,which presents a significant challenge for non-experts.Neural Architecture Search(NAS)provides a compelling method through the automated generation of network architectures,enabling the discovery of models that achieve high accuracy through efficient search algorithms.Compared to manually designed networks,NAS methods can significantly reduce design costs,time expenditure,and improve model performance.However,such methods often involve complex topological connections,and these redundant structures can severely reduce computational efficiency.To overcome this challenge,this work puts forward a robotic grasp detection framework founded on NAS.The method automatically designs a lightweight network with high accuracy and low topological complexity,effectively adapting to the target object to generate the optimal grasp pose,thereby significantly improving the success rate of robotic grasping.Additionally,we use Class Activation Mapping(CAM)as an interpretability tool,which captures sensitive information during the perception process through visualized results.The searched model achieved competitive,and in some cases superior,performance on the Cornell and Jacquard public datasets,achieving accuracies of 98.3%and 96.8%,respectively,while sustaining a detection speed of 89 frames per second with only 0.41 million parameters.To further validate its effectiveness beyond benchmark evaluations,we conducted real-world grasping experiments on a UR5 robotic arm,where the model demonstrated reliable performance across diverse objects and high grasp success rates,thereby confirming its practical applicability in robotic manipulation tasks.
基金Shenzhen Science and Technology Program(Grant No.20220817171811004)(Grant No.RCBS20231211090816033)+4 种基金the Major Key Project of PCL,China under Grant PCL2025A13Longgang District,Shenzhen's"Ten-Action Plan"for Supporting Innovation Projects(Grant No.LGKCSDPT2024002,LGKCSDPT2024003,LGKCSDPT2024004)the"Zhiguo"Action of Guangxi Science and Technology Program(Grant No.ZG2503980003)Guangdong S&T Program under(Grant No.2025B0909040003)Guangdong Provincial Leading Talent Program(Grant No.2024TX08Z319).
文摘The main cable is the primary load-bearing component of a suspension bridge,continuously exposed to harsh environmental conditions,such as wind and rain,throughout the year.These adverse conditions contribute to varying degrees of degradation and damage to the main cable,necessitating regular inspections to prevent catastrophic failures.Traditional manual inspection methods not only suffer from low efficiency but also pose significant safety risks to personnel.To address these challenges and ensure the safe and effective inspection of suspension bridge main cables,this study introduces a novel cooperative climbing robot,designated as Main Cable Robot Version II(CCRobot-M-II),inspired by the locomotion of the inchworm.The robot employs an alternating opening and closing mechanism of four gripper sets,mimicking the inchworm's movement to achieve efficient crawling along the suspension bridge handrails.This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the structural design,key components,and motion mechanisms of CCRobot-M-II.A detailed force analysis of the robot's crawling process is also presented,followed by the design of the control system and the development of an efficient motion control algorithm.Laboratory experiments demonstrate that the robot achieves a positional error of 00.64%during crawling,with a maximum average crawling speed of 7.6 m/min.Furthermore,the biomimetic design enables the robot to overcome obstacles up to 30 mm in height and possess the capability to handle suspension bridge cables with spans ranging from 740 to 1100 mm.Finally,CCRobot-M-II successfully conducted an inspection of the main cable on a suspension bridge,marking the world's first successful deployment of a climbing robot for main cable inspection on a suspension bridge.
基金Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.52375009)Fujian Provincial Young and Middle-Aged Teacher Education Research Project of China(Grant No.JAT220029).
文摘Parallel machining robot is a new type of robotized equipment for high-efficiency machining structural com-ponents with complex geometries.Terminal rigidity is of great importance index for such type of equipment,which affects their load capacity and working accuracy.Before a parallel machining robot can be used for heavy-load and high-efficiency machining,its terminal rigidity should be evaluated systematically.The present study is to quantitatively reveal the stiffness properties of a previously invented Z4 redundantly actuated parallel ma-chining robot(RAPMR).For this purpose,two critical issues,i.e.,stiffness modelling and index construction,are clarified to carry out stiffness evaluation of the Z4 RAPMR.Firstly,drawing on the screw theory,a semi-analytic stiffness model of the proposed RAPMR is established at a component level.Secondly,a set of virtual work-based stiffness indices is constructed to evaluate the terminal rigidity of parallel robots.Those indices have a consistent physical unit in describing linear and angular terminal rigidity.With these indices,the local and the global stiffness performance of the Z4 RAPMR are predicted.Thirdly,a laboratory prototype of the proposed RAPMR is fabricated.And the experimental test is performed to verify the correctness of the established stiffness model.The present work is expected to provide fundamental information for further light-weight design and rigidity enhancement.
基金Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.52205009)Open Foundation of State Key Laboratory of Mechanical Transmission for Advanced Equipment of Chongqing University of China(Grant No.SKLMT-MSKFKT-202307)Taihu Lake Innovation Fund for the School of Future Technology of Southeast University of China.
文摘How to substitute the human operator with a robot in various assembly tasks has to be taken into full con-sideration in intelligent manufacturing.Autonomous robotic assembly not only brings with high working effi-ciency,better product quality and low labor cost,but also helps relieve the increasingly severe problem of population aging.However,numerous existing challenges still prevent its wide applications when a robot is assigned to finish general tasks in unstructured environment.In order to provide a fundamental understanding of the various problems involved in robotic assembly,this paper carries out a review on its recent progress and challenges with 5 key technologies focused on:perception,end-effectors,control methods,learning methods and performance evaluation.Main works in these fields are reviewed and their characteristics are analyzed while typical assembly scenarios are covered.The challenges and future directions in robotic assembly are also dis-cussed on precise perception,robotic hand,error recovery and collaborative robot.In addition to providing a systematic summarization of the required key technologies,this work is aimed at motivating more potential researches in the community of robotics,artificial intelligence,and automation engineering.
基金Nguyen Tat Thanh University,Ho Chi Minh City,Vietnam for supporting this study。
文摘Wing design is a critical factor in the aerodynamic performance of flapping-wing(FW)robots.Inspired by the natural wing structures of insects,bats,and birds,we explored how bio-mimetic wing vein morphologies,combined with a bio-inspired double wing clap-and-fling mechanism,affect thrust generation.This study focused on increasing vertical force and payload capacity.Through systematic experimentation with various vein configurations and structural designs,we developed innovative wings optimized for thrust production.Comprehensive tests were conducted to measure aerodynamic forces,power consumption,and wing kinematics across a range of flapping frequencies.Additionally,wings with different aspect ratios,a key factor in wing design,were fabricated and extensively evaluated.The study also examined the role of bio-inspired vein layouts on wing flexibility,a critical component in improving flight efficiency.Our findings demonstrate that the newly developed wing design led to a 20%increase in thrust,achieving up to 30 g-force(gf).This research sheds light on the clap-and-fling effect and establishes a promising framework for bio-inspired wing design,offering significant improvements in both performance and payload capacity for FW robots.
文摘Underwater pipeline inspection plays a vital role in the proactive maintenance and management of critical marine infrastructure and subaquatic systems.However,the inspection of underwater pipelines presents a challenge due to factors such as light scattering,absorption,restricted visibility,and ambient noise.The advancement of deep learning has introduced powerful techniques for processing large amounts of unstructured and imperfect data collected from underwater environments.This study evaluated the efficacy of the You Only Look Once(YOLO)algorithm,a real-time object detection and localization model based on convolutional neural networks,in identifying and classifying various types of pipeline defects in underwater settings.YOLOv8,the latest evolution in the YOLO family,integrates advanced capabilities,such as anchor-free detection,a cross-stage partial network backbone for efficient feature extraction,and a feature pyramid network+path aggregation network neck for robust multi-scale object detection,which make it particularly well-suited for complex underwater environments.Due to the lack of suitable open-access datasets for underwater pipeline defects,a custom dataset was captured using a remotely operated vehicle in a controlled environment.This application has the following assets available for use.Extensive experimentation demonstrated that YOLOv8 X-Large consistently outperformed other models in terms of pipe defect detection and classification and achieved a strong balance between precision and recall in identifying pipeline cracks,rust,corners,defective welds,flanges,tapes,and holes.This research establishes the baseline performance of YOLOv8 for underwater defect detection and showcases its potential to enhance the reliability and efficiency of pipeline inspection tasks in challenging underwater environments.
文摘Background:The Da Vinci Single-Port Robotic System(Da Vinci-SP),introduced by Intuitive(CA,USA)in 2018 in the USA and in 2024 in Europe,integrates advanced features like a flexible camera and articulating instruments.It has garnered significant interest in urology.Our report presents the first described European series of Radical Prostatectomies using the Da Vinci SP at the leading Italian center,Istituto Nazionale Tumori di Napoli,IRCCS“G.Pascale”Foundation,detailing the technical differences and challenges faced by experienced multiport robotic surgeons.Methods:Sixteen patients have been enrolled and underwent Single-Port(SP)Robot-Assisted Radical Prostatectomy(SP-RARP).Baseline characteristics of the patients were collected.We provided a step-by-step description of the surgical technique.Oncological outcomes have been evaluated and compared with magnetic resonance imaging(MRI)and biopsy results.Intraoperative,perioperative,and postoperative complications,surgical outcomes,functional outcomes,and technical issues of the new system were also documented.Results:All surgeries were successfully performed without the need for conversion.An extraperitoneal approach was used for all patients.Median Console time was 110 min.No complications were reported.The estimated median blood loss was 175 cc.Discharge from the hospital was on the first post-operative day for all patients.Bladder catheter removal was on day 7 without the need for cystography.Conclusions:We presented the first European case series of SP-RARP,reporting our experience and confirming the procedure’s feasibility for a highly experienced robotic surgeon.Experience with an extraperitoneal approach using the multiport(MP)platform,combined with well-conducted training for the SP system,may facilitate the transition to SP surgery.Further procedures and studies are needed to evaluate the oncological and functional outcomes.
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.61903157)the Foundation of State Key Laboratory of Robotics(Grand No.2024-O08).
文摘Microrobotic systems are emerging as transformative technology for minimally invasive medicine,driven by innovations in actuation mechanisms,advanced fabrication paradigms,and multifunctional system integration.This comprehensive review analyzes the evolution of microrobotic technologies through three critical dimensions:(1)actuation modalities,including magnetic,optical,acoustic,chemical,and biological actuation,with a focus on the synergistic advantages of hybrid actuation strategies in complex internal physiological environments;(2)Fabrication methods cover technolo-gies such as photolithography,microinjection molding,self-assembly,and 3D printing,emphasizing innovative strategies involving multi-technology integration and collaborative manufacturing of bio/non-bio hybrid materials;(3)Internal phys-iological applications involve disease diagnosis,targeted drug delivery,minimally invasive surgery,tissue engineering,and cell manipulation,highlighting the broad prospects of microrobots in precision medicine.Despite remarkable progress,critical challenges remain,including low actuation efficiency,as seen in acoustic systems,limited biocompatibility,exem-plified by the toxicity of hydrogen peroxide in chemical actuation,delayed clinical translation,and other related challenges that must be addressed to advance the field.
基金Open access funding provided by The Science,Technology&Innovation Funding Authority(STDF)in cooperation with The Egyptian Knowledge Bank(EKB).
文摘Soft robotic manipulators represent a rapidly evolving field characterized by inherent compliance,adaptability,and safe interactions within unstructured environments.Over the past decade(2015-2025),significant advancements have trans-formed their capabilities through novel designs inspired by biological systems,advanced modeling frameworks,sophisti-cated control strategies,and integration into diverse real-world applications.Recent innovations in multifunctional mate-rials and emerging actuation technologies have markedly expanded manipulator performance,reliability,and dexterity.Concurrently,developments in modeling have progressed from simplified geometric methods toward highly accurate physics-based and hybrid data-driven approaches,substantially improving real-time prediction and controllability.Coupled with these developments,adaptive and robust control strategies-including learning-based techniques-have enabled unprec-edented autonomy and precision in challenging application domains such as Minimally Invasive Surgery(MIS),precision agriculture,deep-sea exploration,disaster recovery,and space missions.Despite these remarkable strides,key challenges remain,notably regarding scalability,long-term material durability,robust integrated sensing,and standardized evaluation procedures.This review comprehensively synthesizes recent advances,critically evaluates state-of-the-art methodologies,and systematically identifies existing gaps to provide a clear roadmap and targeted research directions,guiding future developments toward the broader adoption and optimal utilization of soft robotic manipulators.
文摘Embodied intelligence is redefining policing On the first day of 2026 chunyun,a period of high mobility associated with the Chinese New Year,the city of Jingzhou in Hubei Province welcomed new participants in road safety:police robots capable of moving autonomously and interacting with passengers.Deployed on a trial basis on 2 February,these robots quickly demonstrated their usefulness in various urban settings.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(22168008,22378085)the Guangxi Natural Science Foundation(2024GXNSFDA010053)+1 种基金the Technology Development Project of Guangxi Bossco Environmental Protection Technology Co.,Ltd(202100039)Innovation Project of Guangxi Graduate Education(YCBZ2024065).
文摘Strategically coupling nanoparticle hybrids and internal thermosensitive molecular switches establishes an innovative paradigm for constructing micro/nanoscale-reconfigurable robots,facilitating energyefficient CO_(2) management in life-support systems of confined space.Here,a micro/nano-reconfigurable robot is constructed from the CO_(2) molecular hunters,temperature-sensitive molecular switch,solar photothermal conversion,and magnetically-driven function engines.The molecular hunters within the molecular extension state can capture 6.19 mmol g^(−1) of CO_(2) to form carbamic acid and ammonium bicarbonate.Interestingly,the molecular switch of the robot activates a molecular curling state that facilitates CO_(2) release through nano-reconfiguration,which is mediated by the temperature-sensitive curling of Pluronic F127 molecular chains during the photothermal desorption.Nano-reconfiguration of robot alters the amino microenvironment,including increasing surface electrostatic potential of the amino group and decreasing overall lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energy level.This weakened the nucleophilic attack ability of the amino group toward the adsorption product derivatives,thereby inhibiting the side reactions that generate hard-to-decompose urea structures,achieving the lowest regeneration temperature of 55℃ reported to date.The engine of the robot possesses non-contact magnetically-driven micro-reconfiguration capability to achieve efficient photothermal regeneration while avoiding local overheating.Notably,the robot successfully prolonged the survival time of mice in the sealed container by up to 54.61%,effectively addressing the issue of carbon suffocation in confined spaces.This work significantly enhances life-support systems for deep-space exploration,while stimulating innovations in sustainable carbon management technologies for terrestrial extreme environments.
基金supported in part by the National Science and Technology Council under Grant NSTC 114-2221-E-027-104.
文摘Trajectory tracking for nonlinear robotic systems remains a fundamental yet challenging problem in control engineering,particularly when both precision and efficiency must be ensured.Conventional control methods are often effective for stabilization but may not directly optimize long-term performance.To address this limitation,this study develops an integrated framework that combines optimal control principles with reinforcement learning for a single-link robotic manipulator.The proposed scheme adopts an actor–critic structure,where the critic network approximates the value function associated with the Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman equation,and the actor network generates near-optimal control signals in real time.This dual adaptation enables the controller to refine its policy online without explicit system knowledge.Stability of the closed-loop system is analyzed through Lyapunov theory,ensuring boundedness of the tracking error.Numerical simulations on the single-link manipulator demonstrate that themethod achieves accurate trajectory followingwhile maintaining lowcontrol effort.The results further showthat the actor–critic learning mechanism accelerates convergence of the control policy compared with conventional optimization-based strategies.This work highlights the potential of reinforcement learning integrated with optimal control for robotic manipulators and provides a foundation for future extensions to more complex multi-degree-of-freedom systems.The proposed controller is further validated in a physics-based virtual Gazebo environment,demonstrating stable adaptation and real-time feasibility.
