When we look back on 2017, we’ll remember a back-flipping robot, the arrival of social robots, brain-controlled robots, major developments for autonomous vehicles, the rise of mobile manipulators, and a certain security robot that drove into a water fountain.

(Following is an unedited webinar, presented by Robert Dahlstrom is founder and CEO of Apellix Robotics.) Today we’re talking about robots, and more specifically software controlled robots and how robots are software. As we know, robots and certain drones are definitely hardware, but what does hardware require to run and operate? Obviously, the answer is…

The very purpose of using a robot to automate a process relies on the robot being accurate and repeatable. As robots move from environments where they were traditionally used behind cages to open environments, it is important that their power solutions keep up. Here, Michele Windsor, global marketing manager at global battery specialist Ultralife Corporation,…

Roborace — the world’s first driverless electric racing competition — will take place at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham (UK) January 11 to 14, 2018 at the Autosport Stage at Autosport Intl. 2018. Visitors will see Roborace’s autonomous Robocar from Friday through to Sunday. Roborace is a platform for the development of autonomous technology…

Industrial robot distributor, TM Robotics has assisted in the launch of Toshiba Machine’s THE400 SCARA robot, which was unveiled at the International Robot Exhibition (IREX) 2017. The biennial show was held on November 29 to December 2, at the Tokyo Big Sight in Japan. Alongside the new SCARA model, Toshiba Machine demonstrated its robot programming…

Teledyne DALSA has announced its new high resolution camera—the Falcon4 86M. Available in monochrome and color, Falcon4 models combine incredibly large resolution and fast frame rates, enabling high-speed, smear-free image capture with superb spatial resolution. The Falcon4 cameras are powered by Teledyne DALSA’s 86 megapixel global shutter CMOS image sensor, which outputs up to 16 full…

Procept BioRobotics said today that it won de novo clearance from the FDA for its Aquabeam device for treating benign prostate hyperplasia, saying it plans to have the device on the U.S. market early next year. Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Procept said the federal safety watchdog used the 181-patient Water study to inform its decision. The trial, comparing Aquablation…

Social robot maker Jibo has laid off staffers in an effort to reorganize around content now that the basic hardware is developed and available to consumers.

Canvas Technology is working on making warehouse robots more autonomous in unstructured environments with 3D sensors and software. The company raised Series A funding to continue developing mobile robot systems.

TransEnterix (NYSE:TRXC) said today that it agreed to deal its SurgiBot assets to Chinese medtech investment firm Great Belief International for $29 million. The agreement calls for Research Triangle Park, N.C.-based TransEnterix to retain the distribution rights to SurgiBot, which it shelved last year, outside of the U.S. The FDA in April 2016  denied 510(k) clearance for…

Welcome to “Robot Investments Weekly,” a new feature on Robotics Business Review that every Friday recaps the week that was in acquisitions, funding, IPOs and mergers and acquisitions in the robotics industry. For more information about investing in robotics, RBR members can access our Transactions Database that keeps you updated on the key mergers and…

Robotics Trends’ AI conference at CES 2018 examines recent developments, current applications, and concerns about AI. Hear leading AI experts discuss the reality behind the hype and how AI will impact our everyday lives.

Cars, drones, robots, and much more will be on display at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) — a show that’s come to be known as the place to see the latest technological machines, parts, and gadgets. Cutting-edge drones and the latest robots are joined by autonomous-driving technologies … all which rely on electric motors.…

Corindus Vascular Robotics (OTC:CVRS) today touted the first commercial installation of its CorPath GRx robotic surgical system outside of the US. The CorPath GRX platform, a robot-assisted system for percutaneous coronary interventions such as stenting, was purchased and installed at the Ahmedabad, India’s Apex Heart Institute, the Waltham, Mass.-based company said. Corindus said that it will…

Vecna Robotics, which won the DHL and Dell mobile picking challenge in Germany, entered a different robot from most of its competitors. See how Vecna over-designed its Tote Retrieval System to be ready for market soon.

Virtual Incision said today it raised $18 million in a Series B funding round to support FDA 510(k) submission for its next-gen minimally-invasive robotically assisted surgical device. The round was co-led by newly invested Sinopharm Capital and existing investor BlueStem Capital and was joined by PrairieGold Venture Partners and other investors, the company said. “Closing…

Komatsu, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of heavy equipment for construction and mining, has teamed up with RBR50 company NVIDIA to add artificial intelligence (AI) to its construction sites across Japan for increased safety and efficiency. The partnership, announced by NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang at GTC Japan, will use NVIDIA’s GPUs to…

Researchers are one step closer to creating a prosthetic hand that allows user to have full control over each finger, according to a new report from Georgia Tech. Researchers at the university say they have created an ultrasonic sensor which allows amputees to control individual fingers on a prosthetic hand, with enough sensitivity to play…

Teledyne DALSA, a Teledyne Technologies company, has announced the GV 4000 vision system. This new multi-camera system offers more memory resources, power-enabled camera ports and a small step-up in performance over the GV 3000, making it well suited for applications using multiple large format Genie Nano cameras. The 4000 model is also physically smaller and…

Orthopedic robotic surgical platform developer Think Surgical said today it won expanded CE Mark approval in the European Union for its TSolution One surgical system, now cleared for use in total knee arthroplasty procedures. The TSolution One system is designed to aid in creating personalized pre-surgical joint replacement plans using CT-based 3D planning and open…

A ‘black box’-style recording device developed by robotic surgical platform industry leader Intuitive Surgical (NSDQ:ISRG) may be able to objectively measure surgeon’s proficiency during robotically-assisted surgeries, according to a new report. The dVLogger, developed by Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company, is designed to capture both anonymized video and movement data from the da Vinci robotic surgical platform after being…

Our columnist brings his international perspective to the latest robot applications shown at iRex 2017 in Tokyo. Machine learning, service robots, and Society 5.0 all have implications for automation beyond Japan.