Ana Holdings Inc., HaptX, SynTouch, and Shadow Robot Company are set to unveil the next generation of robotics technology at the upcoming Amazon Re:Mars Expo. The Amazon Re:Mars will be held in Las Vegas from June 4th and 7th.
By incorporating the latest tech from across the field of robotics, they have invented the teleoperation and telepresence system. This system will feature the first robotic hand to successfully transmit touch sensations.
This technology is being hailed as the ‘Holy Grail of robotics’ by the inventors. They have combined Shadow Robot’s world-leading dexterous robotic hand with SynTouch’s biomimetic tactile sensors and HaptX’s realistic haptic feedback gloves.
This new technology enables unprecedented precision remote-control of a robotic hand. They have also implemented tests on it and in a recent test, a human operator in California was able to operate a computer keyboard in London, with each keystroke detected through fingertip sensors on their glove and faithfully relayed 5000 miles to the Dexterous Hand to recreate.
They also promise that combining touch with teleoperation in this way is ground-breaking for future applications to perform actions at a distance, e.g. bomb disposal, deep-sea engineering or even surgery performed across different states.
At the Amazon re:MARS Tech Showcase, the trailblazing team will demonstrate their teleoperation and telepresence technology outside the lab for the first time.
Check out this video to understand how this technology will function.
Kevin Kajitani, Co-Director of ANA HOLDINGS INC., Avatar Division says, “We are only beginning to scratch the surface of what is possible with these advanced Avatar systems and through telerobotics in general. In addition to sponsoring the $10M ANA Avatar XPRIZE, we’ve approached our three partner companies to seek solutions that will allow us to develop a high performance, intuitive, general-purpose Avatar hand. We believe that this technology will be key in helping humanity connect across vast distances.”
Jake Rubin, Founder and CEO of HaptX says, “Our sense of touch is a critical component of virtually every interaction. The collaboration between HaptX, Shadow Robot Company, SynTouch, and ANA brings a nat-ural and realistic sense of touch to robotic manipulation for the first time, eliminating one of the last bar-riers to true telepresence.”
Dr. Jeremy Fishel, Co-Founder of SynTouch says, “We’ve got something exciting up our sleeves for re:MARS this year. Users will see just how essential the sense of touch is when it comes to dexterity and manipulation and the various applications it can have within industry.”
Rich Walker, Managing Director of the Shadow Robot Company says, “Our remotely controlled system can help transform work within risky environments such as nuclear decommissioning and we’re already in talks with the UK nuclear establishment regarding the application of this advanced technology. It adds a layer of safety between the worker and the radiation zone as well as increasing precision and accuracy within glovebox-related tasks.”
Paul Cutsinger, Head of Voice Design Education at Amazon Alexa says, “re:MARS embraces an optimistic vision for scientific discovery to advance a golden age of innovation and this teleoperation technology by the Shadow Robot Company, SynTouch and HaptX more than fits the bill. It must be seen.”
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