MIT Develops Robotic Paper That Folds Itself Into Origami

Researchers at Harvard and MIT have reshaped the landscape of programmable matter by devising self-folding sheets that rely on the ancient art of origami.

Called programmable matter by folding, the team demonstrated how a single thin sheet composed of interconnected triangular sections could transform itself into a boat- or plane-shape—all without the help of skilled fingers.

Published in the online Early Edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) during the week of June 28, lead authors Robert Wood, associate professor of electrical engineering at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and a core faculty member of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, and Daniela Rus, a professor in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department at MIT and co-director of the CSAIL Center for Robotics, envision creating “smart” cups that could adjust based upon the amount of liquid needed or even a “Swiss army knife” that could form into tools ranging from wrenches to tripods.

“The process begins when we first create an algorithm for folding,” explains Wood. “Similar to a set of instructions in an origami book, we determine, based upon the desired end shapes, where to crease the sheet.”

The sheet, a thin composite of rigid tiles and elastomer joints, is studded with thin foil actuators (motorized switches) and flexible electronics. The demonstration material contains twenty-five total actuators, divided into five groupings. A shape is produced by triggering the proper actuator groups in sequence.

To initiate the on-demand folding, the team devised a series of stickers, thin materials that contain the circuitry able to prompt the actuators to make the folds. This can be done without a user having to access a computer, reducing “programming” to merely placing the stickers in the appropriate places. When the sheet receives the proper jolt of current, it begins to fold, staying in place thanks to magnetic closures.

“Smart sheets are Origami Robots that will make any shape on demand for their user,” says Rus. “A big achievement was discovering the theoretical foundations and universality of folding and fold planning, which provide the brain and the decision making system for the smart sheet.”

The fancy folding techniques were inspired in part by the work of co-author Erik Demaine, an associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science at MIT and one of the world’s most recognized experts on computational origami.

While the Harvard and MIT engineers only demonstrated two simple shapes, the proof of concept holds promise. The long-term aim is to make programmable matter more robust and practical, leading to materials that can perform multiple tasks, such as an entire dining utensil set derived from one piece of foldable material.

“The Shape-Shifting Sheets demonstrate an end-to-end process that is a first step towards making everyday objects whose mechanical properties can be programmed,” concludes Wood.

www.seas.harvard.edu

MIT Commissions Special Touchy-Feely Robot Skin To Be Made

Peratech Limited has been commissioned by the MIT Media Lab to develop a new type of electronic ‘skin’ that enables robotic devices to detect not only that they have been touched but also where and how hard the touch was.

The key to the sensing technology is Peratech’s patented ‘QTC’ materials. QTC’s, or Quantum Tunnelling Composites, are a unique new material type which provides a measured response to force and/or touch by changing its electrical resistance – much as a dimmer light switch controls a light bulb. This enables a simple electronic circuit within the robot to determine touch. Being easily formed into unique shapes – including being ‘draped’ over an object much like a garment might, QTC’s provide a metaphor for how human skin works to detect touch.

Uniquely, QTC’s provide a ‘proportional’ response – in other words detecting ‘how hard’ they have been touched. Further, using Peratech’s patented xy scanning technology, the robot is able to detect where on a matrix of sensors applied to areas such as the forearms, shoulders and torso, it has been touched.
As robotic devices continue to make inroads to our daily life, their ability to understand the presence and interaction with humans and other objects within a space becomes critically important. This research project is hoped to produce results which could soon be applied to a range of robotics projects that MIT works upon.

Peratech’s QTC technology has an established track record for use in robotics, having previously been adopted by NASA for their Robonaut device and by Shadow Robot in the UK, producers of what is widely regarded as the World’s most advanced robotic hand, which have utilised QTC to sense ‘touch’. However, this project with MIT is a World first in enabling a human to interact – through touch across the body of a robot – much as they would with another human.

“Shady” Robot Climbs Windows, Blocks Shade

When you’re an MIT researcher and your laboratory’s windows let in too much sunlight, obviously the only thing to do is to build a robot to solve your problem. Whence Shady, a window-climbing robot that unfurls a shade to block sunlight and glare.

If you’ve ever visited MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial intelligence Lab, you’ll know the Frank Gehry-designed Stata Center has some seriously strange architectural features. Among these are huge floor-to-ceiling windows installed on an incline and shiny metal roofing. Researchers in Daniela Rus’s laboratory became annoyed at the sunlight reflecting off the roof and creating glare on their computer monitors throughout the afternoon. When they discovered that blinds for the custom windows were prohibitively expensive, they turned to what they knew best: robots.

Shady is a relatively simple robot that communicates with an operator computer via Bluetooth. Right now, there’s not much that’s autonomous about Shady, so the operator clicks on a graphic representation of the windows and Shady heads over to it. It uses grippers to grip the framing between windows and swings itself up and over to where it needs to be. Once it’s reached its destination, it unfurls a piece of reflective material that shades the operator from direct sunlight or bad glare off the roof.

Shady itself is pretty whimsical, but the locomotion via rotating gripper is really interesting. The developers pointed out that this “truss-climbing” method of getting around is useful on things like scaffolding, or power line towers which need to be inspected and painted. I love what can come out of solving a simple problem.

web.mit.edu

MIT researchers develop Affective Intelligent Driving Agent

Affective Intelligent Driving Agent (AIDA) aims to change the way we interact with our car

MIT researchers and designers are developing the Affective Intelligent Driving Agent (AIDA) – a new in-car personal robot that aims to change the way we interact with our car. The project is a collaboration between the Personal Robots Group at the MIT Media Lab, MIT’s SENSEable City Lab and the Volkswagen Group of America’s Electronics Research Lab.

AIDA communicates with the driver through a small robot embedded in the dashboard.   AIDA is developed to read the driver’s mood from facial expression and other cues and respond in a socially appropriate and informative way.

AIDA communicates in a very immediate way as well: with the seamlessness of a smile or the blink of an eye. Over time, the project envisions that a kind of symbiotic relationship develops between the driver and AIDA, whereby both parties learn from each other and establish an affective bond.

To identify the set of goals the driver would like to achieve, AIDA analyses the driver’s mobility patterns, keeping track of common routes and destinations. AIDA draws on an understanding of the city beyond what can be seen through the windshield, incorporating real-time event information and knowledge of environmental conditions, as well as commercial activity, tourist attractions, and residential areas.

It merges knowledge about the city with an understanding of the driver’s possible priorities and needs, and based on these learned facts, AIDA can make important inferences. Within a week AIDA will have figured out your home and work location. Soon afterward, the system will allegedly be able to direct you to your preferred grocery store, suggesting a route that avoids a street fair-induced traffic jam. On the way AIDA might recommend a stop to fill up your tank, upon noticing that you are getting low on gas. AIDA is also said to also be able to give you feedback on your driving, helping you achieve more energy efficiency and safer behavior.

http://web.mit.edu/