What You Say Is What You Did

A new European project hopes to make robots more trustworthy

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Year by year, robots become better and better at negotiating each time more complex social interactions with humans. However, much as their social intelligence has improved, these interactions still suffer from a lack of transparency. In other words, unlike humans, robots are not capable of understanding and explaining their actions in intentional terms, which prevents them from having more effective communication with humans. To the joy of robots and humans alike, this challenge is now addressed by the What You Say Is What You Did (WYSIWYD) project, launched earlier this year.

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Barcelona Robotics Meeting 2014

logo-barcelona-robotics-miniLast Saturday robotics enthusiasts from all over Barcelona gathered in the Mobile World Centre at the heart of the city to learn about how the latest robotic technology is being put at the service of citizens. The event was organised by the educaBOT foundation, which aspires to promote science and technology and introduce a wider audience to the reality of robotics research and industry.

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euRobotics Forum 2014

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The fifth edition of one of the most influential events for the European robotics community took place last week from March 12-14 in Rovereto, Italy. As always, the 3-day program was jam-packed with dynamic workshops, seminars and talks, making it possible for robotics stakeholders from the whole of Europe to discuss the future of robotics research and industry, find new potential business applications and expand their professional network.

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Innovation Convention 2014

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This week, from March 10-11, over 2000 people from a variety of sectors involved in research, innovation and science gathered to take part in the 2nd Innovation Convention. The event, held this year in Brussels, is a key initiative of the Innovation Union, which aims to make Europe a more innovation-friendly environment – an idea that lies at the core of the European Union’s 2020 strategy.

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ICT 2013: Create, Connect, Grow

From November 6–8, nearly 5000 of Europe’s top researchers, engineers, industry representatives, politicians, journalists, entrepreneurs, and students gathered in Vilnius, Lithuania to share insight and future visions for the future of ICT in Europe. The global event also provided  an inspiring setting for the discussion of European ICT policy as well as networking opportunities for business, research, and innovation groups.
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More Humanoids in Action

Check out some of the most life-like robots out there!

The  HRP-4C Humanoid  robot was developed by The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) of Japan and Kawada Industries. As you can see above, this robot can put on quite the show! Created mainly for entertainment purposes, this robot has even hit fashion runways! Actroid- DER3, developed by Osaka University and the robotics company Kokoro, is also being used for similar purposes.
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iCub: the Robot Dj

The iCub and a human jam together on the Reactable

At the Synthetic, Perceptive, Emotive and Cognitive Systems group (SPECS) at the Universidad Pompeu Fabra (UPF) in Barcelona, it’s just your average Jam session. Fellow music makers include a PhD student, a robot and the Reactable! The demonstration featured in the video above merges two projects into one: The Reactable and the Experimental Functional Android Assistant  (EFAA), which is using the iCub robot as its main research platform.
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iCub Never Forgets a Face…

Check out a new model for face recognition software from SPECS!

Many mammals have an amazing ability to recognize objects under distinct conditions. Tasks that may seem simple are in fact only possible thanks to the great complexity of the mammalian cerebral cortex. One of the most complex stimuli mammals are challenged by are faces.
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Robots and Royalty

icub meets Spain’s Prince and Princess of Asturias, Don Felipe and Doña Letizia at the Campus Party Milenio, Granada

The event is being celebrated from the 12th -26th of October to mark the  the millennium of the Kingdom of Granada. With over 600 experts  from 22 countries of the
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iCub

The famed European robot has made itself a home in laboratories around the globe

iCub is a robot capable of  interacting with the world much the way a small child does . It is used to look at how experience and the learning of physical acts can affect the development of cognition.  Among other capabilities, iCub is able to:  crawl, grasp objects and express emotion through facial expressions.  Check out the article in nature featuring the icub project leader Giulio Sandini who is also the founder of the LIRA-Lab (Laboratory for Integrated Advanced Robotics) at the University of Genoa and director of research in the Robotics, Brain and Cognitive Sciences department at IIT (the Italian Institute of Technology). Giulio is also a consortium member of the Coordination Action of the Robot Companions for Citizens FET Flagship Initiative.