Visitors of all ages were invited to attend a number of  talks on subjects ranging from healthcare and educational robots to civil applications of drones and autonomous submarine vehicles. In addition, those interested could take part in a series of workshops, which encouraged people to learn about the practical side of robotics.

iCub playing pong with children

Another highlight of the Meeting was the national final of the VEX Robotics Competition, where several teams faced each other in an interactive game that motivated them to find creative solutions to complex engineering problems.

The biggest attraction of the event, however, was the exhibition area that allowed the visitors to get a glimpse of the future of the service robotics. Although modest in size, the exhibition featured some remarkable examples of robotic technology, mainly provided by local research institutions.

Teo robot from Institut de Robòtica i Informàtica Industrial

Adele Robots, for instance, showcased an adorable baby seal robot called Paro, which is already used for therapeutic purposes in hospitals and aged care facilities, where it helps personnel calm patients and improve their social behaviour. The exhibition also featured the iCub robot from the Synthetic, Perceptive, Emotive and Cognitive Systems group (SPECS) at Pompeu Fabra University. The robot received tons of deserved attention, especially from children. Teo, a 3D mapping robot from Institut de Robòtica i Informàtica Industrial, and Aisoy1, an educational robot from Aisoy Robotics, are just two other examples from this year’s exhibition.

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.

Robot-lovers are likely already familiar with the iCub, a European robot famous for being able to interact with the world much the way a small child does- by learning from others around it. As  robots become increasingly ubiquitous  in our daily lives, the social compatibility of such robots gains more importance and in order to meaningfully interact with humans, robots need some real-world social intelligence.  For this reason robotocists are working hard to endow machines like the iCub with novel perceptual, behavioural, emotional, motivational and cognitive capabilities.

While there has been  a lot of research centred on human-robot interaction, another interesting line of research investigates not only  how humans interact with robots but also how different forms of technology  interact with each other. Within this context, robots are rather special because they’re capable of using some forms of technology much the way humans do.  The video above features the iCub simultaneously jamming with musician and scientist, Andre Luvizotto, on the Reactable.

Beginning as a research project by the Music Technology Group at UPF,  the Reactable is a new electronic musical instrument  that enables musicians to experiment with sound by changing its structure and controlling  its parameters in a highly original way. Recently turned into a spin-off company, Reactable Systems, the amazing piece of technology is  now being used by various musicians around the globe, including world renown Icelandic singer-songwriter Björk.

While the iCub’s got a ways to go before becoming a Reactable pro, guided by Andre, it’s capable of identifying, grasping and positioning objects that symbolically represent different musical instruments. The result is sweet, sweet music- made by one man and two machines!

We know it takes creative minds to inspire new technology, are we now on our way to making creative technology that can inspire us?

You may want to read a Spanish article in the El País Technology blog about a Robot artist… and if you’re curious about more cutting edge technology, check out the European Flagship Initiative: Robot Companions for Citizens

The LOPES has already been included in a couple European projects; formerly in one named Everyon and currently in the 3 year project MINDWALKER (Mind controlled orthosis and VR training environment for walk empowering ). This project is capitalising on the synergy that exists between diverse research fields in Europe; as potential robotics applications are becoming more and more concrete and plausible likewise, recent brain research is delivering promising results with new potential applications. Exploiting these concurrent developments, MINDWALKER incorporates the LOPES, Brain Computer Interface technologies and Virtual Reality in a comprehensive rehabilitation system for the lower limbs. Similarly, the SPECS Lab at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra has developed RGS (Rehabilitation Gaming System), a virtual reality tool that exploits what we know about the brain’s  plasticity to rehabilitate arm movement in stroke patients.

Robot Companions for Citizens is another example of a European sponsored initiative which integrates advances in neuroscience, robotics and new materials. This initiative aims to create novel benefits for society by fostering  the development of new types of robots and a new industry at large.