To people in the household really help, you must first learn robot better cope with unknown situations. The problem: While researchers are now increasingly intelligent machines before programmer to even the most complex tasks to solve, but in an unstructured environment is hardly helps. At the University of Massachusetts Amherst has now developed a robot that also can use items, which he never before encountered. The UMass Mobile manipulator “, shortly UMan, pushes new objects on a table around, to see how they move. Is it appropriate parts covered, he experimented with them – and then manipulate them according to new tasks. “It’s similar to when a baby imagine that a new toy discovered and all existing parts touch to find out how things move,” said Dov Katz, master’s student at the university and principal author of the study. He led the investigation along with his computer science Professor Oliver Brock. Continue reading →