Dr. Michael Goldfarb, AZ A ’89, has directed research efforts in the development of a new ‘bionic’ leg “with powered knee and ankle joints that operate in unison.”
Dr. Goldfarb is professor at Vanderbilt University and the new technology of the prosthetic has been patented and rights have been given to a prosthesis developer and manufacturer. Click here to read more about the technology involved in designing a prosthetic device that uses data to predict a person’s movement.
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IBM researchers, funded by DARPA and with collaboration from several universities, unveiled two new cognitive computing cores, or “neurosynaptic chips” based on the neurons and synapses of the brain.
According to the article, the new chip “integrates memory with processor capability on a typical SOI-CMOS platform, using traditional transistors in a new design.”
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Engineers at the University of Michigan have been working to improve and increase the speed that the MABEL robot can run. Recently, MABEL hit top speeds of 6.8 mph, comparable to the average human jogger. Read the article and see the video here
The potential uses for a robot with a “smoother running gait” include being used for places soldiers are not safe and powering an exoskeleton to help the disabled walk. Koushil Sreenath (TX H ’05), graduate student and collaborator, imagines the possibilities of the future, “a class of running machines like animals that could transport you around with no roads but with a smooth and efficient ride.”
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