Advanced Robotics Research Ltd (ARRL) launched their Virtual Reality and Simulation Initiative at the National Advanced Robotics Research Centre, Salford, on Friday, 2 July 1993. Lord Wade of Chorlton was the Guest of Honour.

First results of a research project at Bolton Institute show advantages in using a text‐based off‐line programmer in conjunction with a low‐cost PC‐based kinematic simulator. The system being developed could mean for small companies an economical alternative to using comprehensive robot...

A group of users, academics and suppliers of virtual reality systems and equipment — about 35 people — got together on Monday and Tuesday 6 and 7 September 1993 at the University of Reading to assess the progress and prospects of virtual reality as applied to engineering. The event was...

The American automotive industry is a pyramid of responsibility. The manufacturers do just one thing: they build vehicles. The tools of automation which make this possible are developed and installed by a large population of independent contractors. These shops in turn rest on a flexible base of...

Instructing a robot to perform a task is rarely a simple process, even if the task is straightforward by human standards. One reason for this is that the sub‐task flow into which the human mind naturally breaks the task differs greatly from information a robot needs to perform the task.

At a recent meeting of the British Association for Automation and Robotics in Construction (BAARC), representatives of four of Japan's largest construction companies were invited to report on recent progress in automation and robotics in the Japanese construction industry. The meeting was...

Last November a robot called the ROBODOC™ Surgical Assistant made medical history as the first robot to take an active role in orthopaedic surgery. ROBODOC's function in the operating room is to prepare a cavity for a prosthetic implant which will replace a patient's damaged or diseased hip...

The Opera House building is synonymous worldwide with Sydney, Australia. The unique shape (see photo) is actually due to the architect wanting to recreate the geometry of orange segments, not to project the image of sails on the harbour as is generally believed. However, whatever the origin of...

What do cleaning toilets and police work have in common? They're dirty work? Someone has to do them? And they are both booming markets for service robots. Consider the following:

A fully automatic milking system has been under development at the Silsoe Research Institute for about seven years. Field trials are planned for the next couple of years. It may then take several more years before the system becomes commercially available.