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Visits the headquarters of the Mars Exploration Rover Mission at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. How the two rovers, the Spirit and the Opportunity, have lasted longer and traveled farther than thought possible when they were first launched; Discoveries of the robots that water once soaked Mars and how much a young Mars may have been like Earth as we know it; Possibility that the planet might once have supported life; The excitement of scientists with the discoveries of the rovers; How the machines are running down and will be hibernated for the Martian winter in the hopes they will be able to be revived in the spring; The work and cooperation of experts, scientists, geologists and others which made this mission a success.

The article offers the author's views on the emergence of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) and military robots for ground warfare and military applications in 2009 in the U.S. He states that utilizing robots and in the battlefield is a "game changing" scenario since they are being weaponized and in the future will replace human participation in combat. He cites that there 7,000 robots deployed by the armed forces in combat areas in Iraq and Afghanistan, which proved to be combat multipliers.

We discuss the generation of symbolic feedback con- trol sequences for navigating a sparsely-described and uncertain environment, together with the problem of sensing landmarks sufficiently well to make feedback meaningful. We explore the use of a symbolic control approach for mitigating the lack of a detailed map of the environment and for reducing the complexity associated with finding control laws which steer a control system between distant locations. Under our language-based approach, control inputs take the form of symbolic strings. The decision process that generates those strings is guided by estimates of the vehicle's location within a set of important landmarks and by the statistical effectiveness of each string. This arrangement, and in particular the symbolic nature of the control set, allows us to formulate and solve a class of optimal navigation problems which would be exceedingly difficult to handle if approached at the level of sensors and actuators. Our approach is illustrated in a series of numerical indoor navigation experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comments on the proliferation of mobile robots in the United States in the mid-1990s. The potential for a major commercial payoff; The market boom fueled by the founding and funding of a consortium between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania; How nuclear emergency has pushed the development of robotics; Public ambivalence toward robots.

Examines robotic dinosaurs in museums in the United States. Market for a growing herd of robotic dinosaurs; Boost in museum revenues; Public interest in paleontology.

This article focuses on how penguins could be helpful to robot balance. Thanks to an innate ability to adjust for their squat build, penguins can waddle for miles without toppling over. The key is a side-to-side motion that carries them forward efficiently. Max Kurz of the University of Houston hopes to adapt the birds' unique walk to robots.

Describes Providing Education by Bringing Learning Environments to Students (PEBBLES) robots that have been introduced to five U.S. pediatric centers in the U.S. How the robots will help hospitalized children and prevent them from falling behind in their school work; Features of the robots.

Focuses on the invention of mobile robot for elderly persons in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. Capability of the robot to remind a person; Use of ultrasound and laserfinders in navigating; Miscalculation of researchers on the capacity of the robot.

Focuses on some examples of how upcoming changes may shape the United States Army in the 21st century. Information on the Army's leads with biometrics smart card; Army's testing of mobile detection robots known as Mobile Detection Assessment Response System.

The article offers information on the Autonomous Land Vehicle (ALV), a military robot, which would be developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency of the U.S. The ALV will replace human sentries and will be able to perform hazardous jobs such as detecting land mines, patrolling prisons and inspecting a nuclear power plant. Initially these robots will have a look of a vehicle and will be installed with cameras, laser radar and sensors.

The article discusses the plan of the U.S. Navy to use mechanized soldiers or robots for combat as of March 2008. However, the military is not yet ready to deploy a mechanical soldier at this time according to Bart Everett, director at the Navy's Space and Naval Warfare Center. The author says that fully autonomous robots will be introduced in naval bases in the summer of 2008.

Focuses on the growth of the use of mobile robots that deliver medications from the pharmacy to the nurse station nearest the patient's room in U.S. hospitals. Reason for the growth of demand for pharmacy robots; Types of pharmacy robots that work in the field; Success in the implementation of the IDS500 Dispensing Robot at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital in Houston, Texas.

Reports on the AeroSense meeting for robotics sponsored by the Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers in Orlando, Florida in April 2002. Features of the urban search and rescue robots; Information on Micro Air Vehicles flying robots; Developments in microelectronics.

This article focuses on the Athlete, a mobile robot and habitat made for astronauts. The article explains that the Athlete, developed by Jet Propulsion Laboratory, moves with six wheeled limbs. The article details the Athlete's attributes as well as its uses for the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration astronauts that will use it.

The article focuses on the Urban Grand Challenge, a race of driverless or robot automobiles in the U.S. to be held on November 3, 2007. The competition is sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). It offers $2 million for the grand winner, $1 million for the second placer, and $500,000 for the third placer.

The article presents an overview on several studies published within the June 2006 issue of "IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control" in the U.S. The study conducted by Sean B. Andersson and Dimitrios Hristu presents a method for generating sequences of symbolic feedback control laws for mobile robots navigating in unknown environments. Another study conducted by L.C.G.J.M. Habets and colleagues investigates the problem of synthesizing control laws for piecewise-affine hybrid systems on simplices. Furthermore, an approach to self-assembly and self-organization is proposed and investigated based on graph grammars by Eric Klavins and colleagues.

America's Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the research arm of the Department of Defence, is akin to a high-stakes venture capitalist, gambling large sums of money on risky technologies that will probably fail, but could pay off in a big way. It has had some stupendous successes, such as the internet, the Saturn rocket and micro-electro-mechanical systems. There have also been some resounding failures, such as the Total Information Awareness project, which was swiftly abandoned. But what is arguably DARPA's most outlandish scheme yet will begin March 13th, when robotic vehicles will line up in Barstow, California to make a run across 250 miles of scrub and desert. The vehicles will use digital cameras, radar and sonar, married with sophisticated home-grown software, to navigate. The Grand Challenge is asking researchers to solve the stubborn problem of building land vehicles that navigate and drive themselves. Even if the delicate digital hardware running these machines keeps going, navigating through the Mojave desert represents a complex challenge.

Reports on New Hampshire-based ActivMedia Robotics LLC's development of intelligent mobile robots. Features of the company's robots; Use of special software on the robot's on-board computer; Advantages over other mobile robots.

Discusses the use of a robot to address the clamor for more manpower at a car wash in Fairfield County, Connecticut. Cost of designing and building the robot; Perfection of the robot's spraying motion; Added entertainment for customers.

Presents information on technologies being developed in the U.S. as of December 2002. Mobile robot actuator built by researchers from Venderbilt University; Bone imaging technology from Imaging Therapeutics company; Ceramic, solid-state capillary pump that vaporizes liquid fuel, from Vapore company.

Reports on the contract won by Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California to create a miniature tactical mobile robot for urban operations. Features of the robot; Uses.

Highlights the use of the first autonomous mobile robot as a tour guide at the Carnegie Museum's Dinosaur Hall in Pennsylvania. Creation of the robot through a partnership between RedZone Robotics Inc., the Carnegie Museum of Natural History and Illah Nourkbakhsh, chief scientist at Mobot Inc. and professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon University; Ability to retain attention and interest of children.

On 6 August, NASA's robotic rover Curiosity is scheduled to reach the end of its eight-month journey to Mars and begin its highstakes descent down to the surface of the Red Planet. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article offers information on the robot car race conducted by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the DARPA Urban Challenge held in Southern California in November 2007. It states that the 2007 race was held in the city, unlike previous races that took place in deserts and mentions that 11 driverless vehicle participated in the race. Winner of the race was the company Chevy Tahoe's vehicle Boss that used global positioning system, radar and laser sensors.

The article reports that the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) March 2004 Grand Challenge saw 15 autonomous robotic vehicles vying to finish a grueling 142-mile race in the Mojave Desert of California. The best machine Sandstorm only made it just beyond 7 miles. It reached speeds of 20 miles per hour before hitting a fence. DARPA deemed the race a success because it helped advance autonomous vehicle technology. This year, Grand Challenge II, set for October 8, 2005, will feature a more difficult course replete with natural and human-made obstacles.

This article presents news briefs about new technological innovations published in February 2004 issue of the journal "eWEEK." Robohelp X5, the first version of the popular help-authoring system since eHelp was acquired by Macromedia, gains welcome features that greatly expand the audiences that can be reached through help documentation. It also includes integration with Macromedia formats such as Flash. One of the big features in RoboHelp X5, which was released last month priced at $899, is the ability to write to the FlashHelp format, a dynamic and interactive Flash-based format that can be delivered to Flash players. Also welcome in this version is the ability to import PDF files and export help documentation as PDF files. Wireless links and cheap processing power make mobile robots increasingly practical for industry and public-safety applications. Originally inspired by the fictional R2-D2 "droid" of the "Star Wars" movies, iRobot co-founder Helen Greiner now equips the U.S. troops in Iraq with battlefield-grade PackBot units that can be thrown through a window to explore a potentially booby- trapped building.

Interviews Nancy J. Currie, an astronaut at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas. Missions on which she has flown; Benefits of robotic operations on space missions; Perception of the so-called robonauts as nearly human; Belief that a human-robot spacewalking team is the future of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

In Indiana, senior citizens have adopted robotic dogs (named AIBO, Japanese for 'pal') as part of a Purdue University experiment looking at whether robo-pets can provide companionship and mental stimulation for older people who live alone. Roughly the size of a terrier, AIBO recognizes an individual's voice and can be programmed to develop a relationship of sorts with its owner.

Discusses the use of a robotic employee in a car wash in Fairfield County, Connecticut. Solution to the labor crunch; Entertainment for customers; Improvement of the animation of the robot.

Reports that in the U.S., the Small Mobile Robot Pool provides government agencies with the opportunity to evaluate and experiment with robots. Benefits to users who borrow from the pool of robots; Sponsors of the robotic collection; Contact information for requesting a robot loan or learning more about the pool.

Reports that engineers at Florida International University in Miami-Dade County have developed a robot that can open bottles of beer and set them on a coffee table within easy reach of the drinker.

Offers news briefs relating to computers and the Internet as of September 3, 2001. Difficulty in finding Internet cafes in United States cities; Speculation on whether the software Author, which helps children create fairy tales, could make reporters obsolete; Use of robot boats in Louisiana to scare away birds.

Mentions the research of Mark Yim of Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) in California on a reconfigurable modular robot. Efforts to create a robot for use in search and rescue operations, deep-sea mining, and space exploration; Description of the PARC Polybot, which can change its outward form.