Hardware Podcasts

Episode 108: Giving robots the sense of touch - Anuradha Ranasinghe

Robot Talk · 7 Feb 2025 · 22m · Episode 108

What this episode covers

Anuradha Ranasinghe, a senior lecturer in robotics at Liverpool Hope University, discusses her research into haptic sensors for robotics and wearable technology. She explains the challenges of replicating human touch, focusing on material selection for diverse environments like nuclear plants and medical surgery, and the importance of integrating vision, force, and temperature sensing. Ranasinghe details a specific project using deformable silicon and UV-marked patterns to create a sensor that mimics human reflex reactions, achieving a response time of 443 milliseconds for temperature detection between 31 and 50 Celsius. The conversation highlights the shift toward multimodal perception, combining haptics with computer vision and audition to give robots a richer understanding of their environment.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Liverpool Hope University, King's College London, MIT, NHS
Products
JellSens Sensor, virtual wards

Related episodes from other shows

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • EE Times Current · 47m

    Event-Driven E-Skins Protect Both Robots and Humans

    Professor Gordon Cheng of the Technical University of Munich explains his development of event-driven e-skins for humanoid robots, using off-the-shelf sensors to create a low-power, autonomous touch system that improves safety and enables brain-machine interface applications. He discusses the challenges of scaling sensor data, the move from conventional control to neuromorphic event-based processing, and the potential for sensory substitution in prosthetics. The episode also features commentary from Dr. Giulia D’Angelo and Professor Ralph Etienne-Cummings on the definition of neuromorphic engineering and the current state of the industry.

    Sensors & measurement in productsEmbedded firmware
    6 chapters

  • EE Times Current · 47m

    Event-Driven E-Skins Protect Both Robots and Humans

    Professor Gordon Cheng of the Technical University of Munich explains his development of event-driven e-skin for humanoid robots, using off-the-shelf sensors and neuromorphic communication to enable safe, autonomous physical interaction. He details how hexagonal sensor patches covering the robot's body transmit only change-based events to avoid data overload, allowing the robot to sense proximity, force, temperature, and vibration. The discussion with Dr. Giulia D’Angelo and Professor Ralph Etienne-Cummings explores the distinction between device-level and system-level neuromorphic engineering, the challenges of scaling such technology, and its applications in brain-machine interfaces and prosthetics.

    Mechanical engineeringEmbedded firmware
    7 chapters

  • The Next Byte Podcast · 20m

    178. Talk to The Hand: Meet The Robots With a Human Touch

    Daniel and Forbode discuss a team from MIT, including lead author Sandra Lou, who developed the 'Gel Palm' robotic hand to address the lack of tactile feedback in current robotic designs. The system combines a semi-flexible endoskeleton with a soft gel layer and uses embedded LEDs and Raspberry Pi cameras to reconstruct 3D geometry and pressure data from reflected light. The hosts highlight the platform's ability to handle delicate objects safely and its potential application in creating more human-like prosthetics, noting the use of off-the-shelf components like Adafruit LEDs and 3D printed molds.

    Robotics & autonomySensors & measurement in products
    6 chapters

  • EE Times Current · 45m

    Perceiving Touch With Event-Based Neuromorphic Computing

    Dr. Simeon Bamford, a senior researcher at the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), discusses his work on neuromorphic tactile sensors and bio-inspired circuits. He details the commercialization of dynamic vision sensors (DVS) through the startup Inilabs and Innovation, and his PhD research on the Rena chip, which emulates cerebellar learning to replace brain functions damaged by stroke. The episode also features a discussion with Prof. Ralph Etienne-Cummings of Johns Hopkins University about the system-level challenges and biological parallels of these technologies.

    Mechanical engineeringChips, FPGAs & semiconductors
    7 chapters

  • The Manufacturing Executive · 23m

    Digitizing Human Touch and Feel w/ Youssef Benmokhtar

    Youssef Benmokhtar, CEO of GelSight, explains how his company is digitizing the human sense of touch using imaging-based tactile sensors to solve quality inspection challenges in manufacturing. He details the technology's origin at MIT, its ability to measure micron-scale surface features and roughness, and its application in aerospace for characterizing scratches, dents, and radii on engine blades and airframes. Benmokhtar also discusses the concept of 'perceptual quality,' where AI analyzes tactile data to replace subjective human grading of textures, and outlines future applications in surgical robotics and haptic feedback systems.

    Sensors & measurement in productsAI & machine learning
    7 chapters

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by Robot Talk. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.