A robot scientist capable of carrying out experiments by itself has made its first discovery, a new study has revealed. Researchers at the University of Liverpool built the intelligent mobile robot chemist in the hope of solving a range of research problems. Similar to a human researcher, the first-of-its-kind robot is able to use standard laboratory equipment with its humanoid limbs, as well as make its own decisions about which experiments to perform. Unlike a human, however, the 400kg machine can think in 10 dimensions and is capable of working for up to 21.5 hours a day – pausing only to recharge its batteries. "Our strategy here was to automate the researcher, rather than the instruments," said Professor Andrew Cooper from the university's Department of Chemistry and Materials Innovation Factory.

Researchers from Université de Sherbrooke in Canada have created a robot arm that can be used by humans which has the dexterity to pick fruit. The type of arm developed is called a supernumerary robotic arm, in that it does not supplement any existing human limb but adds an extra one to the body. The arm has three degrees of freedom and is controlled by a hydraulic system connected to the user through a tether and controlled by another human being. According to IEEE Spectrum, the arm weighs little over four kilograms, approximately the same as a human arm, although most of that weight comes from its external power source which has to be attached to the arm at all times. In terms of power, the arm can lift a five kilogram weight, meaning that it could be used for a number of tasks including painting walls, washing windows, handing tools to a human worker, or even playing badminton.

Robotic hands capable of picking up objects as fragile as a crisp by "sensing" objects have been developed by researchers. Two new tools built by MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) offer a breakthrough in the emerging field of soft robotics – a new generation of robots that use squishy, flexible materials rather than traditional rigid equipment. These types of soft robots often draw inspiration from living organisms and offer numerous benefits in their versatile functionality. They are able to operate far more delicately than their rigid counterparts, but until now they have lacked the ability to perceive what items they are interacting with. To overcome this, the researchers equipped their robots with various sensors, cameras and software, allowing them to "see and classify" a range of objects.