Case Western Reserve University engineers are working with partners at two other universities and an Italian-owned company in Michigan to study, predict and optimize how robots will interact with human co-workers in factories of the future. While robots have been increasingly integrated into manufacturing since their introduction in the early 1960s, true human-robot workplace collaboration is still […]
What’s Next for Smart Homes: An ‘Internet of Ears?’
Houses have been getting progressively “smarter” for decades, but the next generation of smart homes may offer what two Case Western Reserve University scientists are calling an “Internet of Ears.” Today’s smart home features appliances, entertainment systems, security cameras and lighting, heating and cooling systems that are connected to each other and the Internet. They […]
Researchers Demonstrate ‘Random, Transistor’ Laser That Can Be Manipulated at Nanoscale
In the last half-century, laser technology has grown into a multi-billion-dollar global industry and has been used in everything from optical-disk drives and barcode scanners to surgical and welding equipment. Not to mention those laser pointers that entertain and confound your cat. Now, lasers are poised to take another step forward: Researchers at Case Western […]
Understanding the Smallest Brain Circuits
Roberto Fernández Galán, an assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer science at the university’s School of Engineering, and a team of undergraduate researchers at Case Western Reserve have been recording the electrical activity of hundreds of neurons as they fire inside the brain of a mouse model-for up to half an hour at a […]
Unraveling How A Brain Works, Block By High-Tech Block
Psychologists have long used building blocks to assess cognitive skills. But researchers at Case Western Reserve University are imbedding the blocks with technology that may provide a clearer view of problems a child or adult may suffer due to developmental disabilities, brain trauma or dementia. In testing college-age adults, blocks with sensors inside detected hyperactivity […]
Researchers Build a Crawling Robot from Sea Slug Parts and 3-D Printed Body
Researchers at Case Western Reserve University have combined tissues from a sea slug with flexible 3-D printed components to build “biohybrid” robots that crawl like sea turtles on the beach. A muscle from the slug’s mouth provides the movement, which is currently controlled by an external electrical field. However, future iterations of the device will […]
Researchers Discover Moving, Electrically ‘Silent’ Source Initiates Brain Waves
Brain waves that spread through the hippocampus are initiated by a method not seen before–a possible step toward understanding and treating epilepsy, according to researchers at Case Western Reserve University. The researchers discovered a traveling spike generator that appears to move across the hippocampus–a part of the brain mainly associated with memory–and change direction, while […]