Because they can go where humans can’t, robots are especially suited for safely working with hazardous nuclear waste. But first, those robots need to become like the humans they are replacing, with arms and fingers that can closely mimic the movements of a person.
Now, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Argonne National Laboratory have designed and tested a remote-controlled, dual-arm telerobotics system with human-like capabilities that have the potential to revolutionize hazardous waste clean-up and hold potential for broader applications.
Designed as part of a multilaboratory, multi-institution project, the telerobotics system was recently successfully tested in a mock, nonradioactive setting at DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Along with Argonne and ORNL, the Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, the University of Illinois Chicago, Northwestern University, and United Cleanup Oak Ridge, LLC, are collaborators on the three-year project launched in 2023. The project was funded by DOE’s Office of Environmental Management.