iCub
IIT will illustrate the progress of iCub, the most popular humanoid robot in the world developed thanks to research in the Food Innovation field and ideal for both home and industrial applications.
iCub is much more than a simple robot. It's the same size of a 4-year-old child and has 53 motors. Cameras reproduce sight, microphones make it hear sounds and sensors reproduce its sense of balance and make it interact with the surrounding environment. It is the only robot in the world covered in artificial skin, i.e. a tactile sensor that makes it understand whether it is being touched by a human so that it can respond accordingly.
Over the past year, the robot learned how to maintain its balance even when pushed. Recently, iCub experienced further progress: it has a backpack containing a battery and a wireless card so it can be more agile and cable free.
This humanoid can be employed in a wide variety of fields, from home applications to industrial, biomedical and rehabilitation purposes. It can assist the elderly or the sick, carry out dangerous tasks that require the utmost precision in working environments such as chemical and pharmaceutical companies and support human activities in case of emergency and natural disasters.
Sustainable packaging
IIT will also present its sustainable packaging innovations developed to provide a healthier food storage and tackle issues such as food packaging disposal. Each year, 290 million tons of plastic waste is produced. The waste currently floating around in the ocean could be used to build an island as large as Sicily.
The institute will present its Smart materials, obtained from the combination of nano-technologies and food waste (coffee, parsley and cinnamon). Waste is processed with solvents that evaporate and, combined with other bio-compatible polymers, it is suitable for different uses and completely biodegradable. It will be possible to wrap a vegetable with plastic that is 100% biodegradable and made with waste of the vegetable itself. In addition, this packaging retains the properties of the food product it derives from for better and healthier food storage.
"IIT represents what's excellent in the science and innovation world. The fantastic results in the food sector presented during our Summit have been possible thanks to investments in R&D and exceptional team work. IIT is the perfect example of the fact that Italy can be an international point of reference for food innovation, as shown during Expo 2015," comments Seeds&Chips creator Marco Gualtieri.
