عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Varieties

Scientists Integrate Computer Vision Software in Prosthetic Limbs

Used prosthetic legs are seen at the Center of Advanced Prosthetics in San Jose February 11, 2013. JUAN CARLOS ULATE/REUTERS
Used prosthetic legs are seen at the Center of Advanced Prosthetics in San Jose February 11, 2013. JUAN CARLOS ULATE/REUTERS
TT
20
TT

Scientists Integrate Computer Vision Software in Prosthetic Limbs

Used prosthetic legs are seen at the Center of Advanced Prosthetics in San Jose February 11, 2013. JUAN CARLOS ULATE/REUTERS
Used prosthetic legs are seen at the Center of Advanced Prosthetics in San Jose February 11, 2013. JUAN CARLOS ULATE/REUTERS

A US research team has developed new software that enables people using robotic prosthetics or exoskeletons to walk in a safer, more natural manner on different types of terrain.

The new framework incorporates computer vision into prosthetic leg control, and allows it to better account for uncertainty.

The software also uses a tiny camera installed on one of the limb's ends. The Science Daily website cited Researcher Edgar Lobaton from the North Carolina State University, saying "Lower-limb robotic prosthetics need to execute different behaviors based on the terrain users are walking on."

"The framework we've created allows the AI in robotic prostheses to predict the type of terrain users will be stepping on, quantify the uncertainties associated with that prediction, and then incorporate those results into its decision-making," he explained.

According to the German News Agency, the software can distinguish between six different terrains that require adjustments in a robotic prosthetic's behavior including tile, concrete, grass, and stairs (up and down).

Boxuan Zhong, lead author of the paper and a Ph.D. graduate from NC State said: "If the degree of uncertainty is too high, the AI software could notify the user or it could default to a 'safe' mode."

Most Viewed

 
Varieties

UK Farm Swaps Milk for Cow Cuddles

Visitor Jess Tinton embraces a cow during a "Cow Cuddling" experience at Dumble Farm in Arram, Britain, June 17, 2025. REUTERS/Phil Noble
Visitor Jess Tinton embraces a cow during a "Cow Cuddling" experience at Dumble Farm in Arram, Britain, June 17, 2025. REUTERS/Phil Noble
TT
20
TT

UK Farm Swaps Milk for Cow Cuddles

Visitor Jess Tinton embraces a cow during a "Cow Cuddling" experience at Dumble Farm in Arram, Britain, June 17, 2025. REUTERS/Phil Noble
Visitor Jess Tinton embraces a cow during a "Cow Cuddling" experience at Dumble Farm in Arram, Britain, June 17, 2025. REUTERS/Phil Noble

Years of floods and low food prices have driven a dairy farm in England's northeast to stop milking its cows and instead charge visitors to cuddle them.

Dumble Farm started as a dairy farm in the 1970s, but in recent years flooding washed out crops and killed off the type of grass the cows like to eat, while milk prices below cost of production proved an insurmountable challenge, Reuters reported.

"The amount of flooding and the pressures on our land were just making it unsustainable for us to carry on," said Fiona Wilson, co-owner of the farm.

Agriculture is one of the sectors worst-affected by climate change, with farmers in Europe and elsewhere suffering under increasing heat, drought and flooding.

In 2022, Dumble Farm sold all but a few of its dairy cows and, in a scramble to reinvent itself, began offering "cow cuddling" experiences to fund a wildlife conservation scheme.

For 95 pounds ($127.80), visitors can cuddle, brush and stroke the cows as they lie down on a straw-covered enclosure inside a barn. The experience includes a safari to see Highland cattle.

"It's been so worth it, just to get so close to the cows, and they are so loving and gentle," guest Emma Hutton, 25, said after she spent some time cuddling one of the cows.

It took over a year to train the cows to feel comfortable with cuddling, but now the animals have fully adjusted, farmer James McCune said.

"They like being pampered. They are like big dogs... It's more of a spa day for the cows," McCune said. The farm uses the proceeds to create habitats to protect wildlife and support declining species, such as lapwing birds.

"It's great that we can fund the conservation scheme by having visitors to the farm, and that's really the bigger picture," Wilson said.