Virtual reality is set to revolutionize Australia’s $24 billion forestry industry by training workers risk-free, remotely, and much faster.

A VR immersive training tool developed by the University of South Australia is expected to save the industry millions of dollars in the long term.

Lead researcher and immersive technology expert Dr. Andrew Cunningham and developer Jack Fraser have spent the past year working on the VR tool to support training in South Australia’s forestry mills, and hope to roll it out nationally.

The “Mills Skills VR” tool uses virtual reality across a range of scenarios, immersing users in a 3D environment that simulates all aspects of forestry practices, training them in a risk-free setting.

“For the untrained, the forest industry is inherently risky, especially in the mills because it involves large, heavy machinery,” Dr. Cunningham says. “It is also a fast moving and busy environment, so if we can train workers to recognize the hazards and equip them with the skills before they step into the mill, it’s better for everyone.”

A significant benefit is that the trainees can use the VR tool anywhere in Australia, with a virtual reality headset, saving time and costs in flying them halfway across the country.

Workforce Development Manager at the Green Triangle Forest Industry Hub, Josh Praolini, says the VR training model could reshape how training is delivered to forest industry workers in Australia.

“At the moment, we rely on access to trainers and machinery that is an essential part of the mill operations. By training new recruits on these machines, you slow or halt production, and expose them to potential risks,” Praolini says.

“This virtual reality tool allows us to safely introduce recruits to multiple scenarios they could encounter in the mill, as well as offering updated training to existing workers without impacting day-to-day operations of the mill.”

Beyond the VR training, UniSA researchers are using immersive analytics tools to gather data on plantations and view the trees virtually in a 3D environment, checking for defects, wood quality and growing conditions.

“The ability to track, monitor and interact in virtual environments opens the door to an exciting future for Australia’s forest industry,” Mr. Praolini says.

Dr. Cunningham is confident the industry’s willingness to embrace new technology will also make it an appealing career choice for high school and university students.

“The forest industry currently supports around 80,000 direct jobs in Australia, but we still need a lot more workers. Virtual reality can take people into a mill and a plantation, showcasing what is involved and the opportunities that lie ahead for a progressive and satisfying career.”

The next step is to adapt the training tool to other industries where safety is important, including building and manufacturing.

A multidisciplinary team of scientists has conducted a study of Asian and African elephant wrinkles to learn more about their purpose. In their study, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, the group studied zoo animals, museum specimens and photographs to learn more about the development and purpose of elephant wrinkles.

Prior research has shown that the elephant trunk is a remarkable anatomical structure—made of some 46,000 muscles, it can be bent, turned, twisted and flapped depending on the needs of its owner. Its tip is also moveable, acting as a hand or hook to help retrieve food.

Less well studied regarding the trunk, and the rest of an elephant, the researchers on this new effort noted, are its wrinkles. Elephants have wrinkles on most parts of their bodies, but they are most prominent on their legs and especially their trunks.

To learn more about the reason for the wrinkles, the research team studied how both Asian and African elephants in zoos moved and used their trunks. They also looked at preserved tissue and studied photographs of elephants still in the womb. By placing such photographs together to form a timeline, they were able to track the development of wrinkles.

The research team found that wrinkles develop while elephants are still in the womb; the animals grow increasingly more wrinkled as they age. They serve a specific purpose on the trunk, helping with shape shifting and when lifting objects.

In watching the elephants, the researchers also found that they have a “trunkedness,” in which individuals exhibit preference for wrapping or curling their trunk around an object from the same direction. Their preference results in physical adaptations to the trunk. There were more wrinkles on the curled-in side of the trunk to help hold objects and shorter whiskers on the opposite side of the trunk as they are continually scuffed against the ground.

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Researchers at the University of Science and Technology of China have developed a soft robotic “finger” with a sophisticated sense of touch that can perform routine doctor’s office examinations, including taking a patient’s pulse and checking for abnormal lumps. This work was published October 9 in Cell Reports Physical Science.

Such technology could make it easier for doctors to detect diseases such as breast cancer early on, when they are more treatable. It may also help patients feel at ease during physical exams that can seem uncomfortable and invasive.

“By further development to improve its efficiency, we also believe that a dexterous hand made of such fingers can act as a ‘Robodoctor’ in a future hospital, like a physician,” says Hongbo Wang, a sensing technologies researcher at the University of Science and Technology of China and an author of the study.

“Combined with machine learning, automatic robotic examination and diagnosis can be achieved, particularly beneficial for these undeveloped areas where there is a serious shortage in health workers.”

While rigid robotic fingers already exist, experts have raised concerns that these devices might not be up to the delicate tasks required in a doctor’s office setting. Some have pointed to potential safety issues, including a fear that overzealous robotic fingers could rupture lumps during examinations.

More recently, scientists have developed lightweight, safe, and low-cost soft robotics that can recreate the movements of human hands. However, these devices haven’t been able to sense the complex properties of objects they touch the way real fingers do.

“Despite the remarkable progress in the last decade, most soft fingers presented in the literature still have substantial gaps compared to human hands,” the authors write, noting that robotic fingers have not been ready to handle ‘real world’ scenarios.”

To overcome this challenge, the researchers developed a simple device that contains conductive fiber coils with two parts—a coil wound on each air chamber of the device’s bending actuators (the parts that enable it to move) and a twisted liquid metal fiber mounted at the fingertip.

By measuring properties that affect how the device’s electrical current flows, the team found that they could monitor, in real time, how far the finger bends as it touches an object and the force at the fingertip. In this way, the device could perceive an object’s properties as effectively as human touch.

To test the device, the researchers started by brushing a feather against its fingertip.

“The magnified view clearly shows the resistance change, indicating its high sensitivity in force sensing,” the authors write.

Next, they tapped and pushed the fingertip with a glass rod and repeatedly bent the finger, observing that the device’s sensors accurately perceived the type and quantity of force they applied.

To test the finger’s medical chops, they mounted it on a robotic arm and watched as it identified three lumps embedded in a large silicone sheet, pressing on them like a doctor would. While mounted on the robotic arm, the finger also correctly located an artery on a participant’s wrist and took their pulse.

“Humans can easily recognize the stiffness of diverse objects by simply pressing it with their finger,” the authors write. “Similarly, since the [device] has the ability to sense both its bending deformation and the force at the fingertip, it can detect stiffness similar to our human hand by simply pressing an object.”

In addition to taking pulses and examining simulated lumps, the researchers found that the robotic finger can type “like a human hand,” spelling out the word “hello.”

By using additional sensors to create even more flexibility in the robotic finger’s joints, allowing the device to move in multiple directions like a human finger, it may be ready to perform effective and efficient medical examinations in the near future, the authors conclude.

“We hope to develop an intelligent, dexterous hand, together with a sensorized artificial muscle-driven robotic arm, to mimic the unparalleled functions and fine manipulations of the human hands,” said Wang.

That long-held Wimbledon tradition of line judges dressed in elegant uniforms is no more.

The All England Club announced Wednesday that artificial intelligence will be used to make the ‘out’ and ‘fault’ calls at the championships from 2025.

Wimbledon organizers said the decision to adopt live electronic line calling was made following extensive testing at the 2024 tournament and “builds on the existing ball-tracking and line-calling technology that has been in place for many years.”

“We consider the technology to be sufficiently robust and the time is right to take this important step in seeking maximum accuracy in our officiating,” said Sally Bolton, chief executive of the All England Club. “For the players, it will offer them the same conditions they have played under at a number of other events on tour.”

Bolton said Wimbledon had a responsibility to “balance tradition and innovation.”

“Line umpires have played a central role in our officiating set-up at the championships for many decades,” she said, “and we recognize their valuable contribution and thank them for their commitment and service.”

Line-calling technology has long been used at Wimbledon and other tennis tournaments to call whether serves are in or out.

The All England Club also said Wednesday that the ladies’ and gentlemen’s singles finals will be scheduled to take place at the later time of 4 p.m. local time on the second Saturday and Sunday, respectively—and after doubles finals on those days.

Bolton said the moves have been made to ensure the day of the finals “builds towards the crescendo of the ladies’ and gentlemen’s singles finals, with our champions being crowned in front of the largest possible worldwide audience.”

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