Media advisory: Humanoid robots, unmanned aerial vehicles and other tech to kick off engineering forum Sunday

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Question: How do you begin one of the world’s foremost mechanical engineering conferences?

Answer: By showing off miniature, unmanned aerial vehicles, humanoid robots and other cutting-edge technologies that demonstrate the future of advanced manufacturing and design.

Organized by The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and co-hosted by the University at Buffalo, the conference starts Sunday at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center. It will include up to 2,000 engineers who work for Fortune 500 companies and startups, as well as higher education, government and other organizations.

News media members are invited to attend.

Here are details on two of Sunday’s most visually-oriented demonstrations.

What: Quadrotors: robots that fly

Why they’re cool: Unlike traditional unmanned aerial vehicles, quadrotors can fit in the palm of your hand. These small, agile robots can swarm, sense each other and, thus, work as a team for construction projects, disaster surveying and more.

Who: Vijay Kumar, UPS Foundation Professor in the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Pennsylvania.

When: From 12 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Where: Room 101 B

The second demonstration:

What: Humanoid robots

Why: Built to resemble the human body, humanoid robots are designed to both work among people and do jobs considered too dull, dangerous or dirty for humans.

Who: Dennis Hong, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles.

When: From 12:30 p.m. to 1 p.m.

Where: Room 106 D

Onsite contact: Deborah Wetzel, ASME media relations manager, at 917-580-0974 or wetzeld@asme.org.

J. Robert “Bob” Sims, ASME president, is available to discuss the conference. Reporters interested in speaking with him should contact Wetzel.