ABB today introduced ABB Dynafin™, propulsion system designed to break new ground for efficiency in the marine industry. Inspired by the dynamic motions of a whale’s tail, the concept is the result of over a decade of research, development, and testing.

A popular vision of a future with robots was created by the immensely popular Star Wars movies. The word “droid” is so ubiquitous that it is hard to believe the word was created and trademarked by George Lucas, the films’ director. In fact, Star Wars robots have motivated real science. As an example, NASA’s personal satellite assistant was inspired by the lightsaber training droid used by Luke Skywalker. If a minor droid in Star Wars can influence NASA, can R2-D2 and BB-8, the movies’ two nonanthropomorphic robots, have an effect on how we conduct repairs?