# Robots Gain Sense of Touch Amazon and University of Michigan's HydroShear technology enables robots to learn tactile sensation. - **Source:** [Amazon Science](https://www.amazon.science) - **Published:** 2026-07-10 - **Topic:** [Data & AI](https://brifing.si/c/data-ai) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/dc1b2bf4-fac2-4a43-aa1d-58cc1b777158 ## The Lack of Touch in Robots Robots often lack the sense of touch when performing delicate, contact-intensive tasks, especially in industrial settings. This limitation hinders their ability to manipulate objects effectively. Despite years of effort, scalable and robust solutions to this problem remain elusive. ## HydroShear Technology HydroShear is a technology that allows robots to learn tactile sensation in simulation. It accurately tracks how forces accumulate on soft sensor membranes, enabling robots to learn grasping and manipulation skills in simulation. ## From Simulation to Reality Manipulation policies learned in simulation with HydroShear can be seamlessly transferred to the real world without any modifications. This allows robots to successfully apply what they learned in simulation to real-world environments, achieving an average success rate of 93% across four challenging tasks. ## Success in Critical Tasks HydroShear technology was tested on critical tasks such as peg insertion, bin packing, book shelving, and drawer pulling. In these tasks, robots successfully manipulated objects using tactile and proprioceptive information, showing a significant performance gap compared to other methods. ## The Importance of Simulation HydroShear's success is directly related to how accurately the simulation models real tactile sensation. Its advantage is particularly pronounced in tasks requiring precise force feedback, such as peg insertion. This highlights the critical role of simulation in robot learning. ## Future Implications HydroShear technology has the potential to revolutionize industrial and medical fields by enabling robots to learn tactile sensation. This technology could expand the boundaries of automation by allowing robots to successfully perform more complex and delicate tasks. ## Sources covering this story - https://www.amazon.science/blog/amazon-and-university-of-michigan-give-robots-a-sense-of-touch — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._