Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

Archives for March 9, 2017

SSL selected to partner with Darpa to develop satellite servicing business

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Space Systems Loral, a leading provider of innovative satellites and spacecraft systems, today announced it has been selected by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to develop the capability to service and maintain spacecraft and other infrastructure in the geostationary arc.

Darpa’s Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites program is expected to be the foundation of a new business for SSL that will serve both commercial and government operators with repair, upgrade, relocation, and refueling of on-orbit assets.

Howard Lance, chief executive officer, SSL MDA Holdings, says: “This will be SSL’s first spacecraft contract with the Department of Defense in recent years and it is the third time that we have been selected by the US government for a major program in just two months, following our recent selections for Nasa’s Restore-L and Psyche missions.

“It clearly demonstrates the success of our strategy to bring the benefits of our commercial business to a broader audience and to grow our business with US government work.”  [Read more…] about SSL selected to partner with Darpa to develop satellite servicing business

Nvidia launches new board for robotics development

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Company says its IoT platform for manufacturing, industrial, retail will be made possible by Nvidia’s artificially intelligent-powered Jetson 

Nvidia has unveiled the Nvidia Jetson TX2, a credit card-sized platform that it says delivers AI computing at the edge – opening the door to “powerfully intelligent” factory robots, commercial drones and smart cameras for AI cities. 

Jetson TX2 offers twice the performance of its predecessor, or it can run at more than twice the power efficiency, while drawing less than 7.5 watts of power. This allows Jetson TX2 to run larger, deeper neural networks on edge devices.

The result: smarter devices with higher accuracy and faster response times for tasks like image classification, navigation and speech recognition. [Read more…] about Nvidia launches new board for robotics development

KernPack signs exclusive distribution deal with robotics experts Skilled Group

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kernpack industrial robot small

Signs exclusive distribution deal with robotics and laser guided vehicle specialist Skilled Group

KernPack, a distributor of specialist packaging machinery and solutions, has signed an exclusive UK and Ireland distribution deal with Skilled Group, enabling it to sell the company’s complete range of robotic palletising systems and automatic guided vehicles.

Part of KernPack’s strategy to widen its capabilities, by adding end-of-line warehouse automation to its packaging and mailing solutions, the deal also takes the company into the warehouse and logistics market.

Designed for automated warehousing and truck loading, Skilled Group’s products are already used around the world by Bridgestone, Coca-Cola, Nestlè, Kraft, Unilever and Johnson & Johnson in installations costing up to €10m.

The company’s wide range of robotic equipment includes articulated robotic arms, gantry and SCARA robots for the automatic palletising of products or pallet handling and automatic guided vehicles, or AGVs, for any situation where a traditional forklift truck is used.  [Read more…] about KernPack signs exclusive distribution deal with robotics experts Skilled Group

ATI to showcase wide range of new products and solutions at Automate 2017

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The 2017 Automate Show and Conference takes place at Chicago’s McCormick Place April 3-6, and is a biennial event boasting the largest showcase of solutions-based automation technologies in North America.

Companies from around the globe will represent a wide variety of industries ranging from automotive manufacturing to telecommunications.

Whether you are researching automation technology, seeking to grow your customer base, or exploring new automation solutions, Automate 2017 makes it possible.

One of the companies which plans to make a big show at the Automate Show this year is ATI.  [Read more…] about ATI to showcase wide range of new products and solutions at Automate 2017

Volkswagen launches its first autonomous and electric concept car

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Volkswagen’s new concept autonomous and electric car, Sedric
Volkswagen’s new concept autonomous and electric car, Sedric

Volkswagen has unveiled what it says is its first autonomous concept car, describing it as a “comfortable lounge on wheels”. 

The company claims to be the first automobile manufacturer to present an integrated mobility concept for mobility of the future in road traffic, including a concept car developed from scratch for autonomous driving.

Volkswagen says “Sedric”, the name of the new self-driving car, provides an insight into the future of individual mobility that can be used by everyone, but which can be geared to personal needs.

Volkswagen says Sedric highlights the major importance of fully automated driving in the future strategy of the company.  [Read more…] about Volkswagen launches its first autonomous and electric concept car

Most complex nanoparticle crystal ever made by design

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complex crystal

The most complex crystal designed and built from nanoparticles has been reported by researchers at Northwestern University and the University of Michigan. The work demonstrates that some of nature’s most complicated structures can be deliberately assembled if researchers can control the shapes of the particles and the way they connect using DNA.

“This is a tour de force demonstration of what is possible when one harnesses the chemistry of DNA and combines it with nanoparticles whose shapes encourage a particular crystal structure,” said Chad A. Mirkin, the George B. Rathmann Professor of Chemistry in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences at Northwestern.

Nanotechnology promises to bring materials together in new ways, forging new capabilities by design. One potential application for crystals built of nanoparticles, such as these newly reported ones, is the control of light — nanoparticles interact well with light waves because they are similar in size. This could lead to materials that can change colors or patterns on command or block certain wavelengths of light, while transmitting or amplifying others. New types of lenses, lasers and even Star Trek-like cloaking materials are possible. [Read more…] about Most complex nanoparticle crystal ever made by design

This time, it’s rocket science: Harmonic Drive gears used in space rover project

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Space rover
Harmonic Drive’s strain wave gears are used on spacecraft

Graham Mackrell, managing director of precision gearing specialist Harmonic Drive UK, explains why its strain wave gears have been the top choice in space for over 40 years

Anything that goes into space is seen as the pinnacle of human creation. Astronauts are highly trained and are at the peak of physical fitness, space shuttles are crafted by large teams of expert engineers and all the technology used is so high-tech it’s as if it belongs to science fiction.

Many decades ago, the first Harmonic Drive gears were sent into space during the Apollo 15 mission. Even from the beginnings of the space race, the expectations for the technology used were high.

The equipment used in space had to be reliable, compact and lightweight and given the increasing demands on equipment in today’s space missions, it must also now be highly accurate with zero backlash and have high torque capacity.

When aerospace engineers were recently designing a new space rover, they looked to Harmonic Drive gears for reliability. Due to the obvious difficulties of performing repairs in space, a high mean time between equipment failures is a high priority. [Read more…] about This time, it’s rocket science: Harmonic Drive gears used in space rover project

Universal Robots delivers high double-digit growth again

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Jürgen von Hollen, the new president of Universal Robots
Jürgen von Hollen, president of Universal Robots

Universal Robots has continued its rapid expansion worldwide with a growth rate of 62 per cent from 2015 to 2016.

The company that pioneered and commercialised collaborative robot technology continues to leverage its first mover advantage and market leadership position.

Cage-free, user-friendly collaborative robots of all sizes have now become the market driver within industrial robotics.

The 2016 annual result of Universal Robots is a testament to that market growth, with revenue reaching $98.4 million and delivering a profit of $13.7 million before tax.

President of Universal Robots, Jürgen von Hollen, considers net income to be satisfactory and expects revenue growth of 50 per cent or greater in 2017, which means that the company will stay on target to reach $148.6 million by the end of 2017. [Read more…] about Universal Robots delivers high double-digit growth again