Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

Archives for March 2016

Renesas launches new microcontrollers for automotive applications

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renesas

Renesas has launched six new microcontrollers targeted toward expanded adoption in high-current load switch applications such as motor and heater control circuits. 

The new intelligent power devices (IPDs) are particularly designed for automotive motor and heater control applications. The devices provide an “extremely reliable, high-performance solution compared with mechanical relays that switch the current flow on and off in electronic control units (ECUs)”, says Renesas.

An IPD is a power IC device that integrates in a single package control circuits that implement protection functions and self-diagnostic functions, in addition to power MosFet (metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor) switching element(s). The IPDs are compact, lightweight, power efficient, and not subject to the contact wear and tear that affects mechanical relays, enabling highly reliable systems with self-protection functions, says Renesas.

Previously, most ECUs used relays as the switching elements in their drive circuits, with the average automobile using around 100 relays. The transition from mechanical relays to semiconductor switching began in applications like lighting control, and the trend is expanding to other automotive systems, such as motor and heater control, driving demand for highly reliable and high-performance semiconductor switching devices.  [Read more…] about Renesas launches new microcontrollers for automotive applications

NXP adds Apple HomeKit support to its SDK

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apple homekit

NXP Semiconductors has upgraded its Software Development Kit (SDK) for Kinetis microcontrollers (MCUs) to offer support for home automation applications using Apple HomeKit technology.

Utilising the performance and Bluetooth Smart connectivity of NXP’s Kinetis products, the solution streamlines development for a wide range of HomeKit compatible products.

HomeKit is a framework in iOS that lets accessories connect seamlessly so people can better manage their homes. It offers a set of common protocols which enable accessories to work together easily and securely, and allows consumers to control them simply using Siri.  [Read more…] about NXP adds Apple HomeKit support to its SDK

Europe needs to maintain its leading position in robotics, say experts attending the European Robotics Forum 2016

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European Robotics Forum 2016 opens in Ljubljana 

The capital city of Slovenia, Ljubljana, is the picturesque setting for this year’s European Robotics Forum. Considered to be one of the most important events in the European robotics industry calendar, it is attended by around 700 European robotics experts, politicians and business people. 

The event, which started earlier today (March 21), was opened by the representatives of European institutions and the Slovenian Government, who pointed to the importance of digitised industry, the smart specialisation strategy, research investment and innovation in robotics. Robotics has a tremendous impact on our economy and society.

Robots are known to save costs, to improve the quality of products and working conditions, and to minimise resources and waste. From today’s €22bn worldwide revenues, according to some estimates, robotics industries are set to achieve annual sales of between €50bn and €62bn by 2020. In the field of industrial robotics, which is currently growing at 8 per cent per annum, Europe’s share of the world market is about 32 per cent.

Delegates attending the event spoke of how important it is that Europe maintains its strong position in the robotics industry, and outlines ways it could be done. Here, we convey some of their comments. [Read more…] about Europe needs to maintain its leading position in robotics, say experts attending the European Robotics Forum 2016

Copa-Data to unveil new software for smart factories at Hannover Messe event

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Copa-Data will present scalable software solutions with zenon for vertical data integration for the Smart Factory at the Microsoft booth at the Hannover Messe, between April 25 and 29, 2016.

Copa-Data will demonstrate how existing and new sensory systems can be integrated seamlessly into an overall solution, right up to the cloud. Existing production equipment is thereby also made available in the cloud for industrial IoT scenarios and for cross-site analyses according to local data protection rules.

Customised products and flexible sales markets with concurrent complex production processes characterise modern industrial production. The solutions of the independent software developer for industrial automation allow bi-directional networking from the field level, to HMI/SCADA, right up to the cloud.  [Read more…] about Copa-Data to unveil new software for smart factories at Hannover Messe event

Goodyear sketches out our spherical wheels idea after we mention it on this website

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we came up with the idea first
We came up with the idea first

Well, if you ever doubted this website’s ideas, you probably won’t any more, especially after we show you this.

Good ideas are hard to come by, and one gem of concept nonchalantly offered to readers of Robotics and Automation News was spherical wheels.

In an article about how German technologists are looking to develop wheels that operate independently, one of my colleagues suggested spherical wheels, like ball bearings, held to the car using magnets.

Maglev trains were not mentioned, but they don’t need to be, since it’s the first thing that comes to mind when you say magnets in such a context. Think of those giant maglev train networks in China – that’s exactly what the writer was thinking at the time.

We haven‘t looked into it much, not even googled it, but we believe our website could be the first to ever mention spherical wheels in a serious technology context.

Exhibit A: The spherical wheel idea was ours 

Goodyear has just shown some designs for a spherical wheel, as reported on Dezeen.com. It only takes a few minutes to create images using computer software – on any application. It’s as easy as a gear shift manoeuvre.

But it takes a genuinely creative mind to achieve paradigm shifts, and come up with ideas that change the whole game. And we would obviously claim that maybe, just maybe, we came up with that idea first.

Or perhaps it was a coincidence. Who knows? Seriously. Who knows?

Alex Jones channel claims robots want to ‘destroy humans’

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alex jones
Talk show host Alex Jones has been railing against what he sees as anti-human robots and artificial intelligence used by technocratic elites in a scientific takeover of the world

Outspoken American talk show host Alex Jones has been on a verbal rampage against what he calls “anti-human robots” in the hands of the “technocracy” – a mysterious cabal secretly controlling society. 

In his latest tirade against what he has dubbed a “breakaway civilisation” of elite groups bent on enslaving the rest of humanity, the influential commentator says the present political and economic situation on Earth is equivalent to an “alien invasion”.

His television/radio channel, Infowars.com, has been consistently broadcasting reports for more than a year about the  “robot takeover”, with Jones condemning what he says is a “metric, scientific, mathematic algorithm of tyranny” that humanity faces today.  [Read more…] about Alex Jones channel claims robots want to ‘destroy humans’

Bosch moves into intelligent buildings market with new technologies

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bosch

Bosch is launching a range of intelligently connected solutions for commercial buildings and homes. Bosch says its products energy and building technology enhances comfort, safety and security, saves energy, and reduces operating costs. To this end, the supplier of technology and services is focusing on connectivity via the internet of things (IoT).

Bosch is releasing its building management system known as BIS (building integration system), which combines all the security systems of a building on one platform: video surveillance, fire-alarm and evacuation systems, intrusion-alarm technology, and access control. Building technology used to open and close barriers, gates, and doors, for example, can also be controlled with BIS.  [Read more…] about Bosch moves into intelligent buildings market with new technologies

Robot musicians, artists and writers could be the superstars of tomorrow

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An interesting possibility, nay probability… no, delete that… It’s an absolute certainty that robots will soon join the stage with the biggest stars in entertainment and the creative arts if the current trend of accelerated advancement in artificial intelligence continues. 

doctor steel
We googled Doctor Steel, but we’re not sure if his band of robots exists

That’s not really a surprise when you consider that a young Ray Kurzweil showed how a computer program could “write” music way back in the 1960s, and the tune wasn’t too bad either.

And radio stations have long been using computers to help them choose what music to play. That’s not to say today’s DJs have nothing to do, that’s just the way it is.

And recently, Lady Gaga performed on stage with the aid of a robot. There’s probably been a few other artists who have generously shared the stage with robots in recent times, but some of us haven’t really noticed because we still have the old Kraftwerk classics from the first electronic era on infinite loop in our minds (see video).  [Read more…] about Robot musicians, artists and writers could be the superstars of tomorrow

Bosch combines Industrie 4.0 and Industrial Internet Consortium standards in ‘truly global approach’

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bosch automatic production assistant robot arm
At a Bosch plant in Germany, an associate works together with an automatic production assistant, or APAS. Its robot arm is furnished with a sensor skin that detects human operatives in the close vicinity. If someone comes too close, the assistant stops immediately, without touching the operative

Bosch has combined what it calls its ‘Industrie 4.0 platform’ with Industrial Internet Consortium standards for the first time, calling it ‘an international breakthrough for connected industry’

Connected industry is now becoming an international reality. In a new project, Bosch is working together with partners to combine the technical standards of Germany’s “Industrie 4.0” platform and of the Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC) for the first time. This combination of the two approaches allows the exchange of data between central areas of connected industry.

“Industry 4.0 is not so much a national as an international issue. Only a truly global approach – without competing company standards or differing national regulations – will allow it to develop to its full potential,” said Dr Werner Struth, a member of the Bosch management board, at the Bosch ConnectedWorld IoT conference in Berlin. [Read more…] about Bosch combines Industrie 4.0 and Industrial Internet Consortium standards in ‘truly global approach’

Intuitive Surgical receives all-clear from US government on robotic surgery system

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Intuitive Surgical, a maker of robotic-assisted minimally invasive surgery, says the United States Food and Drug Administration has provided clearance for the company’s da Vinci Xi  Single-Site instruments and accessories.

Intuitive Surgical’s Single-Site technology enables surgeons to operate through a single incision in the patient’s umbilicus during cholecystectomy, benign hysterectomy and salpingo-oophorectomy procedures.

“The da Vinci Xi was designed to seamlessly integrate advanced and future technologies and we are extremely pleased to further expand our line of product offerings with the clearance of Single-Site instruments and accessories,” said Sal Brogna, executive vice president, product operations, Intuitive Surgical. “Single-Site technology adds great versatility to the da Vinci Xi by enabling both single port and multi-port surgery on a single system.”  [Read more…] about Intuitive Surgical receives all-clear from US government on robotic surgery system