• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Subscribe
  • Your Membership
    • Edit Your Profile
  • Services
    • Advertising
    • Case studies
    • Design
    • Email marketing
    • Lead generation
    • Magazine
    • Press releases
    • Publishing
    • Sponsored posts
    • Webcasting
    • Webinars
    • White papers
    • Writing
  • Shop
    • My Account
    • Cart
  • About
    • Contact
    • Privacy
    • Terms of use
  • Events

Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

  • News
  • Features
  • Video
  • Webinars
  • White papers
  • Press releases
  • Featured companies
    • AMD Xilinx
    • BlueBotics
    • Elite Robot
    • RGo Robotics
    • SICK Sensor Intelligence
    • Vicor Power

Japanese companies prepare to bring forward new generation of humanoid collaborative robots capable of a variety of industrial work

October 9, 2017 by Mai Tao

 

There was a time when Japanese electronics companies were the Apples and Googles of the world, with everyone buying their products and talking about them in the media.

Many of those same formerly pre-eminent names today play second fiddle to the Silicon Valley tech giants.

But while they may not be discussed as much as they were in the past – and their products not as ubiquitous in the consumer market – Japanese companies still loom large in the industrial sector. 

Hitachi, one of those Japanese companies whose branding was all over the place in the past, last year generated revenues of approximately $80 billion.

It’s difficult to describe Hitachi in simple terms because its activities are so diverse, but the word conglomerate is generally used for such companies.

 

Hitachi’s many business activities and units include industrial machinery, telecommunications equipment, construction equipment, automotive components, and of course electronics.

It still makes consumer products such as television sets, as well as power tools and computing devices – mainly servers and data storage systems.

It also makes bullet trains and power stations.

And lately, in the past few years, Hitachi has been getting more involved in robotics.

Although it puts a small humanoid robot front and centre of the robotics section of its website, behind the scenes Hitachi has been partnering with other Japanese companies to develop robots for industry.

Working with Seiko Epson, which is supplying the hardware, Hitachi is developing the software systems for an industrial robot with two arms.

Pictured below, the robot’s planned application is in warehouses – for picking, placing and packing.

hitachi epson warehouse robot

Hitachi has previously said it does not plan to sell the warehouse robot to other companies initially.

As quoted in the Japan Times a couple years ago when the warehouse robot was first unveiled, Toshio Moriya, a general manager at Hitachi’s technology innovation center, said: “We plan to start using them in our own group companies in two to three years and selling them in around five years.”

A few years on, the company looks as if it’s preparing to offer the robot to the market – if it’s activities relating to some of its other robots is anything to go by.

As well as Epson, Hitachi has been working with Kawada Industries on another dual-armed industrial robot.

Kawada, which mainly builds bridges and other large structures, established its Kawada Robotics business unit about four years ago, mainly as a result of a robot the company started developing almost 20 years ago.

The robot provided Kawada the platform to develop a number of variations, and one of the latest iterations is called NextAge (main picture), which may become the first dual-armed humanoid to be widely used in the industrial sector.

NextAge is now featured on Hitachi’s website and may be a prelude to the launch of the Hitachi-Epson robot, which is of a more conventional design, using Epson ProSix robot arms and no humanoid features.

So far, the industrial sector has almost exclusively selected the single-arm industrial robot most people will be familiar with, and only in the past year has ABB’s dual-armed robot, YuMi, been finding some space at factories here and there.

Rethink’s two-armed Baxter robot is also making an impression.

But there’s not many humanoid robots in industry at the moment, Baxter’s illustrated face on the screen notwithstanding.

Hitachi technologists say the dual-armed NextAge and other robots of that design could do any type of work in any industry – within reason.

They are versatile enough to work in either the automotive industry or electronics – both of which are the biggest buyers of industrial robots.

And, as one might expect, they are safe for humans to work alongside, which makes them collaborative robots.

The traditional, large industrial robotic arms which need to be caged off will almost certainly continue to be used for a long time, if only because they are capable of heavy payloads and workloads that the smaller collaborative robots are not designed for.

But this does look like the beginning of a sea-change in industrial robotics and automation systems.

Hitachi has also developed a small humanoid robot, Emiew, although this one is totally unsuitable for heavy industrial work – not sure if it’s capable of any work at all really.

More about Emiew (pictured below) in a future article.

hitachi emiew

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Share this:

  • Print
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • Pinterest
  • Skype
  • WhatsApp
  • Telegram
  • Pocket

You might also like…

Filed Under: Industrial robots, Industry, News Tagged With: abb, baxter, emiew, epson, hitachi, kawada, nextage humanoid industrial robot, rethink, robotics, seiko epson, yumi

Join the Robotics & Automation News community

Primary Sidebar

Latest articles

  • How do you heat a car to sleep?
  • Florida university opens Blendid robotic smoothie kiosk
  • Robots vs CNCs: What’s better for working metal?
  • Thermal imaging cameras in the food industry
  • IDS offers its industrial camera users free update to its new deep learning method
  • August Robotics machines helping with floor marking at Leipzig Messe
  • Security robots ‘deter crime and minimize risk’, says Knightscope
  • Schneider Electric invests €40 million in new smart factory in Hungary
  • Jabil to manufacture Sarcos’ robotic systems
  • Smart Robotics launches new robotic mixed case palletizer

Most Read

  • Stiga launches ‘world’s smartest’ autonomous lawn mower
    Stiga launches ‘world’s smartest’ autonomous lawn mower
  • Top 20 electric vehicle charging station companies
    Top 20 electric vehicle charging station companies
  • Difference Between Three-Phase and Single-Phase Power
    Difference Between Three-Phase and Single-Phase Power
  • Agility Robotics launches next generation of its humanoid worker robot
    Agility Robotics launches next generation of its humanoid worker robot
  • Scientists have found more water in space than they ever knew possible
    Scientists have found more water in space than they ever knew possible
  • Top 20 programmable logic controller manufacturers
    Top 20 programmable logic controller manufacturers
  • Qualcomm releases ‘groundbreaking IoT and robotics’ platforms
    Qualcomm releases ‘groundbreaking IoT and robotics’ platforms
  • Schneider Electric invests €40 million in new smart factory in Hungary
    Schneider Electric invests €40 million in new smart factory in Hungary
  • DeepRoute.ai launches $1,000 ‘map-free’ self-driving solution
    DeepRoute.ai launches $1,000 ‘map-free’ self-driving solution
  • What You Need to Know About Fixing an Engine Misfire
    What You Need to Know About Fixing an Engine Misfire

Overused words

ai applications automated automation automotive autonomous business companies company control customers data design development digital electric global industrial industry logistics machine manufacturing market mobile operations platform process production robot robotic robotics robots safety software solution solutions system systems technologies technology time vehicle vehicles warehouse work

Secondary Sidebar

Latest news

  • How do you heat a car to sleep?
  • Florida university opens Blendid robotic smoothie kiosk
  • Robots vs CNCs: What’s better for working metal?
  • Thermal imaging cameras in the food industry
  • IDS offers its industrial camera users free update to its new deep learning method
  • August Robotics machines helping with floor marking at Leipzig Messe
  • Security robots ‘deter crime and minimize risk’, says Knightscope
  • Schneider Electric invests €40 million in new smart factory in Hungary
  • Jabil to manufacture Sarcos’ robotic systems
  • Smart Robotics launches new robotic mixed case palletizer

Footer

We are…

Robotics and Automation News was established in May, 2015, and is now one of the most widely-read websites in its category.

Please consider supporting us by becoming a paying subscriber, or through advertising and sponsorships, or by purchasing products and services through our shop – or a combination of all of the above.

Thank you.

Independent

Archivists

October 2017
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
3031  
« Sep   Nov »

Complex

Old-skool

This website and its associated magazine, and weekly newsletter, are all produced by a small team of experienced journalists and media professionals.

If you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to contact us at any of the email addresses on our contact page.

We’d be happy to hear from you, and will always reply as soon as possible.

Future-facing

Free, fair and legal

We support the principles of net neutrality and equal opportunities.

Member of The Internet Defense League

Copyright © 2023 · News Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT