Archives for February 8, 2018

Siemens to acquire Sarokal to strengthen product lifecycle management business

February 8, 2018 by Sam Francis

Siemens has agreed to acquire Sarokal Test Systems, a provider of test solutions for electronics components, such as integrated circuits.

Sarokal’s test solutions cover fronthaul networks that are comprised of links between the centralized radio controllers and the radio heads, or masts, at the “edge” of a cellular network.

Sarokal products are used by chipset vendors, fronthaul equipment manufacturers, and telecom operators to develop, test and verify their 4G and 5G network devices from the early design stages through implementation and field-testing.

Tony Hemmelgarn, president and CEO of Siemens PLM Software, says: “The planned acquisition of Sarokal reinforces our ongoing commitment to EDA [electronic design automation] and the IC [integration circuit] industry. [Read more…] about Siemens to acquire Sarokal to strengthen product lifecycle management business

Rethink Robotics releases new industrial robot software development kit

February 8, 2018 by Sam Francis

Rethink Robotics has launched the Sawyer Software Development Kit, a software upgrade designed for researchers and students to build and test programs on the Sawyer robot.

With a wide range of uses for university research teams and corporate research and development laboratories around the world, Sawyer SDK offers further compatibility with ROS and Open Source robotics tools, as well as an affordable solution to increase access to advanced robotics in the classroom.

Sawyer SDK includes several advanced features that allow users to visualize and control how the robot interacts with its environment. [Read more…] about Rethink Robotics releases new industrial robot software development kit

GreyOrange to showcase expanded AI-powered Butler range at LogiMat 2018

February 8, 2018 by Anna

Robotics and supply chain automation company GreyOrange will launch its new goods-to-person Butler XL at LogiMat 2018.

The Butler XL can handle a payload of 1600 kgs (3500 lbs) including pallets, drums and sacks. Designed to work in tandem with the current Butler system, this makes it easy to add its new capabilities to existing operations.

The new robotics system will support multi-floor operations with the integration of an elevator. This provides greater flexibility to optimize handling of inventory across a facility.

New EIU report forecasts impact of machine learning to 2030

February 8, 2018 by Anna

A new study released today by The Economist Intelligence Unit ran three econometric scenarios to 2030 on five countries—the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan—and developing Asia as a whole.

In Risks and rewards: Scenarios around the economic impact of machine learning, commissioned by Google, two scenarios assumed greater human productivity through upskilling and greater investment in technology and access to open source data, while the third assumed insufficient policy support for structural changes in the economy.

The results showed that, although the fears of those pessimistic about the impact of machine learning, and artificial intelligence in general, may be overblown, the optimists’ claims are not entirely supported, either.

Cobots set to become fastest growing robotics sector

February 8, 2018 by Anna

ABI Research, a market-foresight advisory firm providing guidance on the most transformative technologies, has identified collaborative robotics as one of the fastest growing segments of robotic systems.

Small-to-medium sized businesses are driving the increased demand for collaborative robots, as cobots provide solutions that allow for a more flexible kind of manufacturing that makes no assumptions as to volume levels or types of products being manufactured.

From 2016 to 2025, the global revenue of collaborative robotics shipments is set to enjoy a compound average growth rate of 49.8 per cent, compared to 12.1 per cent for Industrial robots and 23.2 per cent for commercial robotics.