Archives for April 22, 2020

How Do Force Sensors Work? And What Are Their Benefits?

April 22, 2020 by Polly Leave a Comment

There are several laws of physics that are based on force. One of these is the well-known principle that when applied to any object of mass, force changes the velocity of the object.

There are other concepts related to force including torque, thrust, and drag – thrust increases the object’s velocity, while drag reduces velocity, and torque generates changes in the object’s rotational speed.

When there’s a balanced distribution of forces in the object, there is acceleration. If you want to monitor the force on an object, you need a device called a force sensor. [Read more…] about How Do Force Sensors Work? And What Are Their Benefits?

Kindred unveils new robotic solution for e-commerce fulfillment

April 22, 2020 by Sam Francis Leave a Comment

Kindred has unveiled a new robotic solution for e-commerce fulfillment.

The company debuted the Kindred Sort 3.7 piece-picking robot at the recent Modex Show.

The enhanced Sort 3.7 system features eight additional cubbies, for a total of 27, translating into a 42 percent increase in the number of items it can sort at e-commerce fulfillment centers and warehouses, says Kindred. [Read more…] about Kindred unveils new robotic solution for e-commerce fulfillment

nTopology and Oak Ridge National Laboratory partner to develop additive manufacturing technologies

April 22, 2020 by David Edwards Leave a Comment

nTopology has entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with Oak Ridge National Laboratory to advance the capabilities of additive manufacturing through integrated software toolkits and embed ORNL expertise into nTop software.

The plan is for these capabilities to be made available commercially to the broader advanced-manufacturing market.

The collaboration incorporates foundational nTopology software with ORNL-developed machine control capabilities on large-scale polymer additive manufacturing systems. [Read more…] about nTopology and Oak Ridge National Laboratory partner to develop additive manufacturing technologies

Lidl and Einride partner to electrify supply chain in Sweden

April 22, 2020 by Sam Francis Leave a Comment

Einride will supply electric trucks to grocery chain Lidl this year as the next step in a long-term partnership to transform Lidl’s supply chain to be emissions-free.

Lidl and Einride have been ambitious, since the start of their partnership in 2017, to electrify and automate deliveries to Lidl locations in Sweden.

The transformation to a zero-emissions transport network will take place in stages and focus mainly on electrification in the short term, with automation coming in the next phase. [Read more…] about Lidl and Einride partner to electrify supply chain in Sweden

The Autonomous group holds first virtual conference on safety architectures

April 22, 2020 by David Edwards Leave a Comment

The Autonomous, a global community set up to discuss the future of safe autonomous mobility, has completed its first virtual conference on “Safety Architectures”.

The event featured renowned speakers from BMW, Nvidia, Intel / Mobileye, Edge Case Research, TTTech and the KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm.

The participants could bring questions and ideas into the discussion and participate in questionnaires on key issues. [Read more…] about The Autonomous group holds first virtual conference on safety architectures

Swarm Theory: Lessons from nature in the advancement of robotics

April 22, 2020 by David Edwards Leave a Comment

By Rhys Davies, product manager at Canonical, publisher of the Ubuntu open source operating system

As part of a recent entry to Science Robotics, experts argued that “Covid-19 could be a catalyst for developing robotic systems that can be rapidly deployed with remote access […] to front lines”.

It is often in times of great strife that innovation truly comes to the fore – the progress made across both public and private sectors in recent weeks is a tribute to just that, encompassing everything from advanced data analytics to the production of ventilators by the likes of McLaren, Mercedes and other F1 teams.

Robotics is no different. Robots are currently handling room service in isolation centres, patrolling the streets to help countries achieve social distancing policies, and helping to entertain the elderly. [Read more…] about Swarm Theory: Lessons from nature in the advancement of robotics

Nvidia provides online workshops about robotics and AI

April 22, 2020 by David Edwards Leave a Comment

Nvidia is providing on-demand workshops about robotics and artificial intelligence online through its GTC Digital network.

GTC Digital is Nvidia’s training, research and insights resource and enables direct access to the company’s experts at the GPU Technology Conference.

Through these online services, Nvidia says it hopes to give members the latest news about advances in robotics, embedded computing, internet of things, AI at the edge and more. [Read more…] about Nvidia provides online workshops about robotics and AI

4 key questions to ask before getting started with collaborative robots

April 22, 2020 by Mai Tao Leave a Comment

By Darrell Adams, head, Southeast Asia and Oceania, Universal Robots

Small and mid-sized manufacturers can be especially hard hit by sudden changes such as economic volatility, intense competitive pressure, seasonal demands or even an unexpected global crisis, like the current Covid-19 pandemic.

When labour requirements increase or decrease drastically, having the ability to ramp up production when demand is high and remain sustainable during downtime is crucial.

For these companies, having a workforce supported by collaborative robots or cobots, would be a dream come true. [Read more…] about 4 key questions to ask before getting started with collaborative robots