Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

David Edwards

Startup uses ‘industrial origami’ technique to build electric motorbikes

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Swedish technology and design startup STILRIDE is to produce sustainable electric motorcycles and scooters using a groundbreaking manufacturing process dubbed “industrial origami”.

The trailblazing technique involves robots which are able to fold single sheets of recyclable steel into intricate, lightweight and durable new structures – significantly reducing the environmental impact of production.

This process is being used to create the chassis for a fleet of next-generation e-motorcycles which will be made available to consumers in Europe later this year. [Read more…] about Startup uses ‘industrial origami’ technique to build electric motorbikes

Pitney Bowes and Ambi Robotics sign $23 million deal to optimize last-mile sorting across US hubs

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Pitney Bowes, a global logistics company, and Ambi Robotics, a developer of robotic sorting systems for supply chain operations, have agreed a $23 million implementation expansion of AmbiSort systems in Pitney Bowes’ e-commerce hubs across the US.

The AI-powered robotics will help Pitney Bowes speed parcel sortation to last-mile delivery providers, while improving productivity, accuracy and worker safety as the company’s shipping and e-commerce businesses surpass 50 percent of total revenue.

Pitney Bowes will make the investment in Robot as a Service (RaaS) fees over the next four years. [Read more…] about Pitney Bowes and Ambi Robotics sign $23 million deal to optimize last-mile sorting across US hubs

Schaeffler to unveil ‘eagerly anticipated innovative solution’ for robots

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Schaeffler says it will present at Hannover Messe 2022 an “eagerly anticipated innovative solution package” for collaborative robots and articulated robots.

The manufacturing industry requires lightweight robots that can operate with high dynamics and a high degree of precision.

Ralf Moseberg, head of business field industrial automation at Schaeffler, says the industry is looking for innovation. [Read more…] about Schaeffler to unveil ‘eagerly anticipated innovative solution’ for robots

Amazon launches $1 billion industrial innovation fund

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Amazon is investing $1 billion into the industrial sector to “spur supply chain, fulfillment, and logistics innovation and further improve the customer and employee experience”.

The $1 billion venture investment program is called the Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund (AIIF).

As customers increasingly shop online and look for even faster delivery, Amazon says it is continuing to invent new ways to raise the bar on customer and employee experience while working with other companies focused on those fields. [Read more…] about Amazon launches $1 billion industrial innovation fund

Gideon launches autonomous forklift for trailer loading and unloading

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Gideon, the robotics and AI solutions company, has launched what it describes as “a pioneering new solution” – Trey, an autonomous forklift for truck trailer loading and unloading operations. 

Trey loads and unloads pallets entirely autonomously, saving more than 80 percent of a worker’s time. It operates safely, consistently, and reliably in dynamic environments, working side by side with people.

Matija Kopić, Gideon CEO and co-founder, says: “We at Gideon believe that we can help exponentially grow humanity’s ability to move goods by automating the most complex material handling workflows. [Read more…] about Gideon launches autonomous forklift for trailer loading and unloading

GXO installs fleet of autonomous robots in Europe

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GXO Logistics, the world’s largest pure-play contract logistics provider, is using fleets of autonomous mobile robots, or AMRs, to help customers in the 28 countries where GXO operates make significant leaps in productivity and safety.

After successfully integrating cobots into operations for ecommerce and retail customers, GXO is now deploying them for grocery and large-item customers.

GXO will be introducing a fleet of AMRs in the UK and the Netherlands over the next few months. [Read more…] about GXO installs fleet of autonomous robots in Europe

Geek+ reinforces goods-to-person safety and efficiency with new picking station

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Geek+, a manufacturer of autonomous mobile robots, has upgraded its flagship goods-to-person system with a new picking station compatible with P-series robots carrying mobile shelves and racks.

Kai Liu, Geek+ co-founder and head of smart warehouses, says: “We want to make picking operations safer and less strenuous for warehouse employees. Our robots are there to not only increase efficiency, but also to improve the working environment for operators.”

Geek+’s new picking station includes several improved elements: a wrist-worn scanner that eliminates the need for excess walking; a stepladder that locks in place, reducing the danger of falling; and a projector that instantly indicates where goods are to be placed and taken. [Read more…] about Geek+ reinforces goods-to-person safety and efficiency with new picking station

FDA approves Virtual Incision to complete clinical study enrollment for its MIRA platform

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Virtual Incision, a medical device company pioneering the world’s first miniaturized robotic-assisted surgery platform, says the US Food and Drug Administration has approved an Investigational Device Exemption supplement to complete the final stage of its clinical study analyzing the MIRA Platform in bowel resection procedures.

The approval was supported by a favorable interim clinical study report on the safety profile of MIRA.

The IDE supplement approval puts Virtual Incision on track to obtain the clinical evidence needed to bring innovation to the soft tissue surgical robotics industry, a market that has been historically dominated by a single player. [Read more…] about FDA approves Virtual Incision to complete clinical study enrollment for its MIRA platform

New Scale Robotics releases Q-Span to automate measurement inspection

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New Scale Robotics’ new Q-Span Gauging System enables do-it-yourself automation using existing gauges and workflows.

Quality teams in high-mix, small-batch manufacturing operations can improve throughput and process control by eliminating the bottlenecks and variability inherent in manual gauging.

The mobile workstation combines robotic part handling, automated gauging using a variety of standard gauges, real-time reporting for in-process gauging, and automated data collection. Input from multiple gauges is combined into one convenient output for statistical process control. [Read more…] about New Scale Robotics releases Q-Span to automate measurement inspection

Robotic Resources: How Autonomous Technologies Enhance Human Capabilities

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By Jeff Weiland, LG Business Solutions USA

Ever since the first modern robots were developed in the 1950s, the public’s fascination with autonomous machines has varied from excitement and hope to hesitance and fear, and everything in between.

In the following decades, single-purpose robots began showing up on factory floors and in mailrooms, and average citizens grew more comfortable and familiar with digital technologies forming a central part of home life.

While the dancing, jumping, self-navigating robots of today were still decades away, the controversy then was much the same: workers worried that machines might eliminate their jobs. [Read more…] about Robotic Resources: How Autonomous Technologies Enhance Human Capabilities