Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

David Edwards

Mecademic Robotics expands into huge markets with its tiny robot

by

Mecademic Robotics, the Canada-based maker of a tiny industrial robot, is expanding into some of the largest robotics markets in the world.

The company has reached strategic agreements with new “value-added partners” which will enable it to grow into reginal markets in the US, Canada, France, Germany, and Australia.

As the global market continues to see increased demand for small industrial robot arms, Mecademic says it has increased its production capacity and regional presence to better serve its customers.

Mecademic describes its new partners – which are Allied Automation (USA), The Knotts Company (USA), Electromate (Canada), Pagès Group (France), LMZ (Germany), and Andrew Donald Design Engineering (Australia) – as “cutting-edge automation solution providers”. [Read more…] about Mecademic Robotics expands into huge markets with its tiny robot

Cleveron takes first steps towards autonomous delivery in the Netherlands

by

The Estonian-based technology company Cleveron‘s unmanned autonomous vehicle took on the city of Eindhoven, the Netherlands, to be part of a five-day pilot project carried out by logistics giant DPD Netherlands in partnership with Cleveron.

This marks the start of bringing autonomous delivery services to the public streets of the Netherlands, says Cleveron.

The rapid growth of e-commerce has changed the playing field for companies operating in the retail and logistics sector. [Read more…] about Cleveron takes first steps towards autonomous delivery in the Netherlands

PickNik Robotics releases beta version of MoveIt Studio

by

PickNik Robotics, a robotics software and engineering services company which has won a contract with NASA, has released additional details about its MoveIt Studio software platform and the made the beta version of the product available.

PickNik says MoveIt Studio provides “state-of-the-art motion planning software” with an intuitive user interface that now makes it easy for robot operators to remotely manage complex robotic arms that require supervised autonomy.

In space missions, for example, robotic arms are used to repair satellites and augment astronauts inside space stations, and will also be used to build the future Moon base. [Read more…] about PickNik Robotics releases beta version of MoveIt Studio

ABB and Zume to accelerate transition away from single use plastics

by

ABB Robotics has signed an agreement to collaborate with California-based Zume, a global provider of innovative, compostable packaging.

ABB will supply robotic cells that will enable Zume’s production of sustainable packaging on a global scale, helping to reduce reliance on single-use plastics.

ABB will integrate and install more than 1,000 molded fiber manufacturing cells (MFC) – including up to 2,000 robots at Zume customer’s sites worldwide over the next five years. [Read more…] about ABB and Zume to accelerate transition away from single use plastics

Fully automatic picking of unknown products from bulk material

by

The goal: fully automated small parts picking.

In intralogistics, there has been a lot of hype about robots for some years now, whether in trade journals or at fairs.

Most of them are classic six-axis articulated robots that are looking for their way out of a production environment and into logistics.

The main driver here is the labour shortage, the big challenge not a technical component like the robot or the gripper, but the design of an overall economic process. [Read more…] about Fully automatic picking of unknown products from bulk material

Epson signs Gibson Engineering as distributor in US Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions

by

Epson Robots has signed Gibson Engineering, a solutions provider for manufacturers of industrial automation products, as an official distributor of Epson Robots automation solutions.

Gibson Engineering has a diverse customer base in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, from life sciences and plastics manufacturers to OEM machine builders.

As the sense of urgency for manufacturing projects in these industries accelerates, this new partnership offers Gibson Engineering customers access to Epson’s fully stacked product lineup to simplify automation installs while meeting project time frames. [Read more…] about Epson signs Gibson Engineering as distributor in US Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions

Fieldin acquires agricultural autonomous driving company Midnight Robotics

by

Fieldin, a smart farm operations management company specializing in high-value crops, has acquired Midnight Robotics, a developer of agricultural autonomous driving.

The acquisition creates a “first-of-its-kind combination” of a sensor-based operational farming platform with autonomous driving technologies to empower growers in the day-to-day management of their farms, say the companies.

Fieldin is already applying its combined autonomous farming platform in major farms in California and plans additional implementations of the end-to-end system in the coming months. [Read more…] about Fieldin acquires agricultural autonomous driving company Midnight Robotics

ABB invests in autonomous mobile robot startup Sevensense

by

ABB is investing in, and entering into a strategic partnership with, Swiss-based start-up Sevensense, founded in 2018 as a spin-off from ETH Zurich.

ABB says the partnership will enhance its new autonomous mobile robotics offering with artificial intelligence and 3D vision mapping technology.

It adds that the technology will “offer customers unprecedented levels of flexibility as mobile robots will be able to navigate autonomously in complex, dynamic indoor and outdoor environments close to people”. [Read more…] about ABB invests in autonomous mobile robot startup Sevensense

Micropsi Industries automates ‘fridge sniffing’ with AI-supported robot control system

by

Micropsi Industries’ artificial intelligence-supported robot control system MIRAI now automates previously manual leak detection for leading global household appliance manufacturers such as BSH Hausgeräte GmbH.

In conjunction with Atec GmbH Automatisierungssoftware, Micropsi offers this leak testing as a complete solution that provides a “quick, reliable, and cost-effective” remedy to manual leak detection tasks and other complex industrial processes, lowering ongoing operating costs and reducing maintenance.

Ronnie Vuine, CEO, Micropsi Industries, says: “AI-driven systems such as MIRAI independently derive solutions in the event of variances such as changing lighting conditions or workpieces whose position or composition deviates. [Read more…] about Micropsi Industries automates ‘fridge sniffing’ with AI-supported robot control system

Panasonic Robot and Welding expands collaboration with Claas Saulgau

by

Panasonic Robot and Welding System Solutions, a business unit of Panasonic Factory Solutions, and Claas Saulgau GmbH, a producer of agricultural machinery with over 100 years of experience, say they have “intensified” their existing collaboration.

Claas Saugau is extending its production facilities with three new welding systems with a total of five Panasonic welding robots of the latest generation and technology.

Frederik Kahlbau, key account manager for Claas Saulgau, says: “We delivered the first Panasonic welding system to Claas Saulgau GmbH in 2014. [Read more…] about Panasonic Robot and Welding expands collaboration with Claas Saulgau