Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

David Edwards

XPO Logistics wins contract to build warehouse and distribution network for Greene King

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XPO Logistics has been selected by pub retailer and brewer Greene King to manage dedicated warehousing and distribution for Greene King’s secondary drinks channel.

XPO will provide innovative logistics services from five warehouses distributing to retail pubs and restaurants, including Pub Partner independent licensees and on-trade trade customers.

UK-based Greene King has a rich heritage of brewing award-winning beers and leading pub brands for 220 years. [Read more…] about XPO Logistics wins contract to build warehouse and distribution network for Greene King

ifm and CloudRail agree strategic partnership to provide IIoT solutions

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Sensor and automation specialist ifm and the IIoT expert CloudRail have agreed a strategic partnership to pool their skills to improve their positions on the strongly growing market for professional IIoT and cloud solutions. (See video below.)

Industry 4.0, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) or digitisation – there are many terms to describe the inexorable trend of networking machines, processes and people. What they all have in common is that they refer to interdisciplinary processes.

Felix Kollmar, CEO of CloudRail, says: “The IIoT has long ago ceased to be an exclusive topic of operation technology (OT).” [Read more…] about ifm and CloudRail agree strategic partnership to provide IIoT solutions

FLIR Systems launches new sensor for drones and robots

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FLIR Systems has launched something called “FLIR Hadron”, which the company describes as the industry’s first dual sensor module for drone, robotic, and imaging original equipment manufacturers.

Designed to help reduce development costs and improve time-to-market, the lightweight, low power, and compact form factor includes a 12-megapixel visible camera paired with the FLIR Boson 320×240 resolution thermal camera with up to a 60-hertz framerate.

Paul Clayton, general manager, components business at FLIR, says: “With the introduction of Hadron, FLIR Systems is leading the way in offering low-cost, dual sensor integration across a variety of industries from commercial drones to industrial imaging systems. [Read more…] about FLIR Systems launches new sensor for drones and robots

Fetch Robotics and Piedmont to launch autonomous disinfecting robot

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Fetch Robotics, a warehouse and cloud robotics company, and automated packaging solutions supplier Piedmont National are to launch the SmartGuardUV disinfecting autonomous mobile robot (AMR).

Purpose built to autonomously disinfect high-traffic areas such as warehouse facilities, retail stores, office spaces and hospital rooms, SmartGuardUV combines the safety and flexibility of the Fetch Robotics cloud robotics platform, the strength of PURO Lighting pulsed Xenon UV lamp technology, and the advanced disinfecting reporting of the Piedmont 4Site cloud analytics platform.

The result is a completely autonomous, broad spectrum UV disinfection robot that eliminates up to 99.9 percent of viruses and bacteria with UV-C, UV-B, and UV-A as well as reports on the results of the disinfection. [Read more…] about Fetch Robotics and Piedmont to launch autonomous disinfecting robot

Siemens designs robotic system for cosmetics manufacturing industry

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Engineering giant Siemens has developed a robotic system for the cosmetics industry. 

The system has been named “the Hyve” and is described as an autonomous, modular robot platform.

Siemens claims its invention “stands head-and-shoulders above the competition and helps accelerate chemical balance testing in shampoo”. [Read more…] about Siemens designs robotic system for cosmetics manufacturing industry

Spacetime Labs and Small Robot Company to develop swarm robotics for agri-business in Latin America

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SpaceTime Labs and Small Robot Company are partnering to co-develop swarms of fourth generation autonomous aerial and terrestrial robots to “transform” Latin American agriculture with “per plant farming solutions”.

The strategic partnership will focus on co-developing an on the ground, end-to-end “per plant” planting, weeds, pests and disease management and nutrition management “farming as a service” value propositions delivered through an integrated delivery “sense-predict-act” value chain for all key commercial crops in Latin America.

The companies will work with leading Brazilian and Argentinian farmers to prototype, test and scale Per Plant Farming – maximising yields whilst reducing the impact on the environment. [Read more…] about Spacetime Labs and Small Robot Company to develop swarm robotics for agri-business in Latin America

SICK’s nanoScan wins innovation award from Robotics Business Review

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SICK Sensor Intelligence has won the Robotics Innovation Award from the Robotics Business Review for the second year in a row.

SICK won the prize for its nanoScan3, which it describes as “the world’s smallest profile safety laser scanner”.

The RBR50 is an annual list that recognizes and celebrates forward thinking companies and the original, impact solutions created by these companies. [Read more…] about SICK’s nanoScan wins innovation award from Robotics Business Review

Siemens launches latest version of 3D design software Solid Edge

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Siemens Digital Industries Software has launched the 2021 version of Solid Edge 3D CAD modelling application. 

Europe’s largest engineering company says Solid Edge 2021 includes design capability enhancements such as new subdivision modeling and improved reverse engineering performance with new deviation analysis.

Solid Edge 2021 also includes a new artificial intelligence-powered adaptive user interface to predict next steps, and seamless integration with 3dfind.it, an intelligent 3D model search engine powered by CADENAS, a virtual library of 3D parts. [Read more…] about Siemens launches latest version of 3D design software Solid Edge

Sarcos Robotics chooses MFE Rentals as resale partner for its snake-like robot

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Sarcos Robotics and MFE Rentals have agreed a partnership giving MFE Rentals customers premier access to the snake-like Guardian S robotic crawler system (main picture).

The Guardian S is a compact, multi-purpose remote visual inspection tool designed to traverse challenging terrain while maintaining real-time two-way video, voice and data communication.

Sarcos says the Guardian S robot, created and built in the United States, is designed to navigate unstructured and unpredictable environments that previously no other crawler had the capabilities to access. [Read more…] about Sarcos Robotics chooses MFE Rentals as resale partner for its snake-like robot

Electric jet startup Lilium to use carbon fibre from Toray

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Lilium, a German aerospace startup developing a small vertical-lift electric jet aircraft, and Toray Industries, a manufacturer of carbon fiber, have signed an agreement for the supply of “higher performance” carbon fiber composite.

The Lilium Jet is a five-seater, emissions-free aircraft that can take off and land vertically and is designed to provide high-speed regional connections of up to 300km in under 60 minutes.

The aircraft’s primary structures, such as the fuselage, wings and flaps will all be made from carbon fiber. [Read more…] about Electric jet startup Lilium to use carbon fibre from Toray