Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

Sam Francis

Walmart teams up with Symbotic to implement ‘industry-leading supply chain automation system’

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Symbotic, a supply chain robotics and automation company, and retail giant Walmart are partnering to “reimagine the retailer’s regional distribution network”.

Symbotic first implemented its system in Walmart’s Brooksville, Florida distribution center in 2017. Since that time, the companies have worked together to optimize the system.

Today, Symbotic will begin the process of outfitting 25 additional regional distribution centers with the high-tech system aimed at furthering Walmart’s mission of operating a best-in-class supply chain. [Read more…] about Walmart teams up with Symbotic to implement ‘industry-leading supply chain automation system’

Global agriculture robot market expected to quadruple in size by 2026

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The global market for agriculture robots is expected to quadruple in size by 2026, according to a report by Research Dive.

The agriculture robot market size was $4,082.8 million in 2018, and is expected to reach $16,640.4 million by 2026, and will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 19.2 percent.

North America region generated a revenue of $ 1,469.8 million in 2018, and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.9 percent. [Read more…] about Global agriculture robot market expected to quadruple in size by 2026

Emerson unveils new ‘MTP’ process technology to speed up manufacturing

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Emerson has unveiled the integration of the emerging MTP process automation standard into its control systems, as part of a continued effort to help manufacturers increase speed-to-market and reduce project and operations costs.

Emerson is among the first automation vendors to support the User Association of Automation Technology in Process Industries’ (NAMUR) Module Type Package (MTP) standard for both distributed control systems (DCS) and programmable logic controllers (PLCs).

A key challenge for the process industries, particularly life sciences and chemical, is the time it takes to bring products to market or change operations to accommodate new products. [Read more…] about Emerson unveils new ‘MTP’ process technology to speed up manufacturing

Perrone Robotics completes series of public road tests of its autonomous vehicles

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Perrone Robotics, a provider of autonomous vehicle technology, says it has successfully completed a series of public road demonstrations in the city of Westminster, Maryland, as part of an event hosted by the Mid-Atlantic Gigabit Innovation Collaboratory (MAGIC) Autonomous Corridor Project.

Following the success achieved in Maryland a week before, the company conducted back-to-back public road tests for customers with a GreenPower AV Star zero-emission transit shuttle, and a Low Speed Vehicle neighborhood electric vehicle, both integrated with Perrone Autonomy.

These vehicles are slated for customer deployment later this summer for use in municipal and university transit applications. [Read more…] about Perrone Robotics completes series of public road tests of its autonomous vehicles

Gideon Brothers raises $31 million Series A funding for its autonomous mobile robots

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Gideon Brothers, a robotics and AI solutions company, today announced it has raised a $31 million Series A investment to accelerate the development and commercialization of its AI and 3D vision-based autonomous mobile robots (AMRs).

The company will also expand its manufacturing, sales, marketing, and customer success operations across key markets of the European Union and United States by opening offices in Munich, Germany and Boston, Massachusetts, respectively.

The Series A round was led by Koch Disruptive Technologies (KDT), the venture and growth arm of Koch Industries, with participation from DB Schenker, Prologis Ventures, and Rite-Hite. [Read more…] about Gideon Brothers raises $31 million Series A funding for its autonomous mobile robots

Canon to offer SoftBank’s robotic vacuum cleaner Whiz to offices

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Canon Solutions America has formed a new strategic collaboration with SoftBank Robotics America and will provide the Whiz robotic vacuum cleaner to offices as part of the agreement.

The alliance initiates a new focus on commercializing robotics and integrated automation as part of Canon Solutions America’s larger Workplace Health Solutions portfolio, starting with Whiz, which is described as “the commercial robot vacuum that works to elevate the health and safety of varying work environments”.

The Whiz offering brings together Canon Solutions America’s industry-leading solutions and exceptional professional services with SoftBank Robotics’ global leadership in collaborative robotics, or cobotics, and impactful automation. [Read more…] about Canon to offer SoftBank’s robotic vacuum cleaner Whiz to offices

Beep launches Yellowstone’s first autonomous shuttles in partnership with Local Motors

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Beep – a provider of multi-passenger, electric, autonomous mobility solutions – has launched what it says is Yellowstone National Park’s first-ever autonomous shuttle program, called TEDDY (The Electric Driverless Demonstration in Yellowstone), in partnership with Local Motors, a designer and manufacturer of autonomous vehicles.

The TEDDY project, an ode to Teddy Roosevelt, will enable the National Park Service to test the feasibility and sustainability of autonomous mobility and better plan for the future of transportation.

Joe Moye, Beep CEO, says: “Beep is proud to have been selected by the National Park Service to provide transformative mobility at the country’s first national park. [Read more…] about Beep launches Yellowstone’s first autonomous shuttles in partnership with Local Motors

Startup company launches new class of robot – the Wyzo ‘sidebot’

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Wyzo, a startup company with backing from established companies such as Demaurex, the inventor of the delta robot, has launched a new class of robot – the Wyzo “sidebot”.

Wyzo – which is described as “the world’s first high-speed pick-and-place sidebot” – is now available for companies making their first steps into automation, as well as for large manufacturers looking for “unrivalled versatility”.

Compact and agile, Wyzo works safely side-by-side with humans without protective barriers or performance compromises. Critically, the robot uses the “revolutionary” new direct drive invented by Genesis Robotics. [Read more…] about Startup company launches new class of robot – the Wyzo ‘sidebot’

NuPort Robotics selects Nvidia Drive platform for autonomous trucks

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NuPort Robotics, a Canada-based autonomous trucking company, has selected the Nvidia Drive platform to power its middle-mile semi-truck transportation solutions, which will be capable of safely operating in all weather conditions.

NuPort is defining next-generation transportation solutions for the Canadian trucking industry. Using state-of-the-art technology and a unique approach, NuPort is poised to change the middle-mile logistics.

NuPort will leverage the centralized compute capabilities of the Nvidia Drive platform-which is scalable to Level 4 autonomy-for processing a wide array of deep neural networks (DNNs) necessary for autonomous trucks to operate safely under various weather conditions. [Read more…] about NuPort Robotics selects Nvidia Drive platform for autonomous trucks

Infineon and Reality AI teach cars how to ‘hear’

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Today’s advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) are based on cameras, radar or lidar. As a result, their target objects need to be within the line of sight to be recognized by the system.

This, however, turns into a weakness when it comes to emergency vehicles – they can be heard much earlier than they can be seen and thus are invisible to ADAS for a longer time.

To address this challenge, Infineon Technologies together with Reality AI created an advanced sensing solution giving vehicles the sense of hearing. [Read more…] about Infineon and Reality AI teach cars how to ‘hear’