Robotics & Automation News

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Industrial robots

Tesla releases stunning videos showing car production facility

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Tesla, the electric car maker, has released a number of visually stunning videos showing its car production line in Berlin, Germany.

The facility is Tesla’s Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg and some of the robots used include its so-called “Godzilla” robot and “Giga Berlin”.

Tesla has made a number of videos available to view on Twitter, and most of them seem to use drone footage quite liberally, making for some amazing shots travelling through the factory. [Read more…] about Tesla releases stunning videos showing car production facility

Flexiv to release ‘revolutionary’ robotic gripper

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Flexiv, a builder of general-purpose robotics solutions, is set to release a revolutionary new robotic gripper.

Featuring industrial-grade force control and an adhesive material based on a gecko’s foot pad, the Grav gripper can lift practically any item that fits within its grasp.

Touted as representing the next generation of robotic grippers, it uses impactive and contigutive grasping techniques for maximum handling flexibility. This makes it possible to lift objects which are oddly shaped or have an uneven surface texture. [Read more…] about Flexiv to release ‘revolutionary’ robotic gripper

Hitachi to merge two business units to expand robotics offering in Asia

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Hitachi is planning to merge two of its business units to create one expanded robotics systems integration business for the Japanese and Asean markets.

Hitachi has been accelerating the global development of its line building business leveraging industrial robots – the robotic systems integration business – and will merge Hitachi Automation and Kyoto Robotics, Hitachi Group companies in Hitachi’s Industrial Digital Business Unit, on April 1, 2023 to strengthen the robotic systems integration business in Japan and Asean countries.

Hitachi Automation began operating within the Industrial Digital Business Unit in April 2022. Since then, it has been accelerating the fusion between digital solutions analyzing and optimizing data leveraging Lumada handled by Hitachi and robotic systems integration which involves a massive amount of data from shop floor. [Read more…] about Hitachi to merge two business units to expand robotics offering in Asia

Kuka releases ‘one of the strongest and fastest delta robots on the market’

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Kuka has released a new delta robot, the KR 3 D1200, which is specially designed for pick-and-place of foodstuffs, among other applications, and carries up to 6 kg at high speed.

Part of the Kuka Hygienic Oil (HO) portfolio, the new KR 3 D1200 performs various pick-and-place tasks at “previously unattainable speeds” with maximum precision, according to Kuka, which adds that it now moves up to 6 kg of food, medicine or electronic parts.

Although the KR 3 D1200 has a rated payload of 3 kg, it is designed for loads of up to 6 kg. This makes it “one of the strongest delta robots on the market”. [Read more…] about Kuka releases ‘one of the strongest and fastest delta robots on the market’

Rapid Robotics partners with Yaskawa Motoman to expand solutions for industrial robotic arms

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Rapid Robotics has agreed a new integration with Yaskawa Motoman that will bring industrial capabilities to Rapid Robotics’ Rapid Machine Operator (RMO).

The company is now integrated with the entire Yaskawa robotics portfolio, and can deliver more speed, higher payload and increased performance to a greater number of North American manufacturers with a more diverse range of needs.

Jordan Kretchmer, CEO and co-founder of Rapid Robotics, says: “Since our founding in 2019, Rapid Robotics has been committed to providing manufacturers with a holistic workforce solution in the form of accessible, low-risk automation. [Read more…] about Rapid Robotics partners with Yaskawa Motoman to expand solutions for industrial robotic arms

Svaya Robotics launches ‘India’s first collaborative robot’

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A startup company called Svaya Robotics has launched what it claims is “India’s first collaborative robot” and has debuted its products at the recent IMTEX event in Bengaluru, India.

Writing on his LinkedIn page, Vijay R. Seelam, managing director at Svaya Robotics, says: “We just wrapped up at IMTEX 2023 in Bengaluru.

“Svaya Robotics debuted India’s first collaborative robots – completely designed and made in India. [Read more…] about Svaya Robotics launches ‘India’s first collaborative robot’

Flexiv launches ‘revolutionary’ force-controlled parallel robot

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Flexiv, a builder of general-purpose robotics solutions, has released the latest addition to its product portfolio, the Moonlight adaptive parallel robot. 

Flexiv says Moonlight is the world’s first force-controlled parallel robot and is ideal for applications that require precise motion and force control, such as screw fastening, ultra-accurate loading, and polishing. It adds the new machine is “revolutionary”.

Incorporating Flexiv’s innovative force control technology, Moonlight can precisely measure force down to 0.1 N so even delicate objects can be handled. This makes tasks polishing and sanding uneven surfaces possible while guaranteeing output quality and practically eliminating workpiece damage. [Read more…] about Flexiv launches ‘revolutionary’ force-controlled parallel robot

China overtakes USA in robot density

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China’s massive investment in industrial robotics has put the country in the top ranking of robot density, surpassing the United States for the first time, according to a report by the International Federation of Robotics.

The number of operational industrial robots relative to the number of workers hit 322 units per 10,000 employees in the manufacturing industry. Today, China ranks in fifth place.

The world’s top 5 most automated countries in manufacturing 2021 are: South Korea, Singapore, Japan, Germany and China. [Read more…] about China overtakes USA in robot density

Wandelbots expands no-code solution to US with Yaskawa as early customer

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Wandelbots, the German-based no-code robotics software firm, recently opened a US headquarters in Chicago to expand its global operations and accelerate human-centered robotics solutions in the manufacturing industry.

Its signature software, Wandelbots Teaching, works the same with any robot, allowing users to control various models with no prior programming knowledge.

As the industrial robotics market continues to grow, developers and end users need an easy-to-use platform for robotic automation. [Read more…] about Wandelbots expands no-code solution to US with Yaskawa as early customer

Rapid Robotics and Universal Robots partner to fight labor shortages with fast collaborative robot installations

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Rapid Robotics has formed a new partnership with Universal Robots in which the Danish collaborative robot producer will be supplying collaborative robot arms for Rapid Robotics’ installation of cobot work cells across North America.

As a proven manufacturer of high-quality, versatile robots, Universal Robots will enable Rapid Robotics to serve a greater number of customers and maintain the rapid deployment times they’ve come to expect even as Rapid Robotics continues to expand its national footprint.

Jordan Kretchmer, CEO and co-founder of Rapid Robotics, says: “As the number of unfilled, critical manufacturing roles increases and global economic uncertainty continues to impact supply chains, more and more North American manufacturers are turning to automation. [Read more…] about Rapid Robotics and Universal Robots partner to fight labor shortages with fast collaborative robot installations