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Industrial robots

Industrial robot sales in North America ‘continue record surge into 2022’

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North American companies started the year by purchasing “the most robots ever in a single quarter”, with 11,595 robots sold at a value of $646 million.

According to the Association for Advancing Automation, these Q1 numbers represent growth of 28 percent and 43 percent respectively over the first quarter of 2021 and 7 percent and 25 percent respectively over the previous best quarter, Q4 of 2021. Each industry segment experienced double-digit growth over the same quarter of 2021. [Read more…] about Industrial robot sales in North America ‘continue record surge into 2022’

Veo Robotics named in CB Insights’ advanced manufacturing top 50

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Business research website CB Insights has named Veo Robotics, the Waltham-based industrial automation company building sensing and intelligence for robots to collaborate with humans safely, to its first-annual Advanced Manufacturing 50 ranking, showcasing the 50 most promising private advanced manufacturing companies in the world.

Founded by Patrick Sobalvarro, Clara Vu, and Scott Denenberg, Veo has pioneered the creation of software and hardware that allow for fluid, efficient, and flexible production lines within manufacturing facilities.

Also making the list within the robotics and collaborative robots category were Rokae, Novarc Technologies, Linkwiz, Exotic, and Locus Robotics. [Read more…] about Veo Robotics named in CB Insights’ advanced manufacturing top 50

ABB launches new, ‘fastest’ five-axis Delta robot

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ABB has launched a new five-axis Delta robot which it claims is “the fastest for lightweight product picking, packing and reorientation”.

The new machine is part of the FlexPicker Delta robot portfolio and is called the IRB 365. With five axis and 1.5 kg payload, the IRB 365 is both flexible and the fastest in its class for reorienting packaged lightweight products such as cookies, chocolates, peppers, candies, small bottles, and parcels.

Responding to the rise in e-commerce and growing demand for shelf ready packaged goods, the IRB 365 has been developed for applications including food and beverage, pharmaceuticals and consumer goods, where production line speed and adaptability are essential. [Read more…] about ABB launches new, ‘fastest’ five-axis Delta robot

Rapid Robotics unveils robot with ‘fastest setup time in the industry’

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Rapid Robotics says it has developed a robot with the “fastest setup time in the industry”.

The Rapid Machine Operator (RMO) from Rapid Robotics is “the first industrial robot that can get up and running in a matter of hours”, according to the company.

It’s also the first manufacturing robot that can move between jobs “in less time than it takes to make a cup of coffee”. [Read more…] about Rapid Robotics unveils robot with ‘fastest setup time in the industry’

Flexiv raises more than $100 million for its general-purpose robots

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Flexiv, which describes itself as a general-purpose robotics company, has closed its Series B funding round, raising more than $100 million.

Major investors which took part in the round include Meituan, Meta Capital, New Hope Group, Longwood, YF Capital, Gaorong Capital, GSR Ventures and Plug and Play, marking the largest single-round fundraising ever in the field of general-purpose robotics.

Shiquan Wang, co-founder and CEO of Flexiv, says: “The strategic funding from leading companies and funds in various industries will mainly be used for mass production and marketing, new market development, and cutting-edge R&D. [Read more…] about Flexiv raises more than $100 million for its general-purpose robots

Ambi Robotics returns to Berkeley and expands headquarters

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Ambi Robotics, a provider of AI-powered robotic parcel sorting systems for supply chain operations, has unveiled its new headquarters in Berkeley, California to support company growth and new product development.

Ambi Robotics is ramping up installations of AmbiSort systems ahead of peak season as more shipping and logistics brands grapple with surging ecommerce demand.

The new headquarters boasts 33,000 square feet of space for the company to continue its mission to solve the supply chain’s most complex problems while helping people handle more than ever before. [Read more…] about Ambi Robotics returns to Berkeley and expands headquarters

Startup company IAR launches two new robotic automation modules

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The IAR Group, formed last autumn, is launching two of its Swiss-developed automation modules in the USA and Portugal.

According to startup’s adopted motto “Think Globally, Act Locally”, the modules are produced where they are sold.

The IAR Group is taking an important step towards the announced utilization of synergy potentials of the three group companies. [Read more…] about Startup company IAR launches two new robotic automation modules

ABB wins Red Dot award for FlexPacker industrial Delta robot

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ABB’s IRB 390 FlexPacker industrial Delta robot designed for ultra-fast packing has been chosen for the Red Dot Product Design Award – the second ABB robot to receive the prestigious award in two consecutive years.

The global Red Dot Design Awards recognize achievements in product design, with the jury – comprised of over 50 international design experts – testing and evaluating thousands of entries every year.

In 2022, the Red Dot Award panel looked for products that showed design quality and a high degree of innovation – attributes that informed the FlexPacker’s development from the beginning. [Read more…] about ABB wins Red Dot award for FlexPacker industrial Delta robot

ABB and Red Hat partner to develop scalable digital solutions across industrial edge and hybrid cloud

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ABB and Red Hat have agreed a global partnership to enable industries using ABB’s process automation and industrial software to scale rapidly and flexibly leveraging Red Hat’s industry leading enterprise platforms and application services built on Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

The collection, management and analysis of industrial plant data is critical to improve the efficiency of operations while addressing safety, security and productivity needs. This is consistent with ABB’s strategy for the evolution of process automation.

The partnership enables virtualization and containerization of automation software with Red Hat OpenShift to provide advanced flexibility in hardware deployment, optimized according to application needs. It also provides efficient system orchestration, enabling real-time, data-based decision making at the edge and further processing in the cloud. [Read more…] about ABB and Red Hat partner to develop scalable digital solutions across industrial edge and hybrid cloud

Comau introduces new robot for ‘sensitive’ environments

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Comau has introduced its new Racer-5 Sensitive Environments (Racer-5 SE), a high-speed industrial robot designed for the special and sensitive settings that characterize the pharmaceutical, health and beauty, food and beverage and electronics industries.

Featuring a protective water, heat and grease-resistant coating, the ruggedized 6-axis articulated robot fully responds to the demand for IP67 certification, high-grade ISO 5 Cleanroom classification (ISO 14644-1), protection from chemical agents and the need to reduce the risk of contamination. It also has NSF H1 food grade lubrication.

Further benefits of the dedicated robot include reduced operator risk when working with potentially harmful chemicals and substances, as well as increased productivity, traceability, and quality. [Read more…] about Comau introduces new robot for ‘sensitive’ environments