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Fanuc marks production of 500,000th industrial robot

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Fanuc has produced half a million robots, and plans to nearly double its robot production capacity in 2018

Fanuc, the world’s leading supplier of robotics, CNC and factory automation has announced the production of its 500,000th robot.

Mike Cicco, president and CEO, Fanuc America, says: “Automation and robotics are key drivers of manufacturing competitiveness.

“More companies are using automation to overcome inefficiencies, lower costs, increase productivity, and gain market share.  [Read more…] about Fanuc marks production of 500,000th industrial robot

Chinese company launches new range of collaborative robots

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A Chinese company called Han’s Robot has launched a new range of collaborative industrial robots. 

Han’s Robot is a subsidiary of Han’s Laser, also linked to Han’s Motors, and the new collaborative robot is called Elfin.

The robot is available in three variations according to payload – 3 kg, 5 kg and 10 kg.  [Read more…] about Chinese company launches new range of collaborative robots

Rockwell launches new AI system for monitoring and managing industrial operations

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Rockwell Automation has launched a new artificial intelligence system which the company says “models, monitors and optimizes industrial operations”. 

The company says that the “novel” AI system learns specific applications and alerts operators to errors, and suggests solutions.

Creating diagnostic analytics solutions in industrial operations has long required expert data scientists with a deep understanding of the specific application to be analyzed, says Rockwell.  [Read more…] about Rockwell launches new AI system for monitoring and managing industrial operations

Chinese startup develops industrial robot for Foxconn for smartphone manufacturing

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A Chinese startup company called Megvii has developed an industrial robot for Foxconn to use in its smartphone manufacturing operations. 

Foxconn, also known as Hon Hai Precision, is the main supplier to Apple, making iPhones and iPads for the tech giant.

Foxconn is also said to be the world’s largest contract manufacturer, employing a massive 1.3 million people and generating revenues in excess of $136 billion a year.  [Read more…] about Chinese startup develops industrial robot for Foxconn for smartphone manufacturing

Nord DriveSystems showcasing networked drive electronics and IoT technologies at SPS IPC Drives

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Nord DriveSystems is showcasing its new innovations in drive electronics at the ongoing SPS IPC Drives exhibition.

The new NordAC Link series of field distribution systems, designed for networked intralogistics facilities with many drive axes, provides an especially good user experience.

These frequency inverters and motor starters enable flexible configuration of features and functions to perfectly suit application requirements.  [Read more…] about Nord DriveSystems showcasing networked drive electronics and IoT technologies at SPS IPC Drives

ABB unveils newest product in the YuMi industrial robot range – this one has a single arm

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ABB Robotics has unveiled a new single-arm collaborative robot at the International Robotics Exhibition (iREX) 2017 in Tokyo.

The company says it is building on the success of YuMi, the dual-arm industrial robot which ABB describes as “the world’s first truly collaborative”.

ABB says the new single-arm collaborative robot “combines industry-leading capabilities with a much smaller footprint” (see video below).  [Read more…] about ABB unveils newest product in the YuMi industrial robot range – this one has a single arm

Technical guide: Fanuc panel keyboard keys overview

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Contributed by MRO Electric, an independent factory automation distributor 

Fanuc Alarm keys: These keys are located on the machine panel that displays alarm intelligence for the machine panel. MRO Electric has several Fanuc part numbers starting with A06B, A20B, and A16B in-stock here. These keys differ from the alarm keys correlated with the control panel.

Fanuc Auto key: This is the key on the CNC machine (including the A16B, A17B & A20B product line) that reshapes the operation mode to automatic. Automatic mode authorizes an operator to contact and execute a part program stored in memory. Automatic mode is called memory mode on some CNC controls at times.

A safety function that determines if the tool has moved beyond its set boundaries. Forbidden zones can be programmed to specify areas where the tool can and cannot enter.  [Read more…] about Technical guide: Fanuc panel keyboard keys overview

Siemens links MindSphere to AWS, and says new industrial challenges can ‘only be resolved through digitalisation’

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Siemens makes latest version of its industrial internet of things platform MindSphere available on Amazon Web Services

Research conducted by Siemens suggests that many of the new demands faced by industrial companies can only be met with increasing computerisation of traditional industry. 

Siemens says increasing demands by consumers for individual, high-quality products at favourable prices are posing new challenges for industrial enterprises which can only be resolved by digitalisation.

Siemens, which offers a wide range of digitalisation solutions for industry, suggests it now has a portfolio – collectively called Digital Enterprise Suite – that conforms to Industry 4.0 expectations.  [Read more…] about Siemens links MindSphere to AWS, and says new industrial challenges can ‘only be resolved through digitalisation’

ABB partners with Hewlett Packard Enterprise to bring IoT intelligence to industrial plants

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Companies say the new partnership will provide “actionable insights across industrial plants, cloud and on-premises data centers for higher productivity and innovation” 

ABB and Hewlett Packard Enterprise have agreed a strategic global partnership that combines ABB’s digital offerings, through ABB Ability, with HPE’s hybrid information technology solutions.

The companies say the partnership will provide customers with solutions that “generate actionable insights from vast amounts of industrial data” to increase the efficiency and flexibility of their operations and create competitive advantage.

The companies say they will combined ABB’s “deep domain expertise” in operations technologies and HPE’s expertise in information technology to provide an integrated OT-IT solution to customers.  [Read more…] about ABB partners with Hewlett Packard Enterprise to bring IoT intelligence to industrial plants

Kyocera breaks ground on new manufacturing plant

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Kyocera has ceremonially broken ground on a new manufacturing plant for ceramic structural components in Kagoshima, Japan. 

The new facility will produce durable, high-precision components for semiconductor and LCD manufacturing equipment, says the company.

Kyocera held a groundbreaking ceremony last week, attended by the company’s president, Hideo Tanimoto.  [Read more…] about Kyocera breaks ground on new manufacturing plant