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Yaskawa Electric reports stunning 150 per cent more profits with robotics and automation leading the way

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Yaskawa Electric says it has achieved a staggering 150 per cent growth in net profit for the period from April to September, compared with the same period last year, according to a report on Nikkei. 

Nikkei says Yaskawa’s profits for the period were $184 million, beating its own previous records.

Yaskawa, which also owns the Motoman brand of industrial robot, says most of the growth was due to increased orders for automation equipment from China, Japan and the US.  [Read more…] about Yaskawa Electric reports stunning 150 per cent more profits with robotics and automation leading the way

Silicon value: An overview of the semiconductor market

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The manufacturing of semiconductor-based technologies is arguably the most advanced of human endeavours in terms of engineering. 

Semiconductor materials include silicon, which can either act as a conductor of electricity or as an insulator, stopping the flow of electricity.

This strange duality, along with other features, has made semiconductors the most valuable commodity in electronics, and enabled it to form the basis of today’s technological, increasingly computerised machines and gadgets.  [Read more…] about Silicon value: An overview of the semiconductor market

Cloos and Baumüller find increased efficiency in automated welding technology

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Cloos and Baumüller say they have found efficiencies in the new robotic welding system they have implemented. 

The two companies introduced a platform-independent and scalable control solution last year.

The aim was to achieve the highest level of precision with accelerated dynamics.  [Read more…] about Cloos and Baumüller find increased efficiency in automated welding technology

WinSystems launches new single-board computer for industrial applications

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WinSystems, a provider of industrial embedded solutions, has launched a new single-board computer.

The company says the new PPM-C412 series is designed for demanding environments and applications, and offers a broad spectrum of I/O features and the ability to expand functionality in a densely populated, standalone SBC solution.

The new computer is also PC/104-Plus-compatible, and delivers greater performance and a clear upgrade path for current PPM-LX800 users while providing full ISA-compatible PC/104-Plus expansion, says WinSystems.  [Read more…] about WinSystems launches new single-board computer for industrial applications

Rockwell Automation launches infrastructure-as-a-service to simplify setting up industrial networks

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Rockwell Automation has launched an infrastructure-as-a-service which the company says simplifies and accelerates networks.

The new service bundles networking products and remote-monitoring support into one contract.

Rockwell says a secure and robust network infrastructure is essential to improving overall competitiveness in a connected enterprise, but designing, deploying and maintaining this infrastructure can be complex and time consuming for many companies, and is often too costly for their capital budgets.  [Read more…] about Rockwell Automation launches infrastructure-as-a-service to simplify setting up industrial networks

Additive manufacturing: It’s a matter of finding the right composition

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The terms “additive manufacturing” and “3D printing” are used interchangeably, although it seems additive manufacturing suggests an industrial context whereas 3D printing has become so widespread that it could be considered a consumer technology now. 

The majority of those who use such processes are, however, makers or manufacturers, meaning they’re on the supply side of the economy rather than the demand side.

Perhaps the reason why 3D printers are not yet completely in the consumer domain is that they’re not totally perfect. The high-end machines can probably get close to perfection, but not at a price point which can unlock consumer markets.  [Read more…] about Additive manufacturing: It’s a matter of finding the right composition

Midea embarks on journey to transform itself into a ‘high-tech industry leader’

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Chinese home appliances giant Midea says it has completed its acquisition of German company Kuka, one of the world’s largest industrial robot manufacturers. 

While the deal prompted some consternation among those who said the German government should stop the takeover, as well as with those people who subsequently demanded the European Union make it more difficult for Chinese companies to buy EU companies, the two companies are now part of the same group.

Technically, Kuka was acquired by Midea’s subsidiary company, Mecca International.  [Read more…] about Midea embarks on journey to transform itself into a ‘high-tech industry leader’

Growing support for open standards for programmable logic controllers

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Support for open standards for programmable logic controllers – which are the computers used in industrial automation systems – has been growing in recent years. 

The organisation partly responsible for the trend, PLCopen, last year released a set of coding guidelines to help standardise PLC programming. These guidelines have been adopted and further developed by a variety of companies.

One of those is software engineering company Itris Automation, which has integrated the guidelines into its automatic static analysis tool PLC Checker.  [Read more…] about Growing support for open standards for programmable logic controllers

Synopsys acquires memory systems provider Sidense

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Synopsys has acquired Sidense, a provider of one-time programmable non-volatile memory for automotive, mobile, industrial and Internet of Things applications. 

Synopsys says the acquisition complements its existing DesignWare Multi-Time Programmable NVM IP solution with OTP NVM IP in 16-bit to 1.28-Mbit configurations.

With this acquisition, Synopsys says it gains access to “proven, market-leading OTP NVM IP in process technologies from 180- to 16‑nm”.  [Read more…] about Synopsys acquires memory systems provider Sidense

Integro Technologies and Universal Robots to launch new 
3D pick-n-place system at South-Tec

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Integro Technologies, a certified integrator for Universal Robots, has designed and developed a 3D pick-n-place system that will be displayed at the South-Tech event in Greenville, South Carolina, from October 24-26.

Integro says it realizes that collaborative robot arms from Universal Robots are helping manufacturers step into Industry 4.0 seamlessly and safely.

So, the company has developed a new 3D vision-guided application for random bin picking with UR robots.  [Read more…] about Integro Technologies and Universal Robots to launch new 
3D pick-n-place system at South-Tec