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Can foreign tech companies win in China?

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Picture by Andre Gunawan, Tech in Asia

China-based investment expert Edward Tse, CEO of Gao Feng, considers the fortunes of outside tech companies entering China

Clearly, China’s regulatory regime regarding the internet, in particular social media, is far more restrictive than that of the US and many other western countries in general.

The “Great Firewall” has proven itself repeatedly to be a thorn in the side of foreign companies, and not all have been able to overcome this hurdle.

Most have tried, but with varying degrees of success.  [Read more…] about Can foreign tech companies win in China?

Rethink Robotics signs exclusive distribution deal with Hunan Cothink in China

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Hunan Cothink will distribute Sawyer and Baxter robots throughout the country

Rethink Robotics has reached an exclusive agreement with collaborative robotics provider Hunan Cothink Robotics Technology Company to distribute its robots to the entire Chinese manufacturing community.

Rethink Robotics and Hunan Cothink originally announced a partnership in February of this year that awarded Hunan Cothink distribution rights in northern and southern China, but the success of the relationship and the demand for Rethink Robotics’ smart, collaborative robots has led to a new, exclusive deal that covers the entire Chinese geography.

Earlier this year, Hunan Cothink was formed as a separate division with a new sales and support organization that is designed to bring Rethink’s robots to the Chinese market and help Chinese manufacturers build smarter factories. Hunan Cothink also distributes Rethink Robotics’ Baxter robot worldwide.  [Read more…] about Rethink Robotics signs exclusive distribution deal with Hunan Cothink in China

Additive manufacturing or 3D printing? What’s the difference?

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“Additive manufacturing” is increasingly used interchangeably with “3D printing”, so they essentially mean the same thing. The only difference seems to be that “3D printing” is used more by maker communities – hobbyists and inventors – and still retains some sort of novelty value, whereas “additive manufacturing” – despite being the newer term – is more likely to be preferred in industry circles, perhaps because it has the sound of an established technology. 

But it’s not really an “established” technology in the sense that it’s only been around for a relatively short time.

According to 3DPrintingIndustry.com, it was only in 2007 that a 3D printer was available for less than $10,000 – from a company called 3D Systems, which is today one of the most well-known providers of the technology.

The most advanced 3D printers still cost quite a lot of money, especially those used by high-end manufacturers, but there are good-quality, entry-level machines available today for as little as a few hundred dollars.  [Read more…] about Additive manufacturing or 3D printing? What’s the difference?

Investing in robotics: Will ‘makers’ make a difference in the established industry?

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In this part of our series of articles about investing in robotics and automation, Brian Gahsman, managing partner and chief investment officer at GBSfunds, gives his view of how new inventors can change the market and what his company, Gahsman Branton, is interested in investing in 

Check out realtime stock prices for companies in the robotics, automation and relating computing sectors

Robotics and Automation News: More “maker” and startup companies seem able to produce robotics and automation technology. How will this affect the market? 

Brian Gahsman: We are barely on the cusp of seeing the flood of startups that will enter this space. Now that the technology is at a point of cost effectiveness many who for decades were only hobbyists now have the ability to bring their creations to the market.

As that trend increases so will the rate of M&A activity which we are already seeing with companies like Kuka as well as the recent acquisition of SLM Solutions and Arcam by GE in attempt to corner the market in metal based additive 3D printing.  [Read more…] about Investing in robotics: Will ‘makers’ make a difference in the established industry?

Cognex awards Integro Technologies official partner status

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Cognex Corporation names Integro Technologies first certified platinum partner

Integro Technologies, a machine vision integrator in Salisbury, North Carolina, has been named the first Certified Platinum Level Cognex Partner System Integrator (PSI). 

In 2003, Integro Technologies was named a Cognex Vision Integrator (CVI), and in 2005, became an official Cognex PSI. Integro Technologies has consistently been in the top tier of the Cognex PSI programs in North America.

The new Certified Platinum status acknowledges System Integration companies that have experienced engineers on staff and have been trained on the latest technology available from Cognex.  [Read more…] about Cognex awards Integro Technologies official partner status

Huawei starts smartphone manufacturing in India

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Huawei says it is reaffirming its commitment to India with its decision to start manufacturing smartphones in India in collaboration with “sketch-to-scale” engineering design solutions company Flex.

Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, India’s union minister, information and technology, law and justice, made the announcement at Huawei’s “Make in India” inauguration ceremony in the Indian capital, New Delhi.

Starting from this month, the Flex manufacturing plant in Chennai will manufacture one of the Honor smartphones models. The plant will have the capacity to make 3 million units by the end of 2017.  [Read more…] about Huawei starts smartphone manufacturing in India

Massachusetts robotics companies employed 4,700 workers and generated $1.6 billion in revenue

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Massachusetts Robotics Cluster report identifies “world-class companies and research centers driving innovation”, outlines opportunities for future growth

New research released today by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative cites 122 companies that now comprise the Commonwealth’s robotics cluster and that these firms employed over 4,700 workers and generated over $1.6 billion in revenue in 2015 alone.

The report also identified 33 new robotics startups that were created in Massachusetts over the past five years, an increase of 31 percent.

In addition to an assessment of the current state of the industry, the Massachusetts Robotics Cluster Report also outlines the key robotics sub-sectors where the Commonwealth is taking a global leadership role, including marine robotics, ecommerce logistics technologies, and collaborative robotics.  [Read more…] about Massachusetts robotics companies employed 4,700 workers and generated $1.6 billion in revenue

Industrial internet: Connecting motors to the Internet of Things

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Jonathan Wilkins, marketing director of industrial equipment supplier EU Automation discusses how new developments help bring legacy systems forward

In the last few years, fitness tracking technology has been increasingly popular, with a range of devices available to help you become healthier, improve your fitness performance and ultimately live longer.

These devices use non-invasive, easy to use sensors that connect directly to your smartphone or computer, giving you instant results to track your progress. At this year’s Hanover Messe, a new ABB demonstrated a new fitness tracker. Only this time, it’s a fitness tracker for industrial motors.

At this year’s Hanover fair, ABB revealed that it has developed a smart sensor that can monitor the condition of a Low Voltage (LV) motor. This development consists of two parts; the sensor and the software.  [Read more…] about Industrial internet: Connecting motors to the Internet of Things

Chinese energy company employs Sawyer industrial robot from Rethink Robotics

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Five Sawyer robots power flexible production in smart metering, power distribution and energy management 

Wasion Group, a provider of integrated solutions in smart metering, smart power distribution and energy management in China and international markets, has deployed Rethink Robotics’ Sawyer industrial robot on its assembly line for manufacturing single-phase energy meters.

Wasion is moving forward with smart manufacturing initiatives by leveraging smart, collaborative Sawyer robots that are easy to deploy and can meet the precision specifications for the companies’ factories.

Wasion is said to produce 35 million units of various smart metering, power and energy management equipment annually. With a diversified product portfolio, Wasion’s production lines need to accommodate a variety of products in lower volumes.  [Read more…] about Chinese energy company employs Sawyer industrial robot from Rethink Robotics

Darpa-backed company demonstrates semi-autonomous plane co-piloted by a robot

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Aurora demonstrates advanced robot system on a Diamond DA-42, Cessna Caravan and Bell UH-1 helicopter as part of Darpa autonomous aircraft program

Aurora Flight Sciences is reaching new technological heights in the world of automated flight through its work on the Aircrew Labor In-Cockpit Automation System (Alias) program.

On October 17 Aurora demonstrated automated flight capabilities with Alias flying a Cessna Caravan through basic maneuvers under the supervision of a pilot.

Aurora’s Alias technology has now been successfully demonstrated on three separate aircraft, from three original equipment manufacturers, in less than twelve months.  [Read more…] about Darpa-backed company demonstrates semi-autonomous plane co-piloted by a robot

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