Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

battery

Wiferion launches cloud-based optimization platform for intelligent mobile robot charging

by

Wiferion, an energy solution supplier powering mobile robots and autonomous industrial vehicles through wireless charging, has launched what it says is “the world’s first cloud-based solution for smart robot charging optimization platform.

The cloud-based etaHUB application helps companies utilize their fleets more efficiently by reducing energy consumption, extending battery life, and increasing the productivity of automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) through real-time intelligent charging management.

With its expansion into the North American market this year, Wiferion will debut etaHUB at Automate, May 22-25, 2023, in Detroit. [Read more…] about Wiferion launches cloud-based optimization platform for intelligent mobile robot charging

California Energy Commission awards Liminal $2.75 million grant

by

The California Energy Commission (CEC) has approved a $2.75 million grant for Liminal, a battery manufacturing intelligence company, to advance the assembly of its EchoStat platform from manual to mostly-automated factory-ready equipment.

EchoStat is an EV battery cell inspection system that uses ultrasound inspection and machine learning analytics to provide manufacturers with previously unavailable insights into battery quality, reliability and performance.

Andrew Hsieh, CEO of Liminal, says: “To power the global EV transition, battery production needs to expand by 20 percent annually, but challenges with battery reliability have created setbacks for automakers and battery companies. [Read more…] about California Energy Commission awards Liminal $2.75 million grant

Vanguard to invest $6 million in automaton at Georgia facility

by

Briggs & Stratton, one of the world’s largest producers of engines for outdoor power equipment, is making an additional investment of $6 million in its Advanced Battery Manufacturing facility in Tucker, Georgia, to improve the safety, efficiency and production capacity of its Vanguard Lithium-Ion Battery Packs through the addition of automated equipment within its manufacturing process.

The 78,000-square-foot facility opened in 2020 to support a strategic supply agreement with Ingersoll Rand to power Club Car vehicles with Vanguard Lithium-Ion Battery Packs.

The Tucker location includes four production lines with the capacity to accommodate future growth as the demand for battery power continues to grow across the off-highway industry. [Read more…] about Vanguard to invest $6 million in automaton at Georgia facility

How have electric cars advanced in the past 10 years and what’s the future?

by

Electric cars have come a long way in the past decade, with advancements in technology making them a more viable option for everyday consumers.

From longer battery ranges to faster charging times, electric cars are becoming increasingly practical and efficient.

In this blog post, we will explore how electric cars have advanced in the past 10 years and what the future holds for this exciting industry. [Read more…] about How have electric cars advanced in the past 10 years and what’s the future?

Green movement creating new markets for automation sector

by

It is no doubt necessary to achieve the CO2 reduction goals that the UN and numerous manufacturing companies have set for themselves. The implementation of measures is ambitious and expensive.

However, sustainability efforts also create entirely new markets, lead to attractive business models, and offer great opportunities for the key technology that is robotics and automation.

automatica, held in Munich from June 27 to 30, 2023, presents the opportunities of sustainable production. [Read more…] about Green movement creating new markets for automation sector

Beyond Lithium: Scientists discover a promising cathode material for magnesium rechargeable batteries

by

Scientists discover the optimal composition for a magnesium secondary battery cathode to achieve better cyclability and high battery capacity

Magnesium is a promising candidate as an energy carrier for next-generation batteries. However, the cycling performance and capacity of magnesium batteries need to improve if they are to replace lithium-ion batteries.

To this end, a research team focused on a novel cathode material with a spinel structure, Mg1.33V1.67−xMnxO4.

Following extensive characterization and electrochemical performance experiments, they have found a specific composition that could open doors to high-performance magnesium rechargeable batteries. [Read more…] about Beyond Lithium: Scientists discover a promising cathode material for magnesium rechargeable batteries

Bosch to acquire 12 percent of Husqvarna

by

Bosch has agreed to acquire shares in the long-established Swedish company Husqvarna. The acquisition will increase its shareholding to roughly 12 percent in the company’s share capital in total. Numbers were not disclosed. 

Husqvarna is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. In acquiring these shares today, Bosch intends to strengthen the battery alliance between the two companies.

Husqvarna also includes the Gardena subsidiary and its Flymo brand, both of which are also partners in the Bosch Power Tools division’s “Power for All Alliance”. [Read more…] about Bosch to acquire 12 percent of Husqvarna

BMW unveils first battery cell coating line at Leipzig factory

by

BMW Group Plant Leipzig’s first cell coating line has gone into series operation as e-component production at the site continues to gain momentum.

By 2024 the two existing module assembly lines will be complemented by a third, as well as four more cell coating lines and two more high-voltage battery assembly lines. The four coating lines will enter series operation during the course of this year at roughly two-month intervals.

Markus Fallböhmer, head of battery production at the BMW Group, says: “From 2024 our plant here in Leipzig will be able to run the entire process chain for high-voltage battery production. [Read more…] about BMW unveils first battery cell coating line at Leipzig factory

Electric Future: Battery production facilities bloom on both sides of the Atlantic

by

Battery production plants are popping up and blooming on both sides of the Atlantic, with one or two exceptions, such as BritishVolt, which went into administration recently

Viridi Parente, a developer of battery storage technology, has selected Bright Machines to digitally transform the company’s US electric battery manufacturing facility.

Bright Machines Microfactories, the company’s full-stack assembly automation solution, modernizes manufacturing by leveraging data and artificial intelligence, providing Viridi with new capabilities to meet the increasing demands for its zero-carbon emission energy battery solutions.

Viridi manufactures battery energy storage systems on a 42-acre campus in Buffalo, New York. Its efforts have and will continue to lead to significant job creation in the historically disadvantaged East Buffalo community where its facility is situated. [Read more…] about Electric Future: Battery production facilities bloom on both sides of the Atlantic

Electric Future: Stalled car revolution

by

How green are electric vehicles?

Believe it or not, if you had been walking through Manhattan in 1900, there is a good chance you would have seen an electric car. Roughly one third of cars on the road in New York back then were electric, while the city’s taxi fleet had 30 electric vehicles (EVs). It was to be a brief heyday.

It was Henry Ford’s Model T – first produced in 1908 – that signalled the beginning of the end of the electric car. Suddenly, petrol-fuelled cars were relatively affordable and, thanks to Ford’s pioneering use of the production line, ubiquitous.

Improved roads and cheaper petrol prices saw the electric car all but disappear by the mid-1930s, and it wasn’t until the 1970s – amid soaring oil prices and gasoline prices – that the potential of EVs began to be seriously considered again. [Read more…] about Electric Future: Stalled car revolution