Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

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Agriculture robotics startup Future Acres looking to raise $3 million

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Startup Future Acres is looking to raise $3 million to bring agricultural robotics to the farm industry in order to “optimize workforce efficiency”. 

The initiative to raise up to $3 million in seed capital is being organized through the equity crowdfunding site SeedInvest. The company is producing an autonomous, electric agricultural robotic harvest companion, named Carry, to help farmers gather hand-picked crops faster and with less physical demand.

At a time when farmers are tasked with producing more food than ever before to meet growing global population demands – predicted to get as high as 10 billion people by 2050 – limitations in labor and harvesting tools, in addition to environmental scrutiny, have prevented farmers from staying profitable and scaling their businesses. [Read more…] about Agriculture robotics startup Future Acres looking to raise $3 million

ABB launches new range of ‘next generation’ collaborative robots

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ABB is expanding its collaborative robot portfolio with the new GoFa and SWIFTI cobot families, offering higher payloads and speeds, to complement YuMi and Single Arm YuMi in ABB’s cobot line-up.

These stronger, faster and more capable cobots will accelerate the company’s expansion in high-growth segments including electronics, healthcare, consumer goods, logistics and food and beverage, amongst others, meeting the growing demand for automation across multiple industries.

GoFa and SWIFTI are intuitively designed so customers need not rely on in-house programming specialists. This will unlock industries that have low levels of automation, with customers able to operate their cobot within minutes of installation, straight out of the box, with no specialized training. [Read more…] about ABB launches new range of ‘next generation’ collaborative robots

GM to invest $800 million to convert existing facility into Canada’s first large-scale commercial EV plant

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American auto giant General Motors to invest $800 million to convert one of its existing facilities into Canada’s first large-scale commercial electric vehicle manufacturing plant.

Subject to ratification of a tentative 2021 agreement reached with Unifor and confirmation of government support, GM plans to bring production of its recently announced BrightDrop electric light commercial vehicle, the EV600, to its CAMI manufacturing plant in Ingersoll, Ontario (main picture, courtesy 3BL Media).

The nearly $800 million (1 billion Canadian dollar) investment will support GM’s timing to deliver BrightDrop EV600 in late 2021. The investment will enable GM to convert CAMI into Canada’s first large-scale electric delivery vehicles manufacturing plant. [Read more…] about GM to invest $800 million to convert existing facility into Canada’s first large-scale commercial EV plant

Autonomous shuttle market forecast to be worth $18 billion

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The autonomous shuttle market is forecast to be worth $18 billion by IDTechEx, which includes driverless minibuses and small, sidewalk delivery robots in the category. 

An increasing number of commercial vehicles are going battery-electric, assisted by battery life of one million miles and ranges of up to 600 miles being imminent. Shenzhen alone has 70,000 electric logistics vehicles.

Next come robot buses, robotrucks and robotaxis with driver elimination reducing cost by intensive use. IDTechEx has a report on the topic, Electric, Hybrid & Fuel Cell Light Commercial Vehicles 2021-2041. [Read more…] about Autonomous shuttle market forecast to be worth $18 billion

Bobacino launches robotic tea bar

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A startup company called Bobacino has launched its automated Boba Tea Bar, which uses a robotic arm to make beverages for customers. (See video below.)

Bobacino says it is bringing the “unique boba tea experience” to a growing audience of boba aficionados and new enthusiasts through advanced artificial intelligence, automation and robotics.

The company has launched on StartEngine, a crowdfunding platform, to target a market that it forecasts is set to hit $8.4 billion by 2024. [Read more…] about Bobacino launches robotic tea bar

Carbon fiber reinforced plastics market set to grow to $64 billion by 2030

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Carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRPs) are a critical class of performance materials, but disruptions from Covid-19 have made the future of the industry uncertain.

In a new report, The Future of Carbon Fiber Composites, Lux Research outlines major challenges and opportunities carbon fibers and CFRPs face and how standardization and recycling are enabling the CFRP market to grow to a $64 billion industry by 2030.

The carbon fiber industry is facing three major challenges: weakness in underlying markets, fiber standardization, and recycling. [Read more…] about Carbon fiber reinforced plastics market set to grow to $64 billion by 2030

Walmart’s doubling of online sales to boost warehouse robotics sector

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Walmart has reported that its e-commerce sales have almost doubled as a result of the coronavirus lockdown forcing everyone to lock themselves up at home as often as possible and shopping online.

The company reported a staggering 97 percent increase in online sales for its second quarter, total revenue of almost $138 billion, which is an increase of $7.4 billion overall across internet and in-store sales.

Additionally, Walmart’s marketplace has also seen a doubling in the number of sellers included, to more than 50,000. [Read more…] about Walmart’s doubling of online sales to boost warehouse robotics sector

Luxshare buys iPhone assembly factory and becomes bigger than Foxconn

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Chinese hi-tech manufacturer Luxshare Precision Industry has bought an iPhone assembly factory from Wistron and has become bigger than Foxconn in terms of market capitalization.

Although Luxshare is well known in the industry, it’s not as famous as its Taiwanese rival Foxconn, which also goes by the name of Hon Hai Precision and has been Apple’s main contract manufacturer for many years.

Luxshare had previously been supplying individual components for iPhones but the Wistron factory purchase means that it can now provide assembled parts or complete devices. [Read more…] about Luxshare buys iPhone assembly factory and becomes bigger than Foxconn

BP’s sale of its petrochemicals business suggests big oil is trying to become big electric

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BP recently sold its petrochemicals business for $5 billion to Ineos, a move which suggests that “big oil” companies are trying to become “big electric” suppliers.

The Wall Street Journal says the sale was the “largest deal by an oil major since the coronavirus outbreak gripped the global economy”.

WSJ says the transaction would enable BP to different itself from its rivals, many of which are forecasting significant growth for the segment and don’t look like they want to sell or leave the petrochemicals sector. [Read more…] about BP’s sale of its petrochemicals business suggests big oil is trying to become big electric

Toyota and Mazda to invest extra $830 million into US factory

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Japanese automakers Toyota and Mazda are planning to invest an additional $830 million into a manufacturing facility in the US, according to a report on Nikkei Asian Review. 

The Mazda Toyota Manufacturing site in Huntsville, Alabama will build sports utility vehicles and the total investment in the facility is estimated to be more than $2.3 billion.

The original plan, announced a couple of years ago, forecast investment to be $1.6 billion, and production was scheduled to start in 2021. Now, says Nikkei, production is expected to start in 2022. [Read more…] about Toyota and Mazda to invest extra $830 million into US factory

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