Robotics & Automation News

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competition

MassRobotics opens applications for third annual ‘Form and Function Robotics Challenge’

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Robotics accelerator MassRobotics has launched its third annual Form and Function Robotics Challenge.

This year’s competition is supported by Altium, AMD, Analog Devices, Autodesk, Copley Controls, Danfoss, FESTO, Harmonic Drive, Igus, Lattice Semiconductor, Maxon, Mitsubishi Electric, and Novanta.

The MassRobotics challenge is designed for college student teams to showcase their unique robotics projects. Teams from anywhere around the world are encouraged to enter. [Read more…] about MassRobotics opens applications for third annual ‘Form and Function Robotics Challenge’

ABB Robotics selects T-Robotics and Mbodi as AI startup winners

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ABB Robotics has selected T-Robotics and Mbodi as the winners of its 2024 ABB Robotics AI Startup Challenge, marking what the industrial giant says is “a significant milestone” in advancing artificial intelligence solutions for industrial robotics.

Selected from over 100 global applicants, these pioneering startups will help transform how industrial robots understand, learn, and adapt to complex manufacturing environments through breakthrough artificial intelligence solutions.

Marc Segura, president of ABB Robotics, says: “Today’s manufacturing challenges demand solutions that combine simplicity with sophisticated AI capabilities. [Read more…] about ABB Robotics selects T-Robotics and Mbodi as AI startup winners

PCBWay launches mechanical and electronics design competitions

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PCBWay launches 7th electronics project design contest

Some people believe that the printed circuit board, or PCB, is one of the most important inventions – if not the most important invention – ever.

The man credited with the invention of the first PCB is Paul Eisler, who is said to have sold the rights for £1 – that’s one English pound – at the end of the 1930s.

Eisler did negotiate a minority stake in a company called Technograph through the sale, but if he had negotiated a single penny for every PCB sold, it probably would have generated more money for a single product in history. [Read more…] about PCBWay launches mechanical and electronics design competitions

MassRobotics partners with Chewy to launch $30,000 prize competition

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MassRobotics, in collaboration with Chewy, a pet food and care products retailer, has launched the CHAMP (Chewy Autonomous Mobile Picking) Challenge.

This innovation challenge invites robotics developers and innovators to tackle a pressing issue in warehouse automation: designing a system that efficiently grasps, lifts, and places heavy, awkwardly shaped items in confined warehouse spaces.

The CHAMP Challenge focuses specifically on the challenges of grasping and picking large, bulky items, such as bags, boxes, and pails of dog food and cat litter. [Read more…] about MassRobotics partners with Chewy to launch $30,000 prize competition

NASA boosts GoAERO’s mission with Space Act Agreement and university innovation project funding

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GoAERO says its Space Act Agreement with NASA codifies and expands its partnership and marks a “significant leap forward” in its mission to revolutionize emergency response aviation.

In addition, NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) has committed additional funding through its University Innovation Project, specifically targeting US-based university teams participating in the GoAERO Prize competition.

This collaboration, announced at the recent International Council of Aeronautical Sciences (ICAS) conference, underscores NASA’s dedication to fostering innovation in aviation and emergency response technologies. [Read more…] about NASA boosts GoAERO’s mission with Space Act Agreement and university innovation project funding

Robotics: A Global Industrial Policy Competition

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By Marc Fasteau and Ian Fletcher

This article is extracted from the robotics case study in Industrial Policy for the United States: Winning the Competition for Good Jobs and High-Value Industries by Marc Fasteau and Ian Fletcher.

The book argues that in order to compete for economic and political power, America must adopt a three-pronged approach to industrial policy that encompasses tariffs and trade; manufacturing and innovation support; and a strategy to bring down the overvaluation of the dollar.

David P. Goldman calls the “standard reference work on industrial policy in the foreseeable future” in a recent American Conservative article. The book is on sale through Cambridge University Press from September 30, 2024.

[Read more…] about Robotics: A Global Industrial Policy Competition

ABB Robotics launches global startup challenge

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ABB has launched its 2024 Robotics AI Startup Challenge, a global competition designed to accelerate the development of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions in robotics.

The challenge is part of ABB’s ecosystem for innovation, with a previous challenge resulting in the acquisition of Sevensense in January 2024, a Swiss-based start-up and leading provider of AI-enabled 3D vision navigation technology for autonomous mobile robots (AMRs).

ABB Robotics’ latest challenge will foster innovation and collaboration between ABB and pioneering startups and scaleups worldwide. [Read more…] about ABB Robotics launches global startup challenge

Mouser Electronics sponsors FIRST Robotics Competition

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Mouser Electronics has confirmed its continued sponsorship of the FIRST Robotics Competition, which inspires innovation and fosters well-rounded life capabilities in tens of thousands of young people every year.

During the 2022-23 FIRST Robotics Competition season, nearly 100,000 high-school students on more than 3,400 teams from across the world are learning, discovering, and solving engineering challenges through a series of robotics events.

Kevin Hess, Mouser’s senior vice president of marketing, says: “Since our founding, education has been a main facet of Mouser’s mission. [Read more…] about Mouser Electronics sponsors FIRST Robotics Competition

ForwardX Robotics launches competition to win free fleet of robots

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ForwardX Robotics is running a competition to win a fleet of 10 autonomous mobile robots as part of a warehouse automation system.

ForwardX Robotics, a supplier of AMR-based assisted picking solutions worldwide, launched the competition at the ProMat Show, which is in its final day today. The company says it will giveaway a 10-AMR system to a lucky winner in the United States.

The 10-AMR system will consist of ForwardX’s Flex autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) along with the appropriate accessories and its f(x) Fleet Manager. [Read more…] about ForwardX Robotics launches competition to win free fleet of robots

Why is Competition Good for Business?

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When you start a business, there are a million things you need to think about. Even if that number seems like an exaggeration, the truth is that there are certainly more things you need to think about than in most other careers.

After all, if you work for someone else, it’s them who will be doing all the worrying and planning, and you’ll just have to do the work you’re given to do. When you’re the boss, you have to take on a number of different responsibilities.

One of those responsibilities is to understand your competitors more. You need to know who they are, what they do, and how they do it, and you need to know how all of that will impact your own business. [Read more…] about Why is Competition Good for Business?