Robotics & Automation News

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Delivering Content Like Never Before

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When you’re watching a movie on Netflix, skipping between one webpage to another, downloading an image, or accessing a cloud storage server, you’re getting some form of content.

The way this information is delivered to you actually involves an intricate and complex process that ensures that you’re getting the right content quickly.

Obtaining and assessing vital information has never been quicker or more efficient, and this is in large part thanks to the emergence of content delivery networks, which are a network of servers and data centres that work in tandem with each other in order to deliver a faster connection to users. [Read more…] about Delivering Content Like Never Before

Plastic-eating bacteria could help recycle waste ‘six times faster’

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The University of Portsmouth scientists who re-engineered the plastic-eating enzyme PETase have now created an enzyme “cocktail” which can digest plastic up to six times faster.

A second enzyme, found in the same rubbish dwelling bacterium that lives on a diet of plastic bottles, has been combined with PETase to speed up the breakdown of plastic.

PETase breaks down polyethylene terephthalate (PET) back into its building blocks, creating an opportunity to recycle plastic infinitely and reduce plastic pollution and the greenhouse gases driving climate change. [Read more…] about Plastic-eating bacteria could help recycle waste ‘six times faster’

SVV claims China’s first dedicated low-volume manufacturing facility

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Product development and engineering company Shenzen Valley Ventures (SVV) says its​ new manufacturing facility in China is its “first tier-1 facility” in the country. (See 3D tour of the facility.)

Located on the 9th floor of a skyscraper, SVV says it is “the most impressionable manufacturing facility in the Greater Bay Area’s Shenzhen”.

The platform is designed solely to accommodate the low-volume production needs of complex business-to-business devices, something which other manufacturers are unable to support, at least at a tier-1 level.  [Read more…] about SVV claims China’s first dedicated low-volume manufacturing facility

ABB says its new 3D inspection robot cell makes quality control testing ‘10 times faster’

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ABB has unveiled a new 3D inspection robot cell which it claims makes quality control testing “10 times faster”.

The industrial automation giant says its 3D quality inspection (3DQI) robot cell is “capable of detecting defects of less than half the width of a human hair and imperceptible to the naked eye”.

It adds that the cell will “dramatically accelerate production by providing fast, accurate testing to make metrology easier and less time consuming”. [Read more…] about ABB says its new 3D inspection robot cell makes quality control testing ‘10 times faster’

Common 3D Printing Issues (and How to Address Them)

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Since the 1980s, 3D Printing has become more and more common in the industry. Also known as additive manufacturing, it is basically the process of putting together a three-dimensional object from a computer-generated CAD or 3D model.

Multiple computer-controlled processes are involved. Among the most commonly observed is the layer-by-layer joining of materials and eventual solidification.

3D printing offers a lot of advantages. Among the most frequently cited benefit is its ability to expedite production. [Read more…] about Common 3D Printing Issues (and How to Address Them)

Maxim launches ‘industry’s smallest’ LiDAR integrated circuits

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Chipmaker Maxim Integrated has unveiled what it says is “the industry’s smallest light detection and ranging integrated circuits”.

The company says the ICs provide twice the bandwidth than competing ICs and are intended for faster self-driving cars.

Maxim says designers of automotive self-driving systems can now enable higher-speed autonomous driving through the industry’s fastest and smallest LiDAR ICs. [Read more…] about Maxim launches ‘industry’s smallest’ LiDAR integrated circuits

Can robots save the e-commerce holiday season?

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It’s getting close to Christmas and that means it’s time for e-commerce fulfillment managers to start getting worried about the availability of labor for the holiday season.

According to a recent article in Supply Chain Dive, “this year’s peak season promises additional challenges in recruiting new hires as the pool of available labor shrinks”.

As the article points out, the US unemployment rate hit a 50-year low in September 2019. [Read more…] about Can robots save the e-commerce holiday season?

ABB collaborative robot to provide faster lab analysis for Semcon

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Product development company Semcon says it is providing faster analysis of samples for an international laboratory company thanks to a collaborative robot from ABB.

The company says it set out with the objective of creating a faster, safer process and of freeing up time for laboratory personnel so that they can focus on more advanced tasks.

Laboratory work often involves a number of monotonous and repetitive elements that can be streamlined by means of automation. [Read more…] about ABB collaborative robot to provide faster lab analysis for Semcon

ABB launches new version of robotic picking software Pickmaster

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ABB has launched the new version of its robotic picking software Pickmaster, which now feature “digital twin technology” to reduce commissioning times. 

The product was introduced today at the China International Industry Fair in Shanghai. It will be on display next week at Pack Expo in Las Vegas at the ABB Robotics booth C-2051.

The company says the system is now capable of achieving picking times that are “15 percent faster”, enabling it to increases output and total line efficiency by 40 percent.

ABB Robotics says PickMaster is the market-leading robotic software for vision-guided random flow picking and packing applications for the digital factory of the future. [Read more…] about ABB launches new version of robotic picking software Pickmaster

Industrial measurement and testing: Faster commissioning results in quicker time to market

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Bosch Rexroth provides insight into measurement and testing processes

To ensure consistency, repeatability, quality and compliance with regulations, many companies employ rigorous testing and measurement processes.

Kraus automation technology (KAT), specialises in providing tailored testing systems for life-span, fatigue and material tests.

To offer testing systems which meet the needs of their diverse customer base, KAT use National Instruments’ LabView software to create custom user interfaces for engineers. [Read more…] about Industrial measurement and testing: Faster commissioning results in quicker time to market