Robotics & Automation News

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Elon Musk wants to implant a chip in your brain. Not that there’s anything wrong with it…

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Elon Musk – he of PayPal, Tesla, and SpaceX fame and enormous fortune – now wants to implant a chip in your brain as part of his Neuralink business.

Neuralink is Musk’s brain-to-computer interface company that seeks to connect all humans to artificial intelligence systems which will potentially monitor and control all their movements and thoughts.

The Matrix-style scenario sounds like living in an absolute hellish nightmare, but Musk seems completely oblivious to that likelihood. [Read more…] about Elon Musk wants to implant a chip in your brain. Not that there’s anything wrong with it…

Robots reduce training time in material handling sector, says Yale

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Reducing the time companies spend training new employees are among the many benefits robots bring to the industrial sector, says Yale.

The 100-year-old locksmith’s company partners with Balyo to offer robotic solutions such as autonomous forklift trucks for the material handling industry.

Yale Europe Materials Handling says it now offers “sophisticated robotic solutions” which can adjust to changes in their surroundings. [Read more…] about Robots reduce training time in material handling sector, says Yale

Opinion: The future of bespoke automation

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Automation is clearly a key component of the future, it already makes up a significant part of supply chains and factories today; from robotic X-ray machines in hospitals to pallet trucks, parking lots, baggage handling and even stage scenery automation within theatres.

There is a rapid expansion happening in the automation industry, especially as bespoke vehicles can be created for businesses to leverage specific and measurable benefits through qualified consultation that doesn’t break the bank.

Dr Paul Rivers, managing director at Guidance Automation discusses what the future holds for automation, and how for businesses to gain the most benefit from these technologies, they must look to deploy a bespoke solution that aligns precisely with their processes, goals and workforce in order to fully reap the benefits. [Read more…] about Opinion: The future of bespoke automation

Precision and Convenience: How Robots Are Sustaining Maintenance Beyond Working Lines

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When we think of robotics and automation, the first sight that comes to our mind is that of an industrial production line, where giant robots carry out the high-precision task of assembling products, one step at a time without compromising on efficiency and accuracy.

But as the technology of robotics and automation is becoming much more sophisticated, the uses of robots are expanding from the factory floor to new territories.

One of these new domains is that of maintenance in every industry. Robotics have made concrete inroads in the maintenance department of every aspiring industry and this reach is not unwarranted. [Read more…] about Precision and Convenience: How Robots Are Sustaining Maintenance Beyond Working Lines

Techman Robot targets smart manufacturing market with TÜV professional training for its employees

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Techman Robot is targeting growth in the smart manufacturing market, and the company believes the best starting point is TÜV professional training for its employees.

Smart manufacturing is a hot topic in the industrial sector. Many countries now believe that smart robots will play an increasingly central role in future technological development.

However, during the production process, potential hazards still exist between mechanical equipment and humans. [Read more…] about Techman Robot targets smart manufacturing market with TÜV professional training for its employees

Motor Controllers Used in Autonomous Mobile Robots

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Internal logistics is an indispensable part of the supply chain, especially in large manufacturing enterprises.

However, the tasks involved can also be quite repetitive. Humans can easily do such tasks, but that’s neither cost-effective nor efficient.

Why waste employee resources doing mundane and repetitive tasks when they can be automated? [Read more…] about Motor Controllers Used in Autonomous Mobile Robots

Mitsubishi Electric develops ‘co-operative AI’ for human-machine work

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Mitsubishi Electric says it has developed a cooperative artificial intelligence technology that it says “enhances work collaboration between humans and machines”.

The system uses something Mitsubishi calls “inverse reinforcement learning”, or IRL, to learn and imitate the actions of skilled workers.

IRL, one of the key features of Mitsubishi Electric’s “Maisart AI” technology, enables machines to imitate human-like actions based on relatively small amounts of data. [Read more…] about Mitsubishi Electric develops ‘co-operative AI’ for human-machine work

Old Versus New Robotics: How Things Are Changing

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The history of robotics is a long one, with roots in ancient Egypt as far back as 1500 BC. While the “robots” of those days are far from being able to exhibit the intelligence of robots today, it is still worth mentioning.

However, the beginning of the evolution of modern robotics as we know it can be traced to France with the innovation of a robot duck. The duck could flap its wings, quack, and do some other basic duck-ly things.

And today, we have robots working in every sector of human society, making contributions in the smart and efficient manner that only robots can manage. [Read more…] about Old Versus New Robotics: How Things Are Changing

5,000 deaths a year: A reminder of why safety systems matter

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Special Report by Robotics and Automation News in association with SICK

It’s been almost 50 years since the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA, was established in the United States after much pressure from labour unions seeking more protection for workers.

In the half-century since OSHA’s creation, it is estimated that many thousands of workers’ lives have been saved and countless more have been kept out of harm’s way.

Today, OSHA, an agency of the Department of Labour, is more important than ever as people start returning to work after months of lockdown in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, which has caused almost 350,000 deaths worldwide to date, and infected 5.5 million more. [Read more…] about 5,000 deaths a year: A reminder of why safety systems matter

Inspection and Diagnostic Robots: What they Mean for Society

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Seventy percent of robots in the United States are employed in just four industries: auto-making, electronics, plastic and chemicals, and metals manufacturing.

Inspection and diagnosing play an important part in all these industries, so a variety of robots have been programmed to inspect equipment and diagnose problems as they arise.

Of course, inspection and diagnosis are not limited to manufacturing; they are the safeguards of society. AI diagnostics and autonomous inspection are helping us in more ways than we can imagine. [Read more…] about Inspection and Diagnostic Robots: What they Mean for Society