Robotics & Automation News

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Starship completes ‘1 million autonomous deliveries’ and raises another $17 million

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Delivery robot maker Starship Technologies says it has completed “1 million autonomous deliveries” since its launch in 2014.

The company adds that its business continues to expand with new partners and customers being added all the time.

In a blog post, Ahti Heinla, co-founder and CTO at Starship Technologies, says: “I’m proud to announce we have reached one million autonomous deliveries, more than 6 years after founding the company in 2014. [Read more…] about Starship completes ‘1 million autonomous deliveries’ and raises another $17 million

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

Oqton raises over $40 million investment for its digital manufacturing platform

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Oqton, an American-Belgian software company specialising in artificial intelligence-powered solutions for the manufacturing industry, has raised more than $40 million in a Series A financing round, led by Fortino Capital, a leading B2B software investor, by PMV, the regional Flemish investment fund, and by Sandvik, a global engineering group.

The founding team – Samir Hanna and Ben Schrauwen – and several angel investors, including Carl Bass, who is the former CEO Autodesk, Dries Buytaert, of Drupal and Acquia, and Peter Mercelis, of Layerwise, also participated in the round.

The financing will be used to further develop its platform, while expanding its commercial partnerships in multiple domains and verticals, including additive manufacturing, robotic welding, and CNC machining. [Read more…] about Oqton raises over $40 million investment for its digital manufacturing platform

SEMI Technology Unites Global Summit announced

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Global industry executives from all seven SEMI regions will gather online for the inaugural SEMI Technology Unites Global Summit, February 15-19, 2021, for keynotes on the power of technology to unite the world and insights on how the microelectronics industry can shape the digital future.

The virtual event will connect industry leaders and stakeholders across the entire electronics design and manufacturing value chain for the latest developments, trends and innovations in key areas of industry growth including smart mobility, smart medtech, and MEMS and sensors. Registration is open. [Read more…] about SEMI Technology Unites Global Summit announced

Vecna Robotics launches new autonomous forklift truck

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Vecna Robotics, the autonomous mobile robot and workflow orchestration company, has launched its autonomous counterbalanced fork truck, which it describes as “a highly versatile, safe, intelligent and integrated pallet-handling solution”.

The first in the company’s Silverback Series of counterbalanced fork trucks, this next-generation autonomous mobile robot offers vertical lift of up to 72” to help distribution, warehousing, and manufacturing organizations move a wider range of payloads and pallet types, lift inventory to and from equipment, and seamlessly work alongside other materials handling vehicles and human workers to improve efficiency and throughput.

The autonomous mobile robot (AMR) segment is expected to reach $6.8 billion by 2025, according to Frost & Sullivan. [Read more…] about Vecna Robotics launches new autonomous forklift truck

The Software in the HealthCare

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From the labs across the world to the pharmacy in your local area, and finally, to your cabinet, the process of getting the right kind of medicine into your hands is an intricate one where the pharmacy plays a critical role.

There are several procedures, methods, and tasks that need to be followed by pharmacies in order to ensure that medicine is accounted for and delivered in the right place at the right time.

As one of the most important elements of healthcare, medicinal supply, organization, and delivery needs to be as efficient as possible in order to give patients the correct kind. [Read more…] about The Software in the HealthCare

Major European and Japanese car manufacturers integrate Techman Robot into supply chains

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Major European and Japanese car manufacturers are integrating Techman Robot collaborative robots into their supply chains.

Collaborative robots that can be flexibly applied to a small-volume but large-variety production line, focus on human-robot collaboration and facilitate smart manufacturing are emerging.

Compared to other industries, the level of automation in the automotive industry is much higher. The latest report from Kenneth Research predicts that the shipment and sales revenue brought by collaborative robots in the automotive industry will increase by 43 percent every year by 2022. [Read more…] about Major European and Japanese car manufacturers integrate Techman Robot into supply chains

Locomation completes autonomous truck test involving three states

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Locomation, a startup company providing autonomous trucking technology, has completed an on-road test that involved three different states in America.

The pilot program is intended to showcase autonomous trucking technology for the SmartBelt Coalition (SBC), a collaboration of five transportation agencies and seven research and academic institutions, located throughout Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.

Over the course of one week, two Locomation trucks performed three separate interstate routes under close observation from representatives of all involved organizations. [Read more…] about Locomation completes autonomous truck test involving three states

RE2 Robotics achieves 50 percent hiring growth despite pandemic

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RE2 Robotics, or “Resquared Robotics”, a developer of intelligent mobile manipulation systems, announced today that the Company has already reached its 2020 hiring goal of increasing its staff by 50 percent.

In particular, 83 percent of the new hires were engineers from a variety of disciplines, including mechanical, electrical, and software engineering.

In addition, the Company has added to its operations team with the hiring of a head of talent, director of IT, and accountant, and has augmented its production team with the addition of a CNC machinist and lab assistant. [Read more…] about RE2 Robotics achieves 50 percent hiring growth despite pandemic

Essential Marketing Tech Tools

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Few areas of business have escaped the technological revolution. Indeed there is so much that can be gained by embracing the latest tech trends commercially.

In particular, tech is changing the face of the way business markets their brand and products – something that can make keeping up with the increasing demands of an effective marketing schedule that little bit easier.

Not to mention help to supply potential customers with a consistently positive experience each time they interact with your brand. [Read more…] about Essential Marketing Tech Tools