Robotics & Automation News

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SoftBank Robotics America partners with Autonomous Solutions Inc

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SoftBank Robotics America (SBRA), the North American arm of the global leader in collaborative robotics (collaborative robotics), has formed a strategic development and equity partnership with Autonomous Solutions Inc (ASI), a leader in industrial ground vehicle automation.

The partnership will expedite the development and deployment of a wide range of autonomous commercial service vehicles. As part of the agreement, SBRA has acquired a minority stake in ASI.

With a focus on outdoor automation, the partnership will accelerate the development of practical landscaping care solutions and logistics solutions (i.e. warehouse terminals and shipping ports). [Read more…] about SoftBank Robotics America partners with Autonomous Solutions Inc

Indoor Robotics raises $15 million to ‘revolutionize building monitoring and security’

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Indoor Robotics, an indoor drone technology company that recently launched Tando drone, has raised $15 million in series A funding.

The round of funding was led by Pitango and included Target Global, European Innovation Council Fund, and Spider Capital. This round enables Indoor Robotics to boost product development and enable intelligent indoor security worldwide.

Developing an autonomous indoor security robot has challenged robotics designers for years. While some ground-based robots are commercially available, ordinary items like a chair or a step can prevent them from fully securing an area. [Read more…] about Indoor Robotics raises $15 million to ‘revolutionize building monitoring and security’

DHL Supply Chain accelerates roll-out of autonomous forklifts with largest single implementation

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DHL Supply Chain has introduced its largest ever single implementation of autonomous forklifts to date, with 15 embedded in its warehouse operations at Tyrefort, United Kingdom.

The autonomous forklifts form part of DHL’s operation for a major customer in the automotive sector, taking over picking, put-away and replenishment of products and empty media in the warehouse. The vehicles reduce the number of manual pallet transfers without requiring significant changes in warehouse infrastructure.

The indoor robotics transporters work safely up to 11.5 metres high – believed to be a first in the logistics industry – easily reaching the highest warehousing racks to handle a range of pallets, stillages and waste cages. [Read more…] about DHL Supply Chain accelerates roll-out of autonomous forklifts with largest single implementation

634AI and InOrbit collaborate to bring ‘more efficient’ AMR fleet management to US

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634AI, the developers of Maestro, an AI-enabled control tower for streamlining the management of industrial indoor mobility, has agreed a collaboration with InOrbit, a cloud-based management platform for robot operations at scale.

The joint solution is designed to enable a deeper understanding of the flows on industrial and warehouse floors, to support the easy integration of AMRs on work floors and optimize their activity.

Maestro is an AI powered centralized Control Tower that enables effective and harmonized indoor operations, from tracking of raw material movements and real time safety alerts for man driven vehicles, to navigation and fleet management of AMRs. [Read more…] about 634AI and InOrbit collaborate to bring ‘more efficient’ AMR fleet management to US

DFI brings accurate indoor positioning for e-commerce warehousing

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DFI’s embedded computers have helped the largest e-commerce platform in Taiwan to realize a more accurate indoor positioning in smart warehouse.

Affected by the raging Covid-19, the public avoids going out in fear of infection. Not only has e-commerce orders surged, but significant e-commerce companies must also expand the deployment of more advanced robots, such as shuttles between shelves, to increase the floor area ratio and improve storage efficiency.

Based on the needs of a top e-commerce company in Taiwan, DFI quickly customized the EC700-BT system and added an expansion card to provide a COM port compatible with RS-232/422/485 protocols and with galvanic isolation protection. [Read more…] about DFI brings accurate indoor positioning for e-commerce warehousing

Cisco releases two new IoT sensor solutions

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Cisco has unveiled two new cloud-managed sensor solutions that the company says can help businesses simplify asset and facility monitoring across their organizations, from indoor IT closets to outdoor Operation Technology (OT) spaces at scale.

Many businesses today operate in commercial buildings with limited capacity and are supporting a growing mobile workforce. It is critical for business operators to have actionable data from their office space and assets to better manage network equipment performance and maintenance.

Remote monitoring using IoT sensors offers a list of benefits to help improve efficiencies including employee safety by preventing unnecessary site visits and equipment checks, reducing network outages and downtime and reducing costs for premature equipment failure. [Read more…] about Cisco releases two new IoT sensor solutions

Investment in agricultural automation increases as farmers look to offset labor shortages

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Total investment in agricultural robot startups has increased significantly as farmers look to offset labor shortages partly caused by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report on the Financial Times website.

Citing data collated by DealRoom.co, the news website says investment in vertical and indoor farming startups has grown by more than 40 percent this year compared with last year.

Indoor farming is basically the process of growing inside large buildings, some of which are like greenhouses and use natural light coming through transparent roofs, while others use artificial lights if their roofs are opaque. [Read more…] about Investment in agricultural automation increases as farmers look to offset labor shortages

New AppHarvest funding round brings total to $150 million

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Indoor farming startup AppHarvest has raised $28 million in its latest funding round, bringing the total to $150 million.

As Bloomberg reports, AppHarvest is building “the world’s largest greenhouse” in Morehead, Kentucky in the US.

AppHarvest uses similar indoor farming techniques to those used by so-called “vertical farming” companies in that it can irrigate its crops using 90 percent less water than traditional farming techniques. [Read more…] about New AppHarvest funding round brings total to $150 million

Brain Corp raises $36 million to meet ‘growing demand for autonomous robots’

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Brain Corp, a developer of artificial intelligence systems for the robotics industry, has raised $36 million in Series D funding to “help meet the growing demand for autonomous mobile robots”.

The company says the growth is being generated by retail, healthcare, airports, education and other industries now on the front lines of the coronavirus health crisis.

The round was led by returning investor SoftBank Vision Fund 1, and includes new investors ClearBridge Investments, and Satwik Ventures, and an additional investment from Qualcomm Ventures. [Read more…] about Brain Corp raises $36 million to meet ‘growing demand for autonomous robots’

Clearpath unveils new indoor research robot ‘Dingo’

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Clearpath Robotics has unveiled its Dingo Indoor Research Robot, described as a “compact, lightweight and cost-effective indoor robotic platform” that is extensible and programmable, and designed to accelerate robotics research and education.

Julian Ware, general manager at Clearpath Robotics, says: “Dingo offers the reliability and flexibility our customers expect from a Clearpath robot, at an approachable price point.

“We have seen a gap in the market for a system with these capabilities and believe Dingo is a cost-effective, ROS-ready indoor platform suitable for benchtop and laboratory testing. The lower cost also makes the use of multi-robot systems more accessible than with other robots.” [Read more…] about Clearpath unveils new indoor research robot ‘Dingo’