Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

manufacturing automation

Why Factory Automation Now Depends on Software-Savvy Workers

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Automation is becoming a software problem. The deeper robots move into production, the more workers need to be confident handling dashboards, updates, alerts and data-driven decisions.

The old image of factory automation was a robot arm behind a safety cage, doing one repetitive task faster than a human being ever could. But whilst robots weld, lift, assemble and pack at speeds fast enough to warrant their own keepers and still save thousands of man-hours, the knowledge of that robot engineer is increasingly software-based.

Meanwhile, the International Federation of Robotics said that, worldwide, more than half a million industrial robots were installed in 2024 alone, topping up a figure approaching 5 million robots in operational use. [Read more…] about Why Factory Automation Now Depends on Software-Savvy Workers

Fanuc-powered robotic cell automates one of furniture manufacturing’s toughest jobs

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A Canadian furniture manufacturer has automated a traditionally labor-intensive upholstery process using a robotic work cell built around a Fanuc M-710iC industrial robot.

Developed by Fanuc Authorized System Integrator Dvolu, the automated upholstery cell performs a series of tasks that have historically required skilled human workers, including fabric stretching, stapling, trimming, and palletizing chair seat linings.

The project highlights how robotics is increasingly moving beyond traditional manufacturing applications such as welding, machine tending, and material handling into tasks that require a greater degree of dexterity and adaptability. [Read more…] about Fanuc-powered robotic cell automates one of furniture manufacturing’s toughest jobs

Méca-Précis utilizes robotic measurement cell to eliminate inspection bottlenecks

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French precision engineering company Méca-Précis has automated part inspection using a robotic measurement cell that combines a coordinate measuring machine (CMM) from Mitutoyo with automation technology from a company called Engineering Data.

The system was introduced after inspection processes became a bottleneck as production volumes increased, particularly for aerospace and space-sector customers that require 100 percent dimensional inspection of every part before and after surface treatment.

Founded in 1975 and based in Châtillon-sur-Indre, Méca-Précis employs 45 people and operates 25 machine tools, including 18 CNC machines. [Read more…] about Méca-Précis utilizes robotic measurement cell to eliminate inspection bottlenecks

Kirisense wins funding to develop robotic fingertips that can sense touch and slip

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UK robotics startup Kirisense has secured funding from the Henry Royce Institute to develop advanced tactile sensing technology designed to give robots a more human-like sense of touch.

The project, supported through the Henry Royce Institute’s Industrial Collaboration Programme and delivered in partnership with the University of Sheffield, will focus on creating robotic fingertips capable of detecting shear forces and slip in real time.

The funding comes as the robotics industry increasingly turns its attention from perception to manipulation. While advances in artificial intelligence and machine vision have significantly improved what robots can see and understand, handling objects reliably remains one of the sector’s biggest challenges. [Read more…] about Kirisense wins funding to develop robotic fingertips that can sense touch and slip

Interview with CreateMe CEO Campbell Myers: From stitching to bonding – physical AI could transform the way clothes are made

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For decades, apparel manufacturing has remained one of the most labor-intensive sectors in global industry. While robots have transformed automotive production, electronics assembly, and warehouse operations, handling soft, deformable materials such as fabric has proven far more difficult to automate.

Textiles stretch, wrinkle, drape, and shift unpredictably, creating challenges that traditional industrial automation systems were never designed to solve.

As interest in embodied AI and physical AI continues to grow, many researchers and technology companies see deformable-material manipulation as one of the most important remaining frontiers in robotics. [Read more…] about Interview with CreateMe CEO Campbell Myers: From stitching to bonding – physical AI could transform the way clothes are made

Interview with Workr Robotics CEO Ken Macken: ‘Paying for automation by the hour’

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Industrial robotics is entering a new phase. Advances in artificial intelligence, large language models, and so-called embodied AI have sparked renewed excitement about robots that can understand, reason about, and interact with the physical world.

High-profile collaborations between companies such as Google DeepMind and Boston Dynamics have fueled speculation that increasingly capable general-purpose robots may soon find their way onto factory floors.

But not everyone in the industry is convinced that these developments represent an immediate breakthrough for manufacturing. [Read more…] about Interview with Workr Robotics CEO Ken Macken: ‘Paying for automation by the hour’

Robotiq launches AI platform to automate robotic workcell integration

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Robotiq has introduced IQ, an AI-enabled platform designed to make robotic Workcell integration faster, more predictable, and easier to scale.

Enabling a much-needed shift from a manual, expert-dependent approach to automatic integration, IQ captures unstructured automation project data, coordinates engineering workflows, and helps partners generate validated workcell designs based on real customer inputs and historical deployment data from thousands of previous factory installations.

Samuel Bouchard, CEO of Robotiq, says: “Automation does not scale when integration remains manual. [Read more…] about Robotiq launches AI platform to automate robotic workcell integration

Sensory Robotics says ‘the end of robotic cages starts now’

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A University of Cincinnati 1819 Innovation Hub corporate partner, Sensory Robotics, says it has “broken through the fence line with a next-generation safety solution”.

Their flagship technology, the SR-1 system, is designed to be installed in and integrated with existing industrial robots, setting a new benchmark for how robots can safely transform into cobots and operate alongside humans.

Sensory Robotics, through UL certification, ensures the safety of their technology to work alongside humans and heavy robots with no restrictions on payload, reach, or speed. [Read more…] about Sensory Robotics says ‘the end of robotic cages starts now’

Festo introduces two-finger pneumatic gripper for cobot applications

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Collaborative robots operate within strict payload and mounting constraints. Pneumatic gripper installations that rely on external valves, sensors, and wiring add weight, increase footprint, and complicate routing along compact cobot arms.

To address these constraints, Festo has introduced the HPPH two-finger pneumatic parallel gripper, a compact, lightweight design that integrates control, sensing, and collaborative safety functions directly into the gripper body.

By reducing external components, the HPPH preserves payload capacity and simplifies mounting and wiring on collaborative robot platforms. The HPPH is available through Festo and the Universal Robotics Marketplace. [Read more…] about Festo introduces two-finger pneumatic gripper for cobot applications

Machine Vision Systems Are Expanding the Need for Scalable Media Infrastructure

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Machine vision systems are becoming increasingly important across modern industrial environments. Factories, warehouses, logistics centers, robotics platforms, and automated production facilities now rely heavily on cameras, sensors, and AI-assisted visual analysis to improve operational efficiency and decision-making.

These systems help monitor production lines, inspect product quality, track inventory movement, support predictive maintenance, and improve workplace safety. As industrial automation continues expanding, organizations are generating far larger volumes of visual information than they did only a few years ago.

This rapid growth in visual data is creating new infrastructure challenges surrounding storage, organization, accessibility, and long-term media management. For many companies, scalable media infrastructure is becoming just as important as the automation systems generating the data itself. [Read more…] about Machine Vision Systems Are Expanding the Need for Scalable Media Infrastructure