Robotics & Automation News

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QYSEA releases new ‘compact and highly capable’ underwater drone

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QYSEA Technology has released its latest “compact and highly capable” underwater drone, FIFISH V-EVO.

The new drone is claimed to be “the first underwater drone to feature a 4K 60 FPS camera with 360-degree omnidirectional movement”, allowing filmmakers and explorers to capture increased detail and smooth slow-motion videos in ultra-high definition, as deep as 100 meters below the surface.

The rapidly growing market for compact underwater drones is being “revolutionized” by QYSEA, according to the company, which manufactures small remotely-operated underwater machines. [Read more…] about QYSEA releases new ‘compact and highly capable’ underwater drone

Seegrid releases software to enable its warehouse robots to work together

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Seegrid, a provider in autonomous mobile robots for material handling, has expanded the capabilities of its Palion AMRs.

To fulfill more applications for more customers and foster AMR interoperability, Seegrid Palion Lift and Palion Tow Tractor now work in combination to load and unload carts with no human intervention.

Seegrid’s newest AMR, Palion Lift, brings together Seegrid’s breakthrough 3D vision-based navigation technology with best-in-class situational awareness capabilities to automate pallet movement. [Read more…] about Seegrid releases software to enable its warehouse robots to work together

Soft assistive robotic wearables get a boost from rapid design tool

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Scientists created a new design and fabrication tool for soft pneumatic actuators with integrated sensing, which can power personalized healthcare, smart homes, and gaming.

Soft, pneumatic actuators might not be a phrase that comes up in daily conversations, but more likely than not you might have benefited from their utility. The devices use compressed air to power motion, and with sensing capabilities, they’ve proven to be a critical backbone in a variety of applications such as assistive wearables, robotics, and rehabilitative technologies.

But there’s a bit of a bottleneck in creating the little dynamic devices that have advantages like high response rates and power to input ratios. They require a manual design and fabrication pipeline, which translates to a lot of trial and error cycles to actually test and see whether the designs will work. [Read more…] about Soft assistive robotic wearables get a boost from rapid design tool

GreyOrange upgrades its warehouse automation system to enable movement of heavy items

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GreyOrange, a warehouse robotics and automation company, says its GreyMatter fulfillment operating system now supports unmanned heavy payload movement, directing its Ranger Intralogistics robots to move heavy payload inventory within warehouse zones.

GreyMatter continuously assesses Distribution Center (DC) performance and deploys intelligent Ranger IL robots to transfer a diverse range of inventory payloads that weigh up to 2,205 pounds—on pallets, racks, cages or trolleys—within a facility.

GreyMatter’s mobile-spatial intelligence enables these Ranger robots to operate accident-free, utilizing LiDAR based SLAM (simultaneous localization and mapping) to perceive surroundings and select collision-free routes. [Read more…] about GreyOrange upgrades its warehouse automation system to enable movement of heavy items

Opinion: A coronavirus-induced acceleration of robotics and automation is happening in China

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By Gao Feng Advisory

A coronavirus-induced acceleration of robotics and automation appears to be taking place in China. There are a number of forces driving this catalysis in automation technologies. 

Firstly, the Chinese government and its policies are playing a central role. This will be particularly reflected in the unprecedented spending on “new infrastructure” as a response to the pandemic.

Secondly, the technologies and related-industries targeted by the government’s new infrastructure agenda are critical components. [Read more…] about Opinion: A coronavirus-induced acceleration of robotics and automation is happening in China

Mecademic releases new firmware for its tiny little industrial robot

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Mecademic has released new firmware for its tiny little industrial robot, the Meca500, dubbed “the world’s smallest six-axis industrial robot arm”.

Though minuscule, the machine has six axes and is said to be essentially the same in movement and articulation to a large industrial robot. The Mecademic robot features 5 micron repeatability and has a price tag consistent with industry-standard robots.

Mecademic, a Canadian startup, says the new firmware 8 is “an entirely new software product”, and will be the base for all future Mecademic robots. [Read more…] about Mecademic releases new firmware for its tiny little industrial robot

ForwardX Robotics launches robots-as-a-service for its warehouse automation solutions

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ForwardX Robotics, a provider of artificial intelligence and robotics solutions, says it will now offer Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) options for its collaborative mobile robots.

Whilst also offering outright sale and renting options, the RaaS subscription-based model aims to encourage supply chain operations to invest in innovation by allowing them to upgrade their facilities without the large upfront investment usually associated with automation projects.

Paul Qian, VP of sales at ForwardX Robotics, says: “The pressure on supply chains to deliver is growing with every day that passes and we know how much of an impact our solutions can have on facilities and their processes. [Read more…] about ForwardX Robotics launches robots-as-a-service for its warehouse automation solutions

Fetch Robotics launches integrated fulfillment solution with Zebra Technologies

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Fetch Robotics, a provider of warehouse robots, has agreed a collaboration with Zebra Technologies, a warehouse solutions specialist, to optimize and automate warehouse picking processes through the integration of Fetch autonomous mobile robots and Zebra FulfillmentEdge software.

The two companies say the unique solution optimizes picking across multiple orders for piece, case, and pallet workflows.

By dynamically optimizing and orchestrating the movement of warehouse workers and robots, FulfillmentEdge and Fetch AMRs enable collaborative picking for faster, more accurate fulfillment and improved workflows that allow workers to spend more time in the aisle instead of manually moving material throughout a facility. [Read more…] about Fetch Robotics launches integrated fulfillment solution with Zebra Technologies

Comau features its exoskeleton in Pack Expo robotics showcase

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Comau, an industrial automation company and part of the Fiat Chrysler Group, is presenting its Muscular Aiding Tech Exoskeleton (Mate) in the all new Robotic Zone (booth N-850G) at Pack Expo Las Vegas.

Visitors to Comau’s interactive booth will have the opportunity to experience firsthand the benefit of incorporating exoskeletons into material handling processes by wearing a Mate in a typical pick and place operation.

Mate has been designed to improve work quality in an efficient and highly ergonomic manner by providing consistent and advanced movement assistance during prolonged overhead, as well as daily tasks. [Read more…] about Comau features its exoskeleton in Pack Expo robotics showcase

Festo and Siemens integrate multi-carrier system into Bosch Rexroth transfer process

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Siemens and Festo are presenting an innovative linear motor drive and control concept, designed to offer flexible and efficient high-performance solutions for short-cycle applications.

The Multi-Carrier-System (MCS) from Siemens and Festo has been integrated into the Rexroth TS 2plus transfer system, thus adding the modular MCS to Bosch Rexroth’s versatile building-block system based on standardised units.

The advantages of the existing systems have been merged, and users are free to combine them in almost any way they wish to achieve maximum flexibility in their processes.

[Read more…] about Festo and Siemens integrate multi-carrier system into Bosch Rexroth transfer process