Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

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Embark and US Xpress partner to build nationwide terminal network for autonomous trucks

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Embark Trucks, a developer of autonomous technology for the trucking industry, says US Xpress has joined the Embark Partner Development Program and plans to add its terminals to the Embark Coverage Map.

This partnership marks a significant milestone by adding a fleet’s properties into an autonomous truck developer’s transfer point network.

Embark pioneered the transfer point model in 2019 when the company unveiled its first sites in Los Angeles and Phoenix. Transfer points are used to move freight from driverless, long-haul trucks to driver-enabled trucks for first- and last-mile delivery. [Read more…] about Embark and US Xpress partner to build nationwide terminal network for autonomous trucks

How to Practice Photographic Composition

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Amazing photos require a combination of good equipment, lighting, and luck. But, most importantly, awesome images rely on the photographer’s knowledge of photographic composition.

Consistently taking breathtaking pictures is a sign you’ve mastered photographic composition. Understanding contrast, balance, and relevant points of interest are fundamental in exceptional photography. Familiarizing yourself with these elements will bring you great success.

If you’re not content with snapshots and are ready to get serious about photography, you’ve come to the right place. Learning about photographic composition will take you places, so let’s get to it! [Read more…] about How to Practice Photographic Composition

BMW invests in HeyCharge to increase electric vehicle charging points at residential locations

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BMW i Ventures took a lead investment in HeyCharge, the German start-up providing electric vehicle charging stations in apartment complexes, office buildings and other infrastructure locations.

HeyCharge was in Y Combinator’s Summer 2021 batch of start-ups.

Kasper Sage, managing partner, BMW i Ventures, says: “The rapid growth of the electric vehicle market in coming years will necessitate greater infrastructure build-out of charging solutions around the globe. [Read more…] about BMW invests in HeyCharge to increase electric vehicle charging points at residential locations

Fully automatic picking of unknown products from bulk material

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The goal: fully automated small parts picking.

In intralogistics, there has been a lot of hype about robots for some years now, whether in trade journals or at fairs.

Most of them are classic six-axis articulated robots that are looking for their way out of a production environment and into logistics.

The main driver here is the labour shortage, the big challenge not a technical component like the robot or the gripper, but the design of an overall economic process. [Read more…] about Fully automatic picking of unknown products from bulk material

IDS expands Ensenso 3D camera portfolio in the lower price segment

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New entry-level 3D camera: The ultra-compact Ensenso S10 is universally applicable and cost-effective

Industrial camera manufacturer IDS Imaging Development Systems has introduced the Ensenso S, saying the new device shows that the use of industrial-grade 3D technology does not have to be expensive.

The 3D camera is particularly suitable for 3D applications that require budget-friendly, easy-to-integrate and industrial-grade camera technology.

The new Ensenso S10 has an ultra-compact, IP65/67-protected housing and generates 3D data using laser point triangulation, supported by artificial intelligence. This makes the camera suitable for a wide range of applications – and delivers robust 3D information even in low ambient light. [Read more…] about IDS expands Ensenso 3D camera portfolio in the lower price segment

What Happens When Cybercriminals Target Industrial Robots?

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Historically, robots were just dumb pieces of programmable machinery that did the same task over and over again. They had virtually no ability to sense their environment. And they certainly couldn’t make decisions for themselves.

With the advent of machine learning and smart systems, that’s all changing. Now designers are imbuing their mechanical appendages with all manner of intelligence. And it’s only getting better.

For economists, these trends are extremely exciting. We could be looking at a future where robots do the vast majority of manual jobs, freeing up labour for other tasks, boosting productivity like nothing else in human history. [Read more…] about What Happens When Cybercriminals Target Industrial Robots?

How robotics is helping those with disabilities

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Government statistics show that 14.1 million people reported a disability in the UK in 2018-19 – a figure that equates to 21% of the population. Of course, disabilities can range in severity and further data from the authorities reveals 4.1 million disabled people are in work.

Although that represents almost 30% of all disabled people, Scope’s 2019 disability price tag study found that on average, those with a disability face extra living costs of nearly £600 per month.

The encouraging news is that plenty is being done to improve the quality of life for disabled people, to help them enjoy the sense of freedom and independence that more able members of the population may take for granted. [Read more…] about How robotics is helping those with disabilities

Ensenso 3D stereo camera system imitates human vision to make robotic inspection cells faster and more accurate

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The new Ensenso 3D stereo industrial camera system “imitates human vision” to make robotic inspection cells “faster and more accurate”, according to Imaging Development Systems (IDS).

Each Ensenso camera system contains two 2D IDS cameras to view the scene from different positions, similar to the way human eyes work, with artificial intelligence processing the data, rather like the human brain does.

“Special matching algorithms compare the two images, search for corresponding points and visualize all point displacements in a disparity map,” explains IDS. “This is then used to calculate depth information for the resulting point cloud.” [Read more…] about Ensenso 3D stereo camera system imitates human vision to make robotic inspection cells faster and more accurate

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…

Russia and China ‘ditch’ dollar and increase use of euro

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Russia and China are building a “financial alliance” and look set to “ditch” the dollar, according to a report on the Nikkei Asian Review website. 

The financial news website reports that the US dollar’s share of trade between Russia and China “fell below 50 percent for the first time on record” in the first quarter of 2020.

The source of the statistic is Russia’s Central Bank and Federal Customs Service, which published figures showing that a relatively low 46 percent of trade transactions between China and Russia were conducted or completed in US dollars. [Read more…] about Russia and China ‘ditch’ dollar and increase use of euro