Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

port automation

Rocsys launches ‘next-generation’ hands-free charging system for heavy-duty electric fleets

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Rocsys, a developer of charging technologies for electric and autonomous vehicles, has launched the S2, its next-generation hands-free charging solution for heavy-duty electric vehicles operating in demanding environments.

Part of Rocsys’ expanding portfolio of stewards, including the recently unveiled M1, the S2 is now available to order for ports, distribution hubs and other logistics facilities.

Rocsys has delivered its first S2 to a large-scale port customer, marking the solution’s move into active customer deployment. For American organizations with domestic sourcing requirements, Rocsys can provide configurations that support Build America, Buy America compliance. [Read more…] about Rocsys launches ‘next-generation’ hands-free charging system for heavy-duty electric fleets

Engineering at the edge: Nidec powering the future of ship loading at Dalrymple Bay

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When Nidec Drives Africa was approached to design a Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) Motor Control Centre (MCC) for the new “SL1A” Ship Loader at Dalrymple Bay Terminal in Mackay, Australia, the task was clear – but far from simple.

The goal was to modernise offshore operations nearly 4 kilometres out to sea, enhancing efficiency and embedding advanced redundancy into a system that had long relied on outdated technology. [Read more…] about Engineering at the edge: Nidec powering the future of ship loading at Dalrymple Bay

Automated port and terminal operations: Robots moving global trade

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Autonomous straddle carriers, cranes, and internal terminal vehicles

Ports are among the most automated industrial environments in the world – yet they remain largely invisible in discussions about robotics and autonomy.

While factories and warehouses dominate headlines, container terminals quietly operate as vast cyber-physical systems, coordinating fleets of machines that move the physical foundations of global trade.

A modern container port is not a single robot or even a fleet of robots. It is an integrated system of cranes, vehicles, sensors, software platforms, and human supervision, operating continuously under intense economic and political pressure. When ports fail, supply chains fracture. When they perform well, global commerce flows with little notice. [Read more…] about Automated port and terminal operations: Robots moving global trade

Mitsubishi testing vehicle transport robots at Nakagusuku Port in Okinawa

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Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Machinery Systems (MHI-MS), a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, will conduct demonstration testing of finished vehicle logistics (FVL) using vehicle transport robots to autonomously move automobiles.

Following a proposal adopted for “Testbed Support Subsidy Program” conducted by Okinawa Prefecture, demonstration testing is scheduled to begin on December 1 this year at the prefecture’s temporary vehicle storage yard (motor pool) at Nakagusuku Port (Uruma, Okinawa Prefecture).

Vehicle transport robots are used to autonomously move finished vehicles at automobile manufacturing plants, motor pools, and for automated valet parking at shopping malls, theme parks, and airports. [Read more…] about Mitsubishi testing vehicle transport robots at Nakagusuku Port in Okinawa

Fernride transforms Estonia port to driverless operations

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A significant milestone for autonomous logistics in Europe

HHLA TK Estonia terminal, near Tallinn, has partnered with yard trucking automation company Fernride, to begin the operational transition to driverless operation of terminal tractors.

Together, the two companies aim to “set new standards for safety and efficiency in port logistics”.

The transition to driverless operations follows the successful certification of Fernride’s safety concept and system design by TÜV SÜD, as well as approval by the Estonian Transport Administration (ETA).

Fernride is the first company to receive TÜV SÜD certification for an autonomous terminal tractor in accordance with the EU Machinery Directive (2006/42/EC). [Read more…] about Fernride transforms Estonia port to driverless operations