Robotics & Automation News

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PCB prototypes improve design and production process

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PCB prototypes are vital for electronics projects. They enable designers to test and improve their designs before making large-scale production. This can help identify and correct design flaws early on, saving time and money in the long run.

By testing the prototype, designers can also ensure that the PCB meets the required specifications and performs as intended.

Prototyping a PCB is an essential part of the electronics design process. It helps to guarantee a high-quality end product. [Read more…] about PCB prototypes improve design and production process

CNH Industrial unveils ‘first’ electric tractor prototype with autonomous features

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CNH Industrial has unveiled the New Holland T4 Electric Power – which the company says is “the industry’s first all-electric light utility tractor prototype with autonomous features” – at its Tech Day in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, at the start of this year.

A concentrated effort between CNH’s team of experts in the USA (Burr Ridge, Detroit) and Italy (Modena) was able to halve this prototype’s development time thanks to collaboration with CNH’s strategic partner Monarch Tractor – an electrified agtech innovator based in California, USA. CNH says its expertise and resources, in conjunction with Monarch’s disruptive technology, “made this world-first result possible”.

This product milestone is the latest development in CNH’s strategic plan for electrification. The prototype presented is branded New Holland Agriculture, while the commercial model will also extend to the CNH Case IH Brand. It follows the launch of the multi award-winning e-Source power pack – an external generator for electric farm implements. [Read more…] about CNH Industrial unveils ‘first’ electric tractor prototype with autonomous features

Port of Rotterdam selects Airwayz as partner to develop prototype drone airspace

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Port of Rotterdam Authority (PoR), in the Netherlands, has selected Airwayz as the partner to build the U-Space Airspace prototype for the port industrial complex.

The partnership is set for a period of two years in which the U-Space services will be set up and the Airwayz unmanned traffic management (UTM) system will be configured to the ports’ needs and requirements.

The Port of Rotterdam Authority believes that monitoring the lower airspace and offering UAS traffic services will in future greatly support drone services and allow them to thrive. [Read more…] about Port of Rotterdam selects Airwayz as partner to develop prototype drone airspace

Desolination: Unique energy and water project combines solar power and desalination

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A unique, €10 million “Desolination” project, involving 19 partners and 12 countries, aims to develop a “first-of-its-kind efficient coupling of concentrated solar power and desalination techniques”.

The Horizon 2020 Desolination project started in June, this year and will last 48 months until May 2025.

During this time, innovative technologies related to both concentrated solar power and desalination will be designed to improve the efficiency of existing concepts. [Read more…] about Desolination: Unique energy and water project combines solar power and desalination

Siemens makes first industrial 5G router available

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Siemens has released its first industrial 5G router – the Scalance MUM856-1. The device connects local industrial applications to public 5G, 4G (LTE), and 3G (UMTS) mobile wireless networks.

The router can be used to remotely monitor and service plants, machines, control elements, and other industrial devices via a public 5G network – flexibly and with high data rates.

Demand for this type of solution is growing in industry. In addition, the device can be integrated into private 5G networks. The Scalance MUM856-1 therefore supports future-oriented applications such as mobile robots in manufacturing, autonomous vehicles in logistics or augmented reality applications for service technicians. [Read more…] about Siemens makes first industrial 5G router available

GSR rescues its deep-sea manganese mining robot

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GSR, the deep-sea exploratory division of the DEME Group, has successfully recovered its prototype deep-seabed mining robot – which had become uncoupled from a cable connecting it to a surface vessel – from the floor of the Pacific Ocean.

Patania II – GSR’s purpose-built prototype nodule collector – is currently being trialled in 4,500 metre water depth in the Clarion Clipperton Zone (CCZ) of the Pacific Ocean.

On its final dive in the GSR area on 25 April, a lifting point separated and Patania II was uncoupled from the 5 km cable that connects it to the surface vessel. [Read more…] about GSR rescues its deep-sea manganese mining robot

AImotive and Sony partner to develop ADAS capability for Vision-S prototype

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AImotive, the most highly-funded automated driving technology company in Europe, is working with Sony to develop its automated driving software stack with Sony’s Vision-S Prototype (main picture and below).

According to Sony, the Vision-S – announced at CES 2020 – is conceived to re-imagine mobility as we know it, by integrating the advanced ADAS and automated driving systems with the latest electric vehicle technology and an innovative entertainment system.

Sony disclosed an update of the Vision-S concept on January 11 at the all-digital CES 2021, highlighting that prototypes are already being tested on public roads. [Read more…] about AImotive and Sony partner to develop ADAS capability for Vision-S prototype

Wikifactory raises $4.5 million to expand its new design collaboration software

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Wikifactory, an online collaboration platform for physical product design and development, has completed a “total upgrade” that it says will enable users the ability to make anything with nothing but a laptop and an internet connection.

Wikifactory says its new Collaborative CAD Tool with in-built chat will “transform the way products are made”, enabling designers, engineers, manufacturers and enterprise to collaborate remotely on virtually any CAD model, from concept through to finished prototype.

The new Collaborative CAD Tool allows product developers of all skill levels in virtually any industry to explore, review and discuss 3D models in over 30 file formats in real-time. [Read more…] about Wikifactory raises $4.5 million to expand its new design collaboration software

Automotive Parts and Pieces: How Concept Vehicles Actually Become Reality

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Did you know it takes a full three years to take a vehicle from the concept phase all the way to production?

That’s three years, thousands of human hours and millions of dollars to get a brand new vehicle from the drawing board to your driveway.

It’s quite an amazing feat when you really think about it – prototyping in the automotive industry! [Read more…] about Automotive Parts and Pieces: How Concept Vehicles Actually Become Reality

New electronic skin developed to make robots ‘feel pain’

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Scientists at the RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia have developed a new type of “electronic skin” that could make robots and other machines more sensitive to touch and contact.

The researchers say their “pain-sensing” prototype mimics the human body’s near-instant feedback response and reacts to painful sensations with the same lighting speed that nerve signals travel to the brain.

Lead researcher Professor Madhu Bhaskaran says the prototype e-skin is a “significant advance” towards next-generation biomedical technologies and intelligent robotics. [Read more…] about New electronic skin developed to make robots ‘feel pain’