Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

real

MIT unveils dexterous robotic hands that can ‘manipulate thousands of objects with ease’

by

MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory has revealed a dexterous robotic hand that scientists say can “manipulate thousands of objects with ease”. (See video below.)

At just one year old, a baby is more dexterous than a robot. Sure, machines can do more than just pick up and put down objects, but we’re not quite there as far as replicating a natural pull towards exploratory or sophisticated dexterous manipulation goes.

OpenAI gave it a try with “Dactyl” (meaning “finger” from the Greek word daktylos), using their humanoid robot hand to solve a Rubik’s cube with software that’s a step towards more general AI, and a step away from the common single-task mentality. DeepMind created “RGB-Stacking,” a vision-based system that challenges a robot to learn how to grab items and stack them.

Scientists from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL), in the ever-present quest to get machines to replicate human abilities, created a framework that’s more scaled up: a system that can reorient over two thousand different objects, with the robotic hand facing both upwards and downwards. [Read more…] about MIT unveils dexterous robotic hands that can ‘manipulate thousands of objects with ease’

634AI and InOrbit collaborate to bring ‘more efficient’ AMR fleet management to US

by

634AI, the developers of Maestro, an AI-enabled control tower for streamlining the management of industrial indoor mobility, has agreed a collaboration with InOrbit, a cloud-based management platform for robot operations at scale.

The joint solution is designed to enable a deeper understanding of the flows on industrial and warehouse floors, to support the easy integration of AMRs on work floors and optimize their activity.

Maestro is an AI powered centralized Control Tower that enables effective and harmonized indoor operations, from tracking of raw material movements and real time safety alerts for man driven vehicles, to navigation and fleet management of AMRs. [Read more…] about 634AI and InOrbit collaborate to bring ‘more efficient’ AMR fleet management to US

Automated COVID Testing Thanks to a Tireless Robot developed by item America

by

The sheer scale of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to numerous innovative developments in industry to provide efficient solutions to meet the multitude of new challenges.

item America has played a part in several automation projects in the age of COVID – the manufacture of face masks and a workstation for analyzing coronavirus tests.

Now, item has played a role in the world’s first automated coronavirus testing station. Developed by Munich-based Franka Emika GmbH, a test station housing the “SR-NOCS” (“Swab Robot for Naso- and Oropharyngeal COVID-19 Screening”) swab robot. [Read more…] about Automated COVID Testing Thanks to a Tireless Robot developed by item America

Kuka releases new version of its robot simulation software

by

Automation specialist Kuka has released the new version of its smart simulation software, Kuka.Sim 4.0. (See video below.)

Kuka.Sim 4.0 enables details and sequences of robot applications to be “realistically simulated” even before start-up and then transferred 100 percent to the real controller.

The Kuka.Sim simulation software brings robot applications to life – even before the real system is put into operation. [Read more…] about Kuka releases new version of its robot simulation software

Camera-based cap control with artificial intelligence

by

Strong price pressure combined with high quality requirements – the beverage and bottle industry faces the classic dilemma of many industries.

This is also the case in the quality control department of a French manufacturer of plastic caps. Reliably detecting cracks and micro-cracks on plastic caps in 40 different colours and shades running at high speed on a production line is a real challenge.

APREX Solutions from Nancy, France has successfully achieved this goal with the help of image processing technology and artificial intelligence. The basic images are provided by a USB 3 industrial camera from IDS Imaging Development Systems. [Read more…] about Camera-based cap control with artificial intelligence

Porsche Engineering developing ‘intelligent vehicles’ with computer games engines

by

Porsche Engineering, technology service provider and wholly owned subsidiary of Porsche, is using games engines from the computer games industry to develop the intelligent vehicle of the future.

Game engines – popular examples include Unity and Unreal – generate photorealistic images and ensure the physically correct behavior of objects in computer and video games.

Among other uses, Porsche Engineering utilizes these software packages for the virtual development and testing of highly automated driving functions. [Read more…] about Porsche Engineering developing ‘intelligent vehicles’ with computer games engines

MIT startup unveils robot that unloads trailer ‘blazingly fast’

by

MIT startup Pickle has unveiled a new robot that works with people to get online orders delivered sooner by unloading trailers “blazingly fast”. (See video below.)

The secret, says the company, is to “keep people in the picture”.

How has a team of 15 solved one of the biggest challenges in logistics automation in only 18 months and with limited funding? [Read more…] about MIT startup unveils robot that unloads trailer ‘blazingly fast’

IDS unveils camera-based cap control with AI for beverage and bottle industry

by

Strong price pressure combined with high quality requirements – the beverage and bottle industry faces the classic dilemma of many industries. This is also the case in the quality control department of a French manufacturer of plastic caps.

Reliably detecting cracks and micro-cracks on plastic caps in 40 different colours and shades running at high speed on a production line is a real challenge.

APREX Solutions from Nancy, France has successfully achieved this goal with the help of image processing technology and artificial intelligence.

The basic images are provided by a USB 3 industrial camera from IDS Imaging Development Systems. [Read more…] about IDS unveils camera-based cap control with AI for beverage and bottle industry

Ava says its telepresence robot ‘revolutionizing real estate industry’s digital capabilities’

by

Ava Robotics says its telepresence robot is “revolutionizing real estate industry’s digital capabilities”. (See video below.)

In response to the severe limitations created by Covid-19 lockdowns, Ava Robotics, a leader in creating intelligent robots for the workplace, partnered with Austrian real estate company SIGNA and Cisco partner FRINK Advanced Services to create a fully digital, remote sales experience powered by Ava’s telepresence robots.

Ava Telepresence assists realtors and clients in remote, contactless home tours that allow the customer to have more control and better access to viewing a property and interacting with a sales agent. [Read more…] about Ava says its telepresence robot ‘revolutionizing real estate industry’s digital capabilities’

Mitsubishi’s elevator business in China produces its one millionth unit

by

Mitsubishi Electric says its Shanghai Mitsubishi Elevator Company (SMEC), a joint venture company operating in China, has produced its one millionth unit.

The figure includes both elevators and escalators, and comes 34 years after starting production at the company’s Min Hung Plant in 1987.

Mitsubishi Electric, working in collaboration with SMEC, says it continues to deliver “safety, peace of mind and riding comfort in China”, the world’s largest elevator and escalator market, and maintain its “market-leading brand”. [Read more…] about Mitsubishi’s elevator business in China produces its one millionth unit