Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

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Comau introduces new robot for ‘sensitive’ environments

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Comau has introduced its new Racer-5 Sensitive Environments (Racer-5 SE), a high-speed industrial robot designed for the special and sensitive settings that characterize the pharmaceutical, health and beauty, food and beverage and electronics industries.

Featuring a protective water, heat and grease-resistant coating, the ruggedized 6-axis articulated robot fully responds to the demand for IP67 certification, high-grade ISO 5 Cleanroom classification (ISO 14644-1), protection from chemical agents and the need to reduce the risk of contamination. It also has NSF H1 food grade lubrication.

Further benefits of the dedicated robot include reduced operator risk when working with potentially harmful chemicals and substances, as well as increased productivity, traceability, and quality. [Read more…] about Comau introduces new robot for ‘sensitive’ environments

ABB wins prestigious IERA Award for its PixelPaint robotic painting system

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ABB’s PixelPaint robotic “non-overspray” technology for the automotive industry has won this year’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Robotics & Automation (IERA) Award for Outstanding Achievements in Commercializing Innovative Robot and Automation Technology.

Launched in 2020, PixelPaint uses inkjet head technology to directly apply high resolution two-tone or individualized designs to a car body in a single pass, enabling manufacturers to easily meet the rising demand for customized paint jobs while eliminating wasteful overspray.

Joerg Reger, managing director of ABB Robotics Auto OEM business line, says: “We are delighted that our PixelPaint solution has been recognized for its innovative, sustainable technology that helps our customers respond to consumer requests for more personalized design. [Read more…] about ABB wins prestigious IERA Award for its PixelPaint robotic painting system

Kuka unveils new version of Cybertech nano industrial robot

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Kuka has unveiled the new generation of its KR Cybertech nano series of industrial robot. (See video below.)

Kuka says the robot is specialised for continuous-path applications such as arc welding, adhesive bonding or sealant application, and calls it the KR Cybertech nano Arc family.

The company adds that, in the low payload category, the robots deliver maximum performance at minimal costs. [Read more…] about Kuka unveils new version of Cybertech nano industrial robot

Kuka launches new industrial robot range

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Industrial automation giant Kuka is launching a new industrial robot range, the KR IonTec, which the company says is “a robot for any task in the 30 to 70 kg payload category”.

Kuka is market-launching the new product series, which it says is the successor to the KR 60-3.

Kuka says the KR IonTec “sets standards in terms of flexibility in the medium payload category”. [Read more…] about Kuka launches new industrial robot range

General Motors and University of Michigan develop automated safety features

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As General Motors moves toward its vision of a world with zero crashes, the company is partnering with the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute to understand the real-world effectiveness of some of its available active safety, driver assistance, and advanced headlighting features that may prevent or mitigate different types of crashes.

The company says results show that several of these features are making a statistically significant impact in helping to reduce crashes.

The study leveraged 3.7 million GM vehicles across 20 different models from 2013-2017. Fifteen different systems were evaluated using police report crash databases available to UMTRI from 10 states. [Read more…] about General Motors and University of Michigan develop automated safety features

Researchers develop robot fingertips for grasping and releasing objects in dry and wet conditions

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A team of researchers at Kanazawa University has developed a robot control system – or fingertips – for grasping and releasing objects in dry and wet conditions.

The researchers say that the study was able to verify that “object grasping by soft surface fluid fingertips with high friction was controllable by applying a suitable lubricant”.

However, they added that it was necessary to do more experiments under various conditions in order to apply the current controlling technology to manufacturing environments. [Read more…] about Researchers develop robot fingertips for grasping and releasing objects in dry and wet conditions