Robotics & Automation News

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Acieta unveils new collaborative robotic system for welding

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Acieta has unveiled a new collaborative robotic system for welding. The company says the new “FastARC” cobot can pay back customers’ investment “in as little as six months”.

Acieta says that “everyone is struggling to hire and retain good laborers, especially those with welding skills”. But when the position is unfilled, a welding system sits idle and doesn’t make a profit.

Companies simply cannot afford to wait for the next skilled welder to walk through the door. The labor pool is dwindling and there’s fierce competition to attract those individuals. [Read more…] about Acieta unveils new collaborative robotic system for welding

Sumitomo develops robot that climbs steel walls

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Japanese industrial giant Sumitomo Heavy Industries says it has developed a “novel robot capable of traveling over curved steel walls by magnetic adhesion”.

The achievement is part of a robot development project at Sumitomo’s Technology Research Center, aiming to automate various manufacturing tasks at industrial sites. The development was achieved under Challenge Program 1, launched in 2018.

Wheeled robots with magnetic adhesion are well known in manufacturing and maintenance of large steel structures like ships and industrial facilities. Most conventional wall climbing robots are designed for flat surfaces. [Read more…] about Sumitomo develops robot that climbs steel walls

3 Things to Know When Transporting Your Robot

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We’re now on the pace of mechanical and AI technology advancement and development. A time when people use the help of a robot for a particular task.

Robots are now in demand for health care, agriculture, food preparation, manufacturing industries, and the military. There are even robotic pets now for common households. [Read more…] about 3 Things to Know When Transporting Your Robot

Methods Machine Tools releases its first end-to-end standard automation system for Nakamura turning centers

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Methods Machine Tools, the foremost supplier of high-quality, high-precision CNC machine tools and automation in North America, has released the Turn-Assist 200i and 270i from RoboJob as its first, end-to-end standard automation system for Nakamura-Tome turning centers.

A semi-collaborative system engineered for lathe automation, Turn-Assist is designed to be implemented and run by operators of any skill level. With a simple tablet-style HMI and standard Ethernet IP interface, shops can successfully change over from one part to another within minutes.

Zach Spencer, Methods’ automation manager, says: “By pairing the Turn-Assist from RoboJob with Nakamura-Tome, we have created a unique automation solution for high-mix/low-volume and/or mid-volume with frequent changeovers on round workpieces often associated with Nakamura lathes. [Read more…] about Methods Machine Tools releases its first end-to-end standard automation system for Nakamura turning centers

New plugin from RoboDK and BobCAD-CAM makes robot machining easy

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Software providers RoboDK and BobCAD-CAM have announced their partnership by releasing a new plugin that allows machinists to program robots quickly and easily for machining applications.

This new tool promises to make robot machining more accessible to machinists and could herald a whole new era in flexible machining for many manufacturers.

RoboDK, a robotics software company based in Montreal, Canada, has recently partnered with BobCAD-CAM, a computer aided design and machining company based in Florida, USA. This month, they have released a new plugin for the BobCAD-CAM software that allows machinists to program robots quickly and easily for machining applications. [Read more…] about New plugin from RoboDK and BobCAD-CAM makes robot machining easy

Nachi-Fujikoshi launches new ‘high-speed, high-precision’ robot series

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Japanese industrial robot giant Nachi-Fujikoshi has launched what it describes as a series of “high-speed, high-precision robots”.

The company says it developed the new robots “in response to customer demands for higher precision, further improving productivity, and miniaturizing electrical and electronic components”.

The three new robots are the MZ07F and MZ07LF with higher speed and precision MZ07. [Read more…] about Nachi-Fujikoshi launches new ‘high-speed, high-precision’ robot series

Kuka teams up with DesignPro to develop robotic welding processes

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Industrial robot maker Kuka has teamed up with automation technology developer DesignPro to create new, advanced robotic welding processes.

Automating the welding process and employing robots enables manufacturers to achieve significant returns across several areas: application precision, speed and agility of task execution, waste reductions and increased safety.

The skills gap is also driving the take-up of automated robotics, as a means to sustain legacy manufacturing processes and support operational resilience. [Read more…] about Kuka teams up with DesignPro to develop robotic welding processes

Yaskawa completes new plant for manufacturing mounting boards and electronic units in China

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Yaskawa Electric, parent company of Yaskawa Mechatronics, one of the world’s largest industrial robot makers, has completed a new plant in Changzhou City, Jiangsu Province, in China.

The facility has already begun the mass production of mounting boards for servo amplifiers and AC drives as well as electronic units for robot control panels used in its production bases in China.

Yaskawa says that, in China, economic activities are currently “stagnant” because of Covid-19 but demand for factory automation at production sites is increasing due to labor shortages caused by the low birth rate and ageing population, rising labor costs, and the risk of coronavirus spreading. [Read more…] about Yaskawa completes new plant for manufacturing mounting boards and electronic units in China

Washington university develops 3D-printed robotic gripper that can pick up anything, no matter what its geometry

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At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, car manufacturing companies such as Ford quickly shifted their production focus from automobiles to masks and ventilators.

To make this switch possible, these companies relied on people working on an assembly line. It would have been too challenging for a robot to make this transition because robots are tied to their usual tasks.

Theoretically, a robot could pick up almost anything if its grippers could be swapped out for each task. To keep costs down, these grippers could be passive, meaning grippers pick up objects without changing shape, similar to how the tongs on a forklift work. [Read more…] about Washington university develops 3D-printed robotic gripper that can pick up anything, no matter what its geometry

Fanuc launches its first stainless steel delta robot

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Fanuc, the world’s largest industrial robot maker, has unveiled the new DR-3iB/6 Stainless delta robot for primary food handling.

The new DR-3iB/6 Stainless is Fanuc’s first stainless steel food-grade delta robot for picking and packing primary food products.

Rated IP69K, the robot meets USDA and FDA food safety standards, and sets a new benchmark for robotic food handling in terms of payload, speed, reach and sanitation. [Read more…] about Fanuc launches its first stainless steel delta robot