Market trends and business perspectives
Swisslog has been commissioned to carry out the comprehensive automation of the Coop warehouse in Langhus.
The delivery includes a high-bay pallet warehouse with six Vectura stacker cranes and a conveyor system, which are controlled by the intelligent Swisslog software SynQ.
The new distribution centre will be in full operation at the beginning of 2021.
[Read more…] about Swisslog wins two large orders in Scandinavia and Southeast AsiaThe term “advanced driver assistance systems”, or ADAS, refers to a collection of automotive electronics technologies which are designed to enable vehicles to operate autonomously in certain situations.
The market for ADAS is forecast to be worth around $70 billion by 2025, according to Grand View Research. And although it’s already a huge market, a lot of the activity now is with the future in mind, a future in which many believe autonomous and electric cars will dominate.
A longer list of ADAS functions can be found elsewhere on this website, but examples include cruise control, lane-keeping, self-parking, and collision avoidance.
[Read more…] about ADAS: Top 40 advanced driver assistance systems companiesCanonical has launched a new version of the Ubuntu computer operating system, which is increasingly popular in industrial devices and networks.
The company says the updated version, Ubuntu 19.04, provides the necessary tools for open infrastructure applications, includes a developer desktop, internet of things functionality, and cloud to edge software distribution.
Mark Shuttleworth, CEO of Canonical, says: “The open-source-first on Ubuntu movement in telco, finance, and media has spread to other sectors.
“From the public cloud to the private data center to the edge appliance or cluster, open source has become the reference for efficiency and innovation.
“Ubuntu 19.04 includes the leading projects to underpin that transition, and the developer tooling to accelerate the applications for those domains.”
Sensors supplier Sick showcased a new “smart logistics” system at the recent ProMAT Show, one of the world’s largest material handling exhibitions.
Sick says its system demonstrates how to obtain greater efficiency throughout supply chain operations.
Sick presented its new innovations under the banner of “Logistics Gets Smart”, and says they are designed to provide “highly efficient solutions for intralogistics applications”. [Read more…] about Sick demonstrates ‘smart logistics’ system for warehouse automation
Waypoint Robotics has launched the MAV3K (pronounced May-vick) industrial grade autonomous mobile robot (AMR). It has a 3000lb carrying capacity and omnidirectional mobility.
MAV3K comes equipped with Waypoint’s Dispatcher software, allowing it to be set up and autonomously operating in under 15 minutes.
MAV3K’s batteries keep it moving through the longest workday and Waypoint’s EnZone wireless charging system enables MAV3K to charge itself.
Traditional industrial robots tend to be very large and potentially dangerous, which is why they tend to be caged off and kept separate from human workers.
But a new company called Veo Robotics says it has the technology to transform traditional industrial robotic arms into safe machines that humans can work alongside, within close proximity.
Veo’s solution could make every industrial robot a collaborative robot. The term “collaborative” is recognized by international standards organizations and usually applies to much smaller, newer types of robots which are specifically designed to safe for humans to work with. [Read more…] about Veo Robotics could make all industrial robots collaborative
Robotiq, a company which makes grippers for industrial robots, has launched new software for the embedded force torque sensor in Universal Robots’ new e-Series of collaborative robots.
The company says utilizing the new sensor “makes force control easy” when used with Force Copilot, the related software application.
Robotiq says Force Copilot is an “intuitive” software application which operates Universal Robots e-Series’ embedded force torque sensor. [Read more…] about Robotiq launches software for embedded force torque sensor in Universal Robots’ e-Series
Denso Corporation is forming a new joint venture company to to develop integrated electronic control unit (ECU) software for automated driving and vehicle dynamics control.
Denso will own 65% of the company with Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd taking a 25% stake, ADVICS Co., Ltd. taking 5% and JTEKT Corporation taking 5%.
Details are still being discussed and the plan is for the new company to launch in March 2019.
[Read more…] about Denso in joint venture for automated driving software
Rockwell Automation has released new software designed to simplify network operations and maintenance and give centralised visibility into networked assets.
The new FactoryTalk Network Manager software is designed for monitoring and maintaining a growing number of IoT devices on networks.
It allows monitoring of Allen-Bradley Stratix managed switches, troubleshooting switch issues and configuration of new managed switches from one software interface.
[Read more…] about Rockwell launches network operations and maintenance software
By Stephanie Duvault-Alexandre, consultant at software provider FuturMaster
There’s a lot of talk about artificial intelligence as the best thing since sliced bread. But what does AI really mean for the food industry and what are the implications?
According to a report by Accenture, 85 per cent of organisations have planned to adopt digital or AI technologies in their supply chains during the last year. It’s clearly becoming big business across industries. The value of AI is estimated to be worth $36.8 billion globally by 2025 predicts US market intelligence firm Tractica.
AI is not necessarily a concept that’s all that new. Various names refer to more or less the same thing. For example, machine learning is used to steer self-driving cars. AI is proving instrumental in healthcare for identifying and diagnosing complicated ailments. [Read more…] about Opinion: How artificial intelligence can help the food industry
