Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

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Toyota and Subaru to jointly develop battery electric vehicles

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Toyota Motor Corporation and Subaru Corporation are to jointly develop a platform dedicated to battery electric vehicles (BEVs) for midsize and large passenger vehicles and to jointly develop a C-segment-class BEV SUV model for sale under each company’s own brand.

The two companies will combine their respective strengths, such as Subaru all-wheel-drive technologies and Toyota vehicle electrification technologies,  to create attractive BEVs.

Ever since concluding an agreement on business collaboration in 2005, Toyota and Subaru have been deepening their cooperation in various fields, including development, production, and sales.

[Read more…] about Toyota and Subaru to jointly develop battery electric vehicles

Logistics and supply chain: An overview of ‘goods-to-person’ and ‘last-mile delivery’ technologies

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The term “goods to person” in the context of the logistics and supply chain sector refers to technology that brings items from locations within, for example, a warehouse to a human picker while he or she remains in one place, also within the warehouse. 

And while “logistics” and “supply chain” are terms that are often used interchangeably, logistics usually refers to moving goods along public roads or out in the wider world, whereas supply chain refers to specific sections within the journey that the goods make, such as their processing through a warehouse.

One of the technologies most readily associated with medium- to large-scale warehouses is the conveyor, which has been around for more than 100 years. But in the past few years, warehouse robots have been eroding the total dominance of conveyors by offering what are offering described as “flexible” supply chain systems, in contrast to the “fixed” nature of conveyors. [Read more…] about Logistics and supply chain: An overview of ‘goods-to-person’ and ‘last-mile delivery’ technologies

Locus Robotics and Manhattan team up for retail and 3PL customers

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Locus Robotics, a leader in autonomous mobile robots (AMR) for fulfilment warehouses, has announced a strategic integration partnership with Manhattan Associates, a supply chain and omnichannel solutions provider.

The partnership makes Manhattan a licensed reseller of Locus’s autonomous, multi-robot solution for warehouse fulfillment and will facilitate the development of integration tools to improve productivity and efficiency for shared retail and third-party logistics (3PL) customers.

“The sustained massive growth in e-commerce has left the supply chain industry at a turning point. Retailers and 3PLs are seeking autonomous mobile robots to solve their productivity, efficiency and labour challenges,” said Rick Faulk, CEO of Locus Robotics.

[Read more…] about Locus Robotics and Manhattan team up for retail and 3PL customers

Volvo signs multi-billion dollar battery supply deals with CATL and LG Chem

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Volvo Car Group has signed long-term agreements with leading battery makers CATL and LG Chem to ensure the multi-billion dollar supply of lithium ion batteries over the coming decade for next generation Volvo and Polestar models.

The automaker’s target is to switch to electric across all its cars by 2025.

The agreements cover the global supply of battery modules for all models on the upcoming SPA2 and Volvo’s existing “Compact Modular Architecture” vehicle platforms and represent “a major step towards realising Volvo Cars’ ambitious electrification strategy”, says the company.

[Read more…] about Volvo signs multi-billion dollar battery supply deals with CATL and LG Chem

Swisslog wins major order from Ikea in Malaysia

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Swisslog, a warehouse automation company, has received a major order from Ikea Supply in Malaysia.

The contract is valued at approximately €43 million.

The project comprises of 215,000 pallet locations of clad-rack, 21 warehouse pallet stacker cranes Vectura, the pallet conveyor system ProMove, the electric Monorail System and the core of the system, the Swisslog software SynQ.

[Read more…] about Swisslog wins major order from Ikea in Malaysia

UPS Foundation supports Ghana’s vaccine drone delivery network

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The UPS Foundation, which leads the global citizenship programs for UPS, and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, have announced support for the expansion of a medical drone network into Ghana.

Zipline, a California-based automated logistics company, will use drones to make on-demand, emergency deliveries of 148 high priority products including emergency and routine vaccines, blood products and life-saving medications.

The service will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, from four distribution centres – each equipped with 30 drones – and deliver to over 2,000 health facilities serving 12 million people across the country.

[Read more…] about UPS Foundation supports Ghana’s vaccine drone delivery network

Toyota introduces station for the production and supply of hydrogen from renewable energy

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Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota) has newly introduced ‘SimpleFuel’ to its Motomachi Plant in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

SimpleFuel is a small water electrolysis-based machine for hydrogen generation and filling that can produce, store, and supply hydrogen by making use of electricity generated from solar power.

It uses electricity from solar panels at the plant site to produce low-carbon hydrogen from the electrolysis of water, which is then supplied to fuel-cell (FC) forklifts after it is compressed and pressurised.

[Read more…] about Toyota introduces station for the production and supply of hydrogen from renewable energy

Locus Robotics raises $26 million in new investment

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Supply chain automation startup Locus Robotics has raised $26 million in Series C funding.

The company says it will use the proceeds to scale production of its revolutionary multi-bot solution for warehouse fulfillment, as well as for expansion of its sales and marketing efforts, both in North America, and internationally.

Participants in the round include Zebra Ventures, the strategic investment arm of Zebra Technologies, and Scale Venture Partners, which led the Company’s Series B round in 2017. [Read more…] about Locus Robotics raises $26 million in new investment

Infographic: How AI is streamlining the supply chain

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Noodle AI has produced an infographic to show how artificial intelligence is changing commerce

Artificial intelligence is everywhere. In fact, you may have interacted with it today and you didn’t even know it.

AI can streamline a lot of our daily business operations, freeing us up to tackle more difficult tasks.

Within the world of e-commerce, AI may be the key to streamlining the supply chain. [Read more…] about Infographic: How AI is streamlining the supply chain

Sick demonstrates ‘smart logistics’ system for warehouse automation

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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