Designing a new generation of modular, flexible and collaborative robots

October 24, 2016

Through several decades of research new opportunities have emerged in automation engineering. These opportunities have led to new robotic and assistive systems that are used to arrange a clear and concise workflow for employees. These systems are used to provide important information to the operator or to aid them in the tasks of acting, sensing, and deciding. Concomitant with current market conditions, the degree of automation has been increasing. However, …Read More

Co-bots bring Industry 4.0 to Ford’s German plant

August 26, 2016

Source: The Machinist Are first being used to help workers fit shock absorbers to Fiesta cars. More than 100 years after the first cars rolled off Henry Ford’s pioneering assembly line, Ford Motor Company is breaking new ground in the way workers and robots are collaborating to manufacture vehicles. New collaborative robots, also known as co-bots, are first being used to help workers fit shock absorbers to Fiesta cars, a …Read More

Food industry palletizing cobot with vision system works in tight quarters

August 9, 2016

Source: Universal Robots Watch video Norwegian meat producer Nortura needed to optimize palletizing, but with limited floor space and a tight budget. A UR10 robot with a ceiling-mounted vision system provided a cost-effective and high-performance palletizing system in one-fifth of the space typically required. If no pallet is present, the floor space is available for other processes. Challenge Typical palletizing robots require a large fixed cell with safety caging that …Read More

This Cloud-Enabled Robot Could Be Your Next Coworker

August 2, 2016

Source: PSFK The further experts hypothesize about the future of our workforce, the more we find ourselves talking about robots and automation. Whilst the prospect of technical unemployment remains a very dire reality for some occupations, there is one startup that is looking to give the future of robotics and animation a collaborative boost. Tend.ai is a cloud-based solution aimed to assist with machine tending processes. The idea behind Tend.ai is …Read More

Cooperation project between DFKI RIC and Volkswagen AG

July 29, 2016

Source: DFKI This initial cooperation project between DFKI RIC and Volkswagen AG (Smart Production Lab) aims at creating the hardware and software basis for future work on the area of human-robot collaboration. The final robot demonstrator of this pilot project possesses multiple sensor modalities for the environment monitoring and is equipped with the ability for online collision-free dual-arm manipulation in a common human-robot workspace. Moreover, the robot can be controlled …Read More

Performance Evaluation of Human Detection Systems for Robot Safety

June 28, 2016

Complete article Abstract: Detecting and tracking people is becoming more important in robotic applications because of the increasing demand for collaborative work in which people interact closely with and in the same workspace as robots. New safety standards allow people to work next to robots, but require that they be protected from harm while they do so. Sensors that detect and track people are a natural way of implementing the …Read More

How SMEs in the Know Win with Automation

May 26, 2016

Source: Robotics Industries Association A once small machine shop transforms into a Tier 1 auto supplier. A bagel basket maker morphs into a precision fabricator for high-tech Fortune 500s. A Canadian shelving manufacturer beats the competition on price. All SMEs with different products serving different industries, but with one thing in common – automation. Across North America, and the globe, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) outnumber large corporations. Collectively, they …Read More

Robots And Humans Team Up At BMW To Digitally Disrupt Auto Industry

May 19, 2016

Source: Digitalist Magazine A few years ago, BMW created a new team at an assembly plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Installing sound insulation and water-sealing vehicle doors is not a one-person job. On the new team, one team member spreads out material and glues it to the door. A second team member holds the material in place. What made this team so unique? One team member is human. The other is …Read More

New German Collaborative Robot – FRANKA

May 13, 2016

Source: Robotiq The robotic industry is currently surfing on a new wave of collaborative robots. With several big companies trying to make their way into the market, there is still a huge effort from emergent companies to get a part of the market. This new German collaborative robot is continuing this wave of small companies emerging with some really awesome concepts. Here’s Franka. With one of the most fast growing robotic economy …Read More

Aerospace Manufacturing on Board with Robots

May 12, 2016

Source: Robotics Industries Association Since the Wright Brothers’ first flight in 1903, to the SpaceX launch and land in 2015, aerospace has shot high. Lucky for us. Because the original biplanes were basically big kites, made from wood, wire and linen literally stitched together by teams of seamstresses. Yes, before Rosie the Riveter there was Sally the Seamstress, or Ida Holdgreve. Aircraft are still “stitched” together, but now their metallic …Read More

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