Oddly, electricity is one of those things we never think about. It’s odd because electricity and electric motors have proven to be the most efficient means of producing mechanical work in the history or mankind. It’s on all the time, easy to transport, always ready and waiting for you to use it. The utility company […]
Vision-enabled package handling
Capturing and processing camera and sensor data and recognizing various shapes to determine a set of robotic actions is conceptually easy. Humans do it naturally. But it is difficult for a machine. Vision-guided motion is a growing field within robotics with a number of vendors, integrators and alternative methods such as vision guided robots (VGR), advanced…
Modular mechatronic systems gaining momentum
ACOPOSmotor sets new standards for decentralized motion control With the ACOPOSmotor, B&R combines a servo motor and drive in one compact unit. Safety technology can also be integrated as an option. This gives developers more freedom when designing a machine and can save valuable space in the control cabinet. The ACOPOSmotor is connected to the […]
DHL UAS Parcel Delivery Gets First Test
DHL launches first authorized autonomous delivery flights by “parcelcopter” to and from the North Sea island of Juist, 7.5 miles off the coast of Northern Germany. The DHL parcelcopter has been approved for testing delivery of medications and other urgently needed goods to the small North Sea island of Juist – one of a string of…
Liquid Robotics Continues Its Growth-By-Partnering
Sunnyvale-based Liquid Robotics continues their growth by partnering formula by striking another collaboration, this time with Boeing. Boeing Defense, Space & Security CEO Chris Chadwick said, “It's a great opportunity to partner with Liquid Robotics to provide new and existing customers a unique portfolio of defense solutions and capabilities and allows the Boeing-Liquid Robotics team to…
ReWalk IPO gets $36 million; Corindus gets $26.6; PrecisionHawk gets $10
ReWalk, the Israeli developer of exoskeletons, joins Ekso and Cyberdyne as publicly-traded companies on international stock exchanges. Their IPO sold 3 million shares at $12 per share. The stock then went on to $30! ReWalk Robotics was hoping to raise $50 million by selling 3.4 million shares at $15 but settled for selling only 3…
Swiss startup shows syncronized quadrocopters in Cirque du Soleil videos
Two new quadrocopter videos point to a unique future for flying machines. New Swiss ETH spinoff Verity Studios, in collaboration with Cirque du Soleil, have produced two videos that entertain and enchant. In the following article from Robohub.org by Markus Waibel, Verity Studios CEO and co-founder, one can easily foresee a creative future for Verity…
Climate Change Weekend
This weekend saw climate change demonstrations all over the world. Interesting juxtaposition with an article by Steven Koonin, former Undersecretary of the Department of Energy, who says that the issue of climate change is “not settled”. Dr. Koonin presents several interesting data points, but overall, seems mostly to be questioning the methodology of those trying […]
Motor Centric Design – Part 3
With all the emphasis on how important wind power is to the future of energy supply, it is surprising to me that we haven’t seen a variety of dedicated generator designs. There are a few, but only a few. Maybe this is because the magnetics of generator design are not a popular topic in engineering […]
Unbounded Robotics Closes Down
For confusing reasons, Unbounded Robotics has shut down. Their $35,000 UBR-1 single-armed mobile robot that was shown late last year with great fanfare is no longer offered for sale. “Why?” is the big question. Unbounded was one of the start-up spin-off companies incubated by Willow Garage. Unbounded's UBR-1 robot was produced by the same team that…
Latest robotic vacuum product launches change industry from niche to mainstream
Recent robotic vacuum cleaner product launches by Dyson and Samsung have transformed what has heretofore been a niche market of early adopters and robot enthusiasts into a marketplace of serious consumer products for home cleaning. Both Dyson and Samsung have upgraded the vacuuming function of their robotic cleaners to be equivalent to non-robotic cleaners. Consequently, they…
Motor Centric Design – Part 2
Sometimes engineers are confronted with an application that is unique and demanding, that ultimately requires a new approach. There are some famous examples that we all deal with. Technology problems that generate a great deal of revenue get a lot of attention, and sometimes result in great innovation with lasting benefit beyond the immediate solutions. […]
5 keys to “mechatronics made easy”
By Mark Huebner, Market Development Manager, PBC Linear & 3DP Unlimited Bringing together mechanical, electrical, programming, and control engineering is not effortless. But integrating technology advances, and focusing on these five areas, can simplify the process and ensure that mechatronics is made easy. Today’s fast paced product development cycles and rapid advances in technology have […]
Dyson launches new robotic vacuum cleaner
James Dyson announced his new 360 Eye robotic vacuum cleaner which goes on sale in Japan later this year for $1,250. It will then be available in the UK, Europe, China and Australia later in 2015. The new 360 Eye system is sleek, shiny, and, according to Dyson, has the most suction of all of its…
Korean Yujin Robot Launches Meal Transport Robot
Yujin Robot a Korean-based company, continues to release thoughtful new products. They just announced a meal-transport robot designed to operate in eldercare and other hospitality and healthcare facilities. Yujin’s new GoCart robot is a joint venture between Yujin and ScanBox, a designer and manufacturer of food transport systems for hospitality and institutional facilities around the…
Rain on Google’s Self-driving Car Parade
Auto World News reminds us that Google's self-driving car can't navigate heavy rain or most roads and that there are still many challenges to solve. Citing an MIT Technology Review report, Auto World News says that Google relies heavily on maps and detailed data such that it cannot drive itself in 99% of the country.…