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IDS showcases its industrial cameras with AI built in

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Industrial camera specialist Imaging Development Systems is showcasing its machine vision technology, saying companies can keep their competitive edge with the systems because they use artificial intelligence. 

IDS says the popularity of the solutions is growing along with the field of robot vision as well as novel AI-based vision applications.

“Ease of use” is becoming more and more important, which is why the recently launched AI system IDS NXT ocean was designed to train and execute neural networks on industrial cameras even by non-experts. [Read more…] about IDS showcases its industrial cameras with AI built in

ROEQ launches cart and other components for MiR250 mobile robot

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Denmark-based robotics company ROEQ has launched three new products simultaneously with the reveal of Mobile Industrial Robots’ new MiR250 mobile robot at one of the world’s largest logistics expos, MODEX 2020.

ROEQ’s new cart, adapter and top module work seamlessly with the MiR250, providing a fully automated workplace flow.

ROEQ says that when MiR launches a new robot, it’s “imperative” that accessories for the robot are immediately available as well. [Read more…] about ROEQ launches cart and other components for MiR250 mobile robot

4 Ways Robotics and AI Are Transforming Design and Creatives

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While AI and robotics have made waves in several industries, it would seem inconceivable to the uninitiated for robots and intelligent machines to make a mark in the creatives sector. How could systems be taught creativity?

In fact, when researchers from the Oxford Martin School ranked 702 occupations according to their susceptibility to computerization, jobs that center around creativity were least in danger.

Designers, curators, artists, choreographers, dancers, musicians, singers, writers, and authors were among those less likely to be replaced by robots. [Read more…] about 4 Ways Robotics and AI Are Transforming Design and Creatives

Opinion: The incredible potential of soft robotics

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Alternatives to hard components hold potential for applications from surgery to space exploration

In January of 2019, Assistant Professor Ellen Mazumdar arrived in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering with the intention of building a robotic actuator without using a single hard component or material – a feat that, to her knowledge, had never been done before.

“We’re really interested in trying to build fully soft robots,” said Mazumdar. “In many current systems, soft components are hooked up to hard pumps or electronics. We want to move towards robots with soft actuators, soft sensors, soft electronics, and soft energy storage.”

In Mazumdar’s Sensing Technologies Laboratory, she is working with PhD student Noah Kohls to develop a biologically-inspired soft actuator that mimics the form and functionality of Xenia soft corals. [Read more…] about Opinion: The incredible potential of soft robotics

UCLA engineers develop miniaturized ‘warehouse robots’ for biotechnology applications

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UCLA engineers have developed minuscule warehouse logistics robots that could help expedite and automate medical diagnostic technologies and other applications that move and manipulate tiny drops of fluid. The study was published in Science Robotics.

The robots are disc-shaped magnets about 2 millimeters in diameter, designed to work together to move and manipulate droplets of blood or other fluids, with precision.

For example, the robots can cleave one large droplet of fluid into smaller drops that are equal in volume for consistent testing. [Read more…] about UCLA engineers develop miniaturized ‘warehouse robots’ for biotechnology applications

Essential webinar: New applications and latest trends in LiDAR

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Sensors specialist SICK is to present a webinar entitled “Latest trends in LiDAR”.

The webinar will presented by Aaron Rothmeyer, SICK’s product manager in the US, and aims to highlight the latest trends in LiDAR.

LiDAR technology is constantly evolving and provides a number of benefits for industrial automation. [Read more…] about Essential webinar: New applications and latest trends in LiDAR

Essential Webinar: Get up to date with the latest trends in LiDAR and its newest applications

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Webinar: Latest trends in LiDAR
March 10, 2020 10:00 am Central Time (US and Canada)

RoboticsAndAutomationNews.com is proud to present what will almost certainly be one of most important webinars of this year.

Entitled “Latest trends in LiDAR”, and presented by SICK sensors expert Aaron Rothmeyer, the webinar will take a deep dive into a technology that is constantly evolving and provides a number of benefits for industrial automation.

In recent years, LiDAR has been more heavily used on autonomous mobile robots. But from robotics to the factory floor, LiDAR technology is now commonplace in industrial automation of many types. [Read more…] about Essential Webinar: Get up to date with the latest trends in LiDAR and its newest applications

Columbia engineers develop ‘tactile robot finger with no blind spots’

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Researchers at Columbia Engineering say they have developed a new type of robotic finger with a sense of touch. Their finger can localize touch with very high precision – less than 1 mm – over a large, multicurved surface, much like its human counterpart. (See video below.)

Matei Ciocarlie, associate professor in the departments of mechanical engineering and computer science, says: “There has long been a gap between standalone tactile sensors and fully integrated tactile fingers–tactile sensing is still far from ubiquitous in robotic manipulation.”

Ciocarlie led this work in collaboration with Electrical Engineering Professor Ioannis Kymissis. [Read more…] about Columbia engineers develop ‘tactile robot finger with no blind spots’

SICK launches versatile new software development platform

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Sensors giant SICK has launched a new software development platform that it says is versatile enough to enable programmers to create solutions for the entire industrial process.

SICK says its AppSpace (see video below) offers system integrators and original equipment manufacturers the “freedom and flexibility” to independently develop application solutions that are tailored to the specific needs and requirements of any task.

Whether it’s designing the ideal online user interface, selecting the most suitable programming technology, or distributing the sensor app on various SICK sensors, SICK says AppSpace gives developers the power to develop their own customized solutions. [Read more…] about SICK launches versatile new software development platform

Mercedes expands development of autonomous commercial vehicle systems

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From project to product: With AXYARD, Lab1886 and Daimler Trucks automate the operation of commercial vehicles

The automated snow removal by two self-driving Mercedes-Benz Arocs in Immendingen shows a successful application for automated commercial vehicles in closed areas.

The joint project of Lab1886, the innovation unit for new business models within Mercedes-Benz AG, and Daimler Trucks, the inventor of the truck, has now become a product that can be used as a solution for various customer requirements in sectors such as on-site logistics and agriculture.

Lab1886 and Daimler Trucks, together with Fraport, demonstrated the operation of self-driving snow-clearing vehicles in non-public closed areas for the first time in October 2017 as part of a pilot project on the site of the former Pferdsfeld air base. [Read more…] about Mercedes expands development of autonomous commercial vehicle systems