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cx-Industrial-Automation
China’s growing robot industry turns to acquisitions
Frank Tobe
25 Apr 2016
Paslin, a Michigan integrator of welding robots, automation systems, and tooling, was acquired by Wanfeng Technology Group for an undisclosed amount (but reported as $302 million i...
Filling the void left by Kiva Systems’ 2012 acquisition by Amazon
Frank Tobe
14 Apr 2016
In March 2012, in an effort to make their distribution centers (DCs) as efficient as possible, Amazon acquired Kiva Systems for $775 million and almost immediately took them in house.
There was c...
Why making robots is still hard
SPARC
23 Mar 2016
Making robots is no easy task. If you talk to roboticists, they will tell you that it took years before the last robot they built or programmed was any good at performing a specific task. And although...
Testing the lifetime of human-machine interfaces in a few days
Fraunhofer IPA and Martin Haegele
07 Mar 2016
Thousands of repetitions in the space of just a few days: while manually impossible, this can be accomplished by a newly developed robot system from Fraunhofer IPA. Whether it’s a matter of pressing...
Why co-bots will be a huge driver of innovation and growth for robotics
Frank Tobe
04 Jan 2016
This article was first published on IEEE Spectrum Automaton and is republished here with permission. For the IEEE version, click here; for the unabridged version, continue reading.
Collaborative ro...
Registration now open for #ICRA16’s Airbus Shopfloor Challenge
Airbus Group
23 Dec 2015
The Airbus Shopfloor Challenge invites robotics teams from around the world to create innovative robotic solutions for a real-life manufacturing challenge, and compete live at the IEEE 2016 Internatio...
“Made in China” initiative is nurturing robotics according to plan
Frank Tobe
21 Dec 2015
The IFR (International Federation of Robotics) estimates that by 2018, one-third of all the industrial robots installed worldwide will be in China and said, "China is engaged on a historically unprec...
BCG study finds that reshoring with robots works
Frank Tobe
10 Dec 2015
Two important findings from Boston Consulting Group’s (BCG) recent survey of US manufacturing executives: (1) Of those who plan to add capacity, most plan to do so in the US, and (2) a rising perc...
New collaborative robots — and product lines — at iREX 2015
Samuel Bouchard and Robotiq Inc.
07 Dec 2015
We visited iREX 2015 last week at the Tokyo Big Sight. It was great to be in robotland and to be immersed in Japan's point of view on robotics. Some well-known collaborative robot manufacturers are ...
#iREX2015 collaborative robots video roundup
Samuel Bouchard and Robotiq Inc.
04 Dec 2015
Several new collaborative robots were shown at the IREX show in Japan. Check out the video....
Blueberry picking robot could win $250,000 prize
Silicon Valley Robotics
29 Oct 2015
Here’s an interesting robotics challenge – a coalition of blueberry farmers are offering a $250,000 prize for automation solutions that improve blueberry picking. The deadline for entries in the c...
In-situ Fabricator: An autonomous construction robot
NCCR Digital Fabrication (DFAB)
09 Oct 2015
Digital fabrication enables the seamless combination of digital design with physical construction processes. To fully exploit this emerging technology within architecture, robotic fabrication must be ...
Robots in Depth: Melonee Wise on building robots, and robot companies
Per Sjöborg and Robots in Depth
06 Oct 2015
Robots in Depth is a new video series featuring interviews with researchers, entrepreneurs, VC investors, and policy makers in robotics, hosted by Per Sjöborg. In this interview, Per talks to Melo...
Dobot’s robot arm: Industrial precision at low cost
Dobot
23 Sep 2015
Unsatisfied by the low cost, low precision and poor functionality desktop robotic arms on the market, a group of six hardcore robot makers decided to quit their high-paying industry jobs, and build th...
Removing steps of common processes
NCCR Digital Fabrication (DFAB)
27 Aug 2015
Being able to control the moment when concrete turns from liquid to solid is crucial for digitally fabricated concrete structures. The timing of this process can be controlled by tuning the chemistry ...
New book by John Markoff explores common ground between humans and robots
Frank Tobe
24 Aug 2015
NY Times tech writer John Markoff traces the origins of the AI embedded in today’s virtual and physical assistants and suggests a humane way to proceed....
194 Chinese robot companies
Frank Tobe
18 Aug 2015
In China, the robotics industry is booming. Companies are deploying thousands of robots in all types of factories, particularly in the auto industry. Chinese companies that manufacture robots and the...
GreyOrange gets $30m for mobile robots
Frank Tobe
14 Aug 2015
GreyOrange, an India and Singapore-based materials handling startup, has received $30m in equity funding to ramp up production of their Butler shelves-to-picker robot system....
What’s propelling China’s industrial robot revolution
Frank Tobe
03 Jul 2015
[clear]
Xi Jinping, China's President, last year called for an “industrial robot revolution.” Since then China has created policies giving value added tax refunds and subsidies to companies m...
RoCKIn2015: A glimpse into the future of Europe’s domestic and industrial robotics industry
RoCKIn Robotics Challenge
27 Jun 2015
Over the last 20 years, robot competitions have emerged as a powerful means to foster progress in robotics research and development (R&D). RoCKIn is part a of new generation of scientific robotics...
Yaskawa robot learns the art of the samurai
Adriana Hamacher
24 Jun 2015
Japanese robotics company Yaskawa Electric Corporation pitted one of the most skilled swordsmen in the world against one of their machines and the results are incredible....
SoftBank invests in Fetch Robotics
Frank Tobe
17 Jun 2015
Fetch Robotics, which just demo’d their Fetch and Freight robot system at ICRA in May, announced receiving $20 million from SoftBank, O’Reilly AlphaTech and Shasta Ventures....
Robots and manufacturing: Facts and figures from the Wall Street Journal
Frank Tobe
04 Jun 2015
A special Wall Street Journal report called Meet the New Robots: Manufacturing, Unleashing Innovation appeared in its own section in the Wall Street Journal this week. Lots of good facts, figures an...
Architectural robots: The shape of the robots that will shape your home
Petr Novikov and DOM
21 May 2015
While robots are being deployed in factories at a high pace, their presence on construction sites is close to nil. However, there are many architectural robotics research projects in academia, and du...
AgBot Robotic Seeding Challenge powered by $50K grant for Grizzly RUV
Clearpath Robotics
14 May 2015
By Rachel Gould
The 2016 agBOT Robotic Seeding Challenge challenges participants to build unmanned robotic equipment to plant, measure and track multiple crop seeds to improve farming efficiency...
IdeaHub, ABB launch new robotics accelerator programme
Simon Blair and IdeaHub / Venturebright
14 May 2015
The IdeaHub recently announced the launch of a robotics accelerator programme, run on behalf of ABB Robotics, to deliver solutions to some of the biggest issues facing robotics today and in the future...
Danish co-bot maker Universal Robots sells for $350 million
Frank Tobe
13 May 2015
Privately held Danish company Universal Robots - the successful producer of the UR line of collaborative robots - has sold to Massachusetts-based Teradyne, a provider of electronic testing equipment....
Shadow Robot’s Dexterous Hand can do more than cook up a storm
Adriana Hamacher
07 May 2015
The Shadow Robot Company has been perfecting its robot hands for almost two decades, but it took just a short demo by the world’s first robot chef last month to propel this small, London-based start...
Takeoff in robotics will power the next productivity surge in manufacturing
The Boston Consulting Group (BCG)
05 Mar 2015
BCG research predicts that by 2025, adoption of advanced robots will boost productivity by up to 30 percent in many industries, and lower total labor costs by 18 percent or more in countries such as S...
New Master of Advanced Studies (MAS) in architecture and digital fabrication at ETHZ
NCCR Digital Fabrication (DFAB)
19 Feb 2015
In September a new Master of Advanced Studies (MAS) ETH in Architecture and Digital Fabrication will be offered by the Gramazio Kohler Research chair at ETH Zurich. This one-year, full-time program f...
Media is more excited about farm robots than exhibitors at World Ag Expo
Frank Tobe
17 Feb 2015
The 48th annual World Ag Expo, with over 1,400 exhibitors, finished up in Tulare, California last week with little exposure to robotic game changers. Their Top 10 New Products included just one robot...
2015 sees mobile manipulators coming to market
Andra Keay
09 Feb 2015
[tweetquote]Fetch Robotics has just announced $3 million funding from Shasta Ventures and O’Reilly AlphaTech Ventures[/tweetquote], which will be used to bring their new mobile manipulator robots to...
Robot Startup Series #7: Interview with Soft Robotics’ Carl Vause
Andra Keay
18 Dec 2014
[tweetquote]Soft robotics is finally leaving the research lab and entering the real world. [/tweetquote] One of the companies leading the way is a Boston-based startup that is commercializing the inn...
10.1% CAGR projected for material handling robots through 2020
Frank Tobe
15 Dec 2014
UPDATED 12.16.14: Robots for palletizing, logistics, packaging, and speciality materials handling (e.g.: in life science labs and for pharma, food and beverage, semiconductor and electronics) are pro...
25% of KUKA shares trade hands
Frank Tobe
08 Dec 2014
Voith GmbH, among the biggest family-owned businesses in Europe, acquired 25% of robot maker Kuka AG by buying the shares held by Grenzebach GmbH.
The transaction was valued at €555 million ...
South Korean private-public partnership to invest $2.6B in robot industry by 2018
Jong-Oh Park
11 Aug 2014
With contributions by JiEun Maeng
On July 25, the Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy held the robot industry policy meeting at the Korea Technology Center in Seoul and announced the 2nd...
