As manufacturing jobs slowly but surely move back to our shores, we need to ask whether this is a good thing for American workers — or not. Companies that offshored to save money are finding, for a variety of reasons including the simple fact that offshore workers are beginning to expect higher wages, that they… Read more »
Industrial automation made enormous strides in the 20th century. Indramat’s brushless servo motors were a big part of that innovation, and the use of automation in factories, printing companies, and so forth ushered in an era of increased productivity and safety in American manufacturing. Then everybody sort of relaxed. The most exciting news in motion… Read more »
It’s like something out of a movie — the intense-looking individual strides into the room, makes magician-like movements in the general direction of some snazzy screens apparently made of smoked glass, and something whirrs into action. The guy nods approvingly or adjusts something to show that he and not the machine is the boss. Actually,… Read more »
As the American manufacturing sector begins to recover and manufacturing jobs return to the United States, China has been in the news. Certainly, China comes up as a threat to U.S. manufacturing jobs. American workers can’t compete with Chinese workers on price or on tolerance for difficult working conditions, and China continues to be a… Read more »
We’ve discussed the difference between a stepper and a servo motor, but we still find that in industrial settings, people sometimes figure it’s best to use stepper motors because they’re lower in cost. Servo motors, like the Indramat Servo Motors we work with, are often saved for situations in which speed and power are obviously… Read more »
Industrial motion control’s current economic situation is being described as a “stumble.” Manufacturing overall is picking up, automation in general is looking good, but motion control in particular seems still to be suffering from Asia’s financial woes, including the lingering effects of natural disasters. At the same time, economists fear that the mature markets of… Read more »
A motion control system has a lot going on. This is what the basic system looks like: • A motion controller sets the system in… well, in motion. There are programmed points or responses to feedback. The controller has to control both position and speed. • A drive reacts to the instructions from the controller… Read more »
Last time, we showed you a moody Polish offering. This film, a more recent work which appears to be Brazilian, shows the influence of that fiery culture in its decision to include a human actor — rare in the genre. We were intrigued by the choice of costuming for the actor, though of course the… Read more »
Media mogul Steve Forbes will be the keynote speaker at Automate 2013 in January. Henrik Chritensen, Director of Robotics at Georgia Tech, will deliver the keynote at the Future of Robotics. Both will be talking about the U.S. Robotics Roadmap. This document (you can read it yourself by clicking through the link) starts by saying… Read more »
http://youtu.be/o-5c5G-naYc As a fan of Indramat and of movies, I couldn’t resist providing a critique of this, a rare film of an Indramat test. I don’t know why they’re as rare as they are, films in this genre. Since this one was filmed in Poland, we should not be surprised by the sweeping, almost vertiginous… Read more »
