Industrial automation does a lot of good things for people, from making products more affordable to reducing waste. But one of the most important jobs of automation is increasing safety for human workers. The first robot hand, according to Brian Behm, a newly elected board member of the Robotic Industries Association, was developed by General… Read more »
Motion control has had a tough couple of years, with the market falling in 2012 and scarcely growing in 2013, according to figures released by the IHS. Looking at the U.S. alone, things were a bit better, with 5% growth in 2012. When the dust settles, 2013 will probably have been a growth year for… Read more »
With the recent changes in the standards for robotic safety, United States manufacturing now has clear guidance towards collaborative robotics, like that being used in Volkswagen’s plant in Salzgitter, Germany. Earlier this week we shared a story from 60 Minutes that’s been much talked about on the internet — being both criticized and lauded. Regardless of whether… Read more »
One of the biggest problems for produce growers is that robots can’t yet identify the difference between a leaf and an apple. Unlike parts in a factory where they are all identical, fruits grow in different sizes, shapes, and colors and this inconsistency baffles robots. They simply can’t pick out which apple on a tree… Read more »
Did you know that America is second only to Japan in the use of robotics? Last year was a record year for robotics, as robotic companies sold 22,598 robots, trumping the 19,337 robots sold in 2011. In fact, 2012’s 17% growth was a record, according to the Robotics Industries Association. We expect that this year there will… Read more »
At this year’s Hannover Messe, the leading trade fair for industrial technology, Rexroth was awarded the Hermes Award for Innovation because of their work with PLC and IT through the Open Core Engineering program. The idea behind Open Core Engineering is that flexibility of language and platform while still meeting standards can drive innovation fast… Read more »
The PTDA Business Index for the first quarter of 2013 has been released, and it’s showing that the power transmission/motion control industry has expanded for 12 quarters in a row. So what’s the PTDA Business Index? The Power Train Distributors Association partners with Cleveland Research Company to survey the industry each quarter. The responses to… Read more »
For some time now, the most exciting advances in AI and motion control have been coming out of game production. We like a good game as much as the next guy, but we’d rather not have all the news in our field coming out of toy companies. That may be about to change. Google and… Read more »
