Nearly every assembly process can be performed in several ways. Which option a manufacturer or integrator chooses for the best result is usually the one that matches a proven technology with a specific application.
CAMBRIDGE, MA—Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers have developed the RoboGrammar system, which automatically generates an optimal structure and controller for an arthropod-inspired robot to traverse a given terrain.
The automotive industry was one of the first to embrace robotics. Indeed, automakers have been benefiting from the technology since General Motors purchased the first industrial robot from Unimation way back in 1961.
LOS ALAMITOS, CA—Epson Robots has signed Advanced Industrial Products (AIP), an award-winning factory automation and robotics supplier, as an official distributor Kentucky and West Virginia.
BEDFORD, MA—Novanta Inc., a manufacturer of drives, motors, encoders and actuators, has acquired Schneider Electric Motion USA Inc. (SEM) and ATI Industrial Automation Inc. (ATI).
QUERETARO, Mexico—The Zimmer Group recently opened a branch office here that will primarily offer sales, consulting and after-sales support of its automation technology and components.
From forest fire prevention and border patrol to tax inspection and counterterrorism, the applications for aerial drones are multiplying daily. Now, there is a new use for them: transporting car parts.
Preparing existing automotive factories to assemble electric cars requires comprehensive modernization. Certainly, this was the case at Volkswagen's assembly plant in Zwickau, Germany.
Traditionally, aircraft manufacturers have been reluctant to adopt robots and other types of automation. One of the main challenges is that large plane parts come with relatively high geometry deviations, so robots need sensor guidance.