North American sales of machine vision components and systems that provide vision intelligence to robots and other machines reached $2.874 billion in 2018, an increase of 9.2% over 2017 and a new record for the market. According to statistics from the AIA, the industry trade group and part of the Association for Advancing Automation (A3),…
Does AI need a humanoid form to interact with us? Some pros and cons
When most people think about robots, they think of the humanoids and androids of science fiction. Those with more real-world experience can cite industrial robots, drones, or nascent autonomous vehicles. While an expansive definition of robotics can include artificial intelligence and virtual assistants, do smart appliances such as Amazon Alexa need a humanoid form to…
Electric actuators for better robotic-vehicle steering
Steering design for advanced logistics vehicles and mobile robots starts with understanding design requirements; deciding if custom is critical; and choosing the best solution for specific application. By Will Hellinger • Engineering Manager | Allied Motion Logistics vehicles include stackers, forklifts, side loaders, pushers and tuggers, and even mobile robots. These move items from point…
Molex joins Networking for Autonomous Vehicles (NAV) Alliance
Molex has joined the Networking for Autonomous Vehicles (NAV) Alliance to collaborate with other industry leaders in the development and adoption of next-generation multi-gig Ethernet automotive networking. Founded by Aquantia, Bosch, Continental, NVIDIA, and the Volkswagen Group of America, the NAV Alliance is dedicated to defining procedures and specifications to ensure the interoperability, security and […]
NVIDIA’s Isaac SDK brings modern AI to autonomous machines
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Robotics developers are off to the races creating autonomous machines of the future, said NVIDIA Corp. this week. The company said it’s fueling their efforts with the NVIDIA Isaac software development kit, which will be publicly available soon as a free robotics developer toolbox for accelerating innovation and deployment. NVIDIA founder…
Drone Delivery Research Picks Up
In the future, fleets of drones may carry packages overhead while autonomous robots as small as a dog or as large as a box truck may roll along our sidewalks and streets. A team of faculty from Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering, School of Computer Scienceand Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy received funding from the…
Waymo LiDAR sensor now available for robotics companies
Many have wondered about the revenue model for Waymo, the self-driving car unit of Alphabet. Here’s one approach: get into the sensor business. Waymo announced today its custom LiDAR sensors to customers that don’t compete with its robo-taxi business. The news was first reported by Bloomberg. Waymo said it will initially target robotics, security, and…
Robotics investments February 2019
Robotics investments totaled at least $4.3 billion in February 2019 in a steep increase from January, which had about $1.4 billion. In addition, companies reported approximately $3.9 billion worth of acquisitions this past month. Any political or economic jitters have not yet harmed the mood for robot deals. The Robotic Industries Association noted yesterday that robot…
2019 Trends to Watch out for in Manufacturing
Technology keeps on advancing with every passing year, and 2019 is sure to be no different. Join us as we detail the trends to watch out for when it comes to manufacturing this year… Coming to the world of mobility: The Bond stick There’s so much technology that can help the elderly today, from stairlifts…
Amazon keeps on truckin’ with autonomous vehicle investments
Amazon has moved on as quickly as its same-day deliveries by announcing, almost concurrent with its breakup call to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, more than $1 billion of new funding for electric vehicles and self-driving cars. On Feb. 15, a day after reporting on Amazon’s rejection of New York City as the site for…
Machine sensing, smell to improve the self-driving experience, safety
Abruptly, I entered the cab escaping the arctic weather to confront something worse than freezing rain – body odor. Luckily, another taxi pulled to the curb, and I continued my journey to last Tuesday’s RobotLab forum on Cybersecurity & Machines. Moderating a panel at the new Global Cyber Center, with John Frankel of ffVC and Guy Franklin of SOSA, I…
On-chip sub-terahertz system gives autonomous vehicles keener ‘eyesight’
Autonomous vehicles relying on light-based image sensors often struggle to see through blinding conditions, such as fog. But MIT researchers have developed a sub-terahertz-radiation receiving system that could help steer driverless cars when traditional methods fail. Sub-terahertz wavelengths, which are between microwave and infrared radiation on the electromagnetic spectrum, can be detected through fog and…
Waymo’s autonomous vehicles leave Apple in the dust
The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) this week released the disengagement reports for companies testing autonomous vehicles on public roads in California. The data, captured between Nov. 31, 2017 through Dec. 1, 2018, found that 48 companies reported driving 2 million miles in autonomous mode on California roads and highways. The California DMV defines a…
Driverless investment tops $1.6B so far this month
After last week’s $582 million in funding for autonomous vehicle companies, you might think that driverless investment would coast for a while. However, this week saw more than $1 billion in support for developing self-driving cars and trucks. President’s Day is traditionally the time for car sales, but the automakers and big technology companies are…
Aurora raises $530M Series B as Amazon joins self-driving car race
Self-driving startup Aurora Innovation Inc. today said it had raised $530 million in a Series B round led by Sequoia Capital. The most noteworthy investor is Amazon.com Inc. Other participants included Lightspeed Venture Partners, Geodesic, Shell Ventures, and Reinvent Capital, as well as previous investors Greylock and Index Ventures. Funds advised by T. Rowe Price…
VCs like Ike, fueling self-driving truck startup with $52M
A company named Ike has raised $52 million in Series A funding. The San Francisco-based startup is developing autonomous trucks with the goal of increasing safety, creating a commercial offering at scale, and helping improve the livelihoods of human drivers. Bain Capital Ventures led the round, with participation from Redpoint Ventures, Fontinalis Partners, Basis Set…
How robots autonomously see, grasp, and pick
You sign into your workstation. A tote of mixed items arrives in front of you. You reach in, pick an item out, and place it in a container on the conveyor to your side. This incredibly simple task, done in a matter of seconds and without much thought, illustrates what a highly evolved machine you…
Intelligent Robots Take On Demanding Industry Challenges
Robots are a familiar presence in many manufacturing and industrial applications, performing tasks such as picking and sorting items and making welds on materials. While most robotic tasks are meticulously programmed by humans, nowadays robots increasingly incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms that enable them to make decisions and take on a more collaborative approach with…
MIT engineers program marine robots to take calculated risks
We know far less about the Earth’s oceans than we do about the surface of the moon or Mars. The sea floor is carved with expansive canyons, towering seamounts, deep trenches, and sheer cliffs, most of which are considered too dangerous or inaccessible for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to navigate. But what if the reward…
Robotics investments recap: January 2019
Robotics investments in January 2019 totaled at least $444 million worldwide, with a total of 24 robotics investments. Unverifiable robotics investments and categories described below have been excluded from this analysis. There are several robotics investments for which the amounts and rounds were not disclosed. If we verify those amounts and rounds, or come across new robotics…
ANSYS R1 Delivers Speed and Ease of Use for Engineers Solving Next-Gen Product Challenges
ANSYS is making simulation even more pervasive through the ease of use and new functionalities of its ANSYS 2019 R1. From a revolutionary user experience in ANSYS Fluent to hyper-accurate additive manufacturing solutions to the introduction of groundbreaking capabilities in the new ANSYS Motion product line, ANSYS 2019 R1 enables engineers at every level to…
Autonomous Vehicle Report Identifies Consumer Safety Concerns as Top Hurdle to Expansion
The most critical driver for consumers’ adoption of autonomous vehicles, above technological advancement and adequate investment, is coherent national regulation amid consumer safety concerns. That’s according to a new survey of automotive and technology leaders and state and federal regulators by global law firm Perkins Coie LLP and the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International…
What is the status of autonomous vehicles in industrial applications? Part 3
Many industrial applications for autonomous vehicles are in well-controlled environments that do not need the extensive mapping and understanding of varying traffic rules that impact autonomous road vehicles. Part 1 of this blog addressed the different levels of autonomous driving as defined by SAE for road vehicles and introduced the topic of autonomous farming. Part […]
What is the status of autonomous vehicles in industrial applications? Part 2
Part 1 of this blog addressed the different levels of autonomous driving as defined by SAE for road vehicles and introduced the topic of autonomous farming. This blog will provide additional information about autonomous farming applications as well as lift trucks. All of these areas are well-controlled environments that do not need the extensive mapping […]
Autonomous Haulage System
Komatsu America Corp., a leading global heavy equipment manufacturer, today announced the FrontRunner Autonomous Haulage System (AHS) has qualified to operate on private long-term evolution (LTE) mobile broadband technology. This is the mining industry’s first AHS enabled to run on private LTE in commercial operations, making way for ultra-high system availability and reliability, while adhering…