As alliance partners of FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), the International Society of Automation (ISA) and its umbrella organization Automation Federation took part in late April’s FIRSTChampionship, an annual international celebration of young people’s interest and participation in science and technology. The 2017 FIRST Championship was conducted in two cities: Houston (April […]

A lightweight micro gripper —the MGR5 micro-gripper from SMAC — is for small and fragile part assembly.  The MGR brings operation force 10 gram or less capability into range.  Light moving mass reduces impact force during small product placement. MGR5 Specs: Compact and lightweight Light force capability 10g or less Soft-Land capability for pick and place of delicate and […]

Parker’s Electromechanical and Drives Division – North America is pleased to announce the release of Parker Automation Manager (PAM) 1.3. This update significantly expands the Parker Automation Controller (PAC) features and functionality, allowing users to integrate complex robotics into their machine controller in an easy-to-use, graphical environment. While the PAC is Parker’s all-in-one machine controls […]

OMEGA Engineering-sponsored Sim-City robotics team from Simsbury High School who ranked 19 out of the 68 teams in their division at the 4-day FIRST Robotics National Championship in St. Louis, Missouri from April 26 through April 29. FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) runs the largest and oldest student robotics competition in […]

Recently, Design World surveyed the robotics and motion industries about current and coming technology shifts (including those for robotic grippers) to improve automation. Among the experts who provided their insights was Samuel Bouchard, CEO of Robotiq. Just a bit south of Quebec City, Robotiq was founded in 2008. Today the company designs and sells offers […]

North American robotics companies posted the strongest ever first-quarter results, according to the Robotic Industries Association (RIA), the industry’s trade group. Both robot orders and shipments achieved record levels. An all-time high total of 9,773 robots valued at approximately $516 million were ordered from North American robotics companies during the first quarter of 2017. This […]

At the 2017 Hannover Messe, plastic bearings expert igus announced the winners of its 8th manus awards for unique plastic bearing applications. An independent jury, with representatives from the research, business, and specialist media organization, awarded the 2017 golden manus trophy, along with a €5,000 prize to California-based Pathway LLC for its design for manufacturing […]

Today’s automation connectivity support IIoT and Industry 4.0. setups, but the threat of cyber attacks on robots is very real. In fact, robots are just as exposed to corporate networks and the internet as other setups in industrial plants and applications — leaving them and their environments vulnerable. Now a new report from Trend Micro […]

Hannover Messe is always a great opportunity to see the newest, most exciting technology from the world of engineering. In recent years, robots have really taken over some areas of the show, and the 2017 event was no exception. But why should robots be limited to boring industrial tasks at the show? We found plenty […]

The Harting technology group is cooperating with the Robotation Academy in Foshan in China. “This will give Harting access to almost every manufacturing company in South China, including IT manufacturers in Shenzhen,” said Dr. Ellen McMillan, General Manager of Harting China. Harting China will also be sending its employees to the Robotation Academy for training. In […]

The Hermes Award, one of the world’s most coveted technology prizes for innovation,  was awarded to SCHUNK last week, during the opening of the Hannover Messe by the  German Chancellor, Angela Merkel. Henrik A. Schunk, the Managing Partner of SCHUNK, was there to receive the award  from the German Federal Minister for Education, Prof. Dr. […]

The SCHUNK EGL 70 mechatronic parallel gripper combines power and intelligence. With variable gripping force between 50 and 600 N it is one of the most powerful and flexible mechatronic grippers on the market and was specifically developed for industrial applications. Because the finger position, closing speed, and gripping force are freely programmable within a maximum […]

One essential machine-tool upgrade is a ROTA NCX quick-change chuck from SCHUNK. In manufacturing, it is always vital to keep costs down and for that reason we need to focus on the three cost drivers that can be controlled. These are lot size, setup and changeover times, as well as machine costs. It is important to […]

With the TENDO E compact, SCHUNK has started a new era in tool clamping with this universal toolholder that is suitable for applications such as milling, drilling, and reaming.  SCHUNK now offers new extended lengths in CAT 40 (4“) and CAT 50 (6“). Both are great for long reach applications and in multi-axis machines. For […]

Conventional robotic actuators use a very traditional design of electric motors and gear systems to make robots move. These geared systems suffer from many limitations: Low speed, which limits productivity; play between the gears (known as backlash) which limits precision; high inertia that prevents rapid safety stops; high backdrive friction, which (with high inertia) makes gear systems […]

Teledyne DALSA, a Teledyne Technologies company and global leader in image sensing technology, will highlight its highly versatile and configurable LWIR camera platform at the AUVSI XPONENTIAL in booth #1231. The exhibition takes place May 9-11 at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. Teledyne DALSA will exhibit with its colleagues from Teledyne […]

In celebration of National Robotics Week, Yaskawa Motoman provided facility tours for student groups from local high schools, universities and career centers. Attendees had the opportunity to see live robotics demonstrations and learn about the future careers they could have in automation. Yaskawa Motoman hosted approximately 400 students. Schools, universities and career centers represented include: […]

Combining ABB Ability and IBM Watson for Superior Customer Value, ABB and IBM today announced a strategic collaboration that brings together ABB’s industry leading digital offering, ABB Ability, with IBM Watson Internet of Things cognitive capabilities to unlock new value for customers in utilities, industry, transport and infrastructure. Customers will benefit from ABB’s deep domain […]

FANUC America has marked the 35th anniversary of manufacturing its line of painting robots at the company’s Rochester Hills, Mich., headquarters, a milestone in the U.S. robotics industry. Company President, Mike Cicco said, “We have dedicated ourselves to 35 years of product innovation and manufacturing efficiencies to provide our customers with the highest quality paint robots […]

Boson Kit is the first coding-free set of modular electronic building blocks designed for young inventors and teachers. Created as a hands-on tool for STEM education in the classroom and beyond, Boson Kit is compatible with Legos, magnets, screws and Velcro, using its Internet of Things (IoT) module to allow everyday innovations to come to […]

FANUC introduced its new R-30iB Plus robot controller at an open house event this week at its headquarters in Japan. The new R-30iB Plus controller features a new iPendant with an enhanced screen resolution and processing capability. The user interface, iHMI, has an icon-based screen which provides a familiar and easy-to-use experience with intuitive guides for setup […]

ABB Robotics has announced that SafeMove2 is now available for IRB 1200, the smallest ABB robot to feature its leading edge advanced safety-certified monitoring and control software. SafeMove2 enables people to work safely alongside ABB robots with payloads ranging from 6kg to 800kg without compromising productivity. It also provides an optimum level of collaboration and flexibility […]