Rockwell brings factory-automation tools to smartphones, tablets
By John Schmid of the Journal Sentinel: The Texas facility that mass-produces State Fair corn dogs and Jimmy Dean Pancakes & Sausage on a Stick retooled itself recently as a hyper-automated smart factory. It installed 1,500 sensors to collect gigabytes of data on everything from raw meat inventories to wastewater and electrical usage.
Then the Fort Worth factory took one extra step into the future of industrial technology: It added software that transmits all of that real-time data onto smartphones and tablets, making it possible for plant managers to monitor their production network from anywhere on the factory floor — and during coffee breaks or vacations, as well.
If they choose — so far, most don't — this new breed of mobile managers can even operate factory equipment remotely, shutting off pumps or speeding up production lines. Technology has made that sort of operation as easy as playing a smartphone video game, but it can be reckless because a lot of equipment can interfere with or hurt those who are physically present.
It's only a matter of time, some say, before factory controls migrate to Google Glass, the wearable displays mounted in eyeglass frames, or smart wristwatches. Cont'd...
The Line Between Hype And Reality For Robotic Process Automation
RPA can bring about a "virtual integration" of multiple systems while executing repetitive work more accurately and reliably than humans can.
Interview with Mark G. Knebusch of Softing: Mainstreaming The Internet of Things
The idea of many connected devices helping better control the factory floor is not new. IoT in one sense is merely a shift to internet addressable devices versus those either addressed by proprietary means or just "dumb".
CLEARPATH ROBOTICS ANNOUNCES MOBILITY SOLUTION FOR RETHINK ROBOTICS' BAXTER ROBOT
Clearpath Robotics announced the newest member of its robot fleet: an omnidirectional development platform called Ridgeback. The mobile robot is designed to carry heavy payloads and easily integrate with a variety of manipulators and sensors. Ridgeback was unveiled as a mobile base for Rethink Robotics' Baxter research platform at ICRA 2015 in Seattle, Washington.
"Many of our customers have approached us looking for a way to use Baxter for mobile manipulation research - these customers inspired the concept of Ridgeback. The platform is designed so that Baxter can plug into Ridgeback and go," said Julian Ware, General Manager for Research Products at Clearpath Robotics. "Ridgeback includes all the ROS, visualization and simulation support needed to start doing interesting research right out of the box."
Ridgeback's rugged drivetrain and chassis is designed to move manipulators and other heavy payloads with ease. Omnidirectional wheels provide precision control for forward, lateral or twisting movements in constrained environments. Following suit of other Clearpath robots, Ridgeback is ROS-ready and designed for rapid integration of sensors and payloads; specific consideration has been made for the integration of the Baxter research platform.
The Membrane Potentiometer
A Competitive Alternative to Traditional Linear and Rotary Position Sensors.
Innovative 3D Scanner Relies On Manta Camera From Allied Vision
8tree's portable 3D scanner enables easy, fast surface inspection in the automotive and aerospace industries. A Manta digital camera from Allied Vision contributes to rapid and accurate measurement.
NHL Goal Celebration Hack With A Hue Light Show And Real Time Machine Learning
From François Maillet:
In Montréal this time of year, the city literally stops and everyone starts talking, thinking and dreaming about a single thing: the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Even most of those who don’t normally care the least bit about hockey transform into die hard fans of theMontréal Canadiens, or the Habs like we also call them.
Below is a Youtube clip of the epic goal celebration hack in action. In a single sentence, I trained a machine learning model to detect in real-time that a goal was just scored by the Habs based on the live audio feed of a game and to trigger a light show using Philips hues in my living room... ( full article )
Case Study: Validated High Speed Capping
SMAC's LAR Series linear-rotary actuators provide the ideal technology for improving capping quality while cost-effectively providing 100% real time on- and off-torquing validation.
Low Cost Vision System
The vision system sends coordinates to the robot so it can be gripped by the robot regardless of position.
QinetiQ North America Introduces DriveRobotics
From QinetiQ North America:
By transforming manned industrial vehicles into unmanned robots, DriveRobotics™ add-on applique kit lets building demolition and roadside construction companies convert to unmanned operations whenever operators face hazardous situations. This commercial robotic system, which can also be installed in new vehicles and existing fleets, eliminates need for spotter. Remote-control capabilities enable or facilitate machine use in demanding applications... ( full press release )
Automate 2015: New Era of Industrial Robots
Automate 2015 was a perfect platform where the full spectrum of automation solutions and emerging technologies from across the board came together - inspiring greater and more creative collaborations and paving the way to greater global industrial success.
Automate 2015: Leap Frogging - Who is Responsible for Innovation in Robotics?
I believe that highly specialized companies developing core components are responsible for progress in the field of robotics.
Automate 2015: A Comparison of Novel Companies
Sometimes it is not specific hardware that a consumer may need, but a service of integrating automation tactics from a team of industry experts.
Robotic End of Press Palletizing Solution
The main objective was to install a flexible robotic palletizing solution that can handle heavy stacks up to 130 lbs at the end of the printing line, and handle the highest throughput of 8 stacks per minute on one particular product.
Gear Generator
About Gear Generator:
Gear Generator is a tool for creating involute spur gearsand download them in SVG format. In addition it let you compose full gear layouts with connetcted gears to design multiple gears system with control of the input/output ratio and rotation speed. Gears can be animated with various speed to demonstrate working mechanism... ( link )
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Factory Automation - Featured Product
maxon motor's - Exoskeleton Joint Actuator
A brushless DC motor solution for use in hip and knee exoskeletons. This complete joint actuation unit consists of motor, gearhead, encoder and position controller. Fitting absolute encoder directly at the joint rotation provides designers increased positioning accuracy. The unit will deliver 54Nm of continuous torque and 120Nm on a 20% duty cycle. The system can be operated on supplies between 10 and 50V DC and the actuation speed is up to 22rpm.
