WowWee brings expensive university bots to store shelves
By Corinne Iozzio for Scientific American: Hong Kong–based WowWee's success stems from bringing university research projects to life that might otherwise languish in the prototype stage. A licensing agreement with the Flow Control and Coordinated Robotics Labs at the University of California, San Diego, for example, provides WowWee with access to patents and the labs with a healthy cash infusion. The collaboration has already netted a series of toy robots that balance like Segways. More recently, the avionics lab at Concordia University in Montreal began working with the company to perfect flight algorithms for a four-rotor drone. Next, chief technology officer Davin Sufer says he has his eye on the Georgia Institute of Technology and its work with swarming behaviors, which would allow a group of robots to function in tandem.
In the case of Switchbot, WowWee adapted a locomotion system developed in part by former U.C. San Diego student Nick Morozovsky. The robot moves on tank-tread legs either horizontally to navigate uneven terrain or on end to stand and scoot fully upright. Morozovsky built his prototype with off-the-shelf parts, including a set of $50 motors. The motors were a compromise; each one had the size and torque he wanted but not the speed. Over the past few years he has worked with WowWee to customize a motor with the exact parameters needed and to cut the final cost of the part down to single digits.
That back and forth yields low-cost, mass-producible parts, which means university-level robotics could become available to everyday people. “One of the reasons I went into mechanical engineering was so I could create real things that have a direct impact,” Morozovsky says. “I didn't expect that to necessarily happen in the process of grad school.” Cont'd...
IEF-Werner reduces product development process
Online availability of important data
IEF-Werner provides provides numerous drawings and documents free of charge via CAD online portal TraceParts. This saves time during the product development process and simplifies it considerably.
Mersen will demonstrate R-Tools GEN II
The 2015 IEEE ECCE conference and exposition, September 21st and 22nd in Montral, Canada
Festo and Graybar Ink National Distribution Agreement
Festo, one of the world's premier automation companies, and Graybar, a leading distributor of electrical, communications, and data networking products and provider of related supply chain management and logistics services, recently signed a national distribution agreement.
Robot Taxis Are to Be Main Drive Around for 2020 Tokyo Olympics
With an еуе оn 2020, thе gоvеrnmеntѕ revised economic strategy adopted in Junе саllѕ fоr the аррliсаtiоn оf rоbоt tесhnоlоgiеѕ аѕ travel guides аt Narita International Airроrt in Chibа Prеfесturе, аnd Tоkуоѕ Hаnеdа airport.
Lithium Power Introduces Long-Lasting Battery for Neato XV Robot Vacuums
Neato Robot Vacuums need powerful batteries to clean an entire house on one charge, and new lithium batteries last four times as long as old NiMH batteries. Consumers who do the math make the more economical choice by choosing lithium batteries.
Polymaker and Covestro Co-Develop a New Line of Polycarbonate-Based 3D Printing Materials with Market-Leading Engineering and Functional Properties
Polymaker Partnering with Covestro to Provide Enhanced 3D Printing Materials to Designers, Engineers and Hobbyists Alike
Proto Labs Named to Fortune Magazine's 100 Fastest-Growing Companies List
Proto Labs, Facebook make first appearances on ranking
5 Robotics Stocks to Watch
Chad Fraser for The Street: Soon, robots could be doing much more than just vacuuming your house or assembling your next car-they could also invade your investment portfolio. If you're looking for the industry's fastest growth, you'll want to pay particular attention to what's happening on the consumer/office side, where sales are set to grow at a 17% compound annual rate between 2014 and 2019, according to a May report from Business Insider -- seven times quicker than the industrial-robot market. In addition, a number of radical new applications for robotics are emerging in the medical and defense markets, as outlined in this presentation from Investing Daily.
Even though the automation trend is clearly set, there still aren't many pure ways for investors to play it. But that doesn't mean there are no intriguing options out there. Here are five robot makers to keep on your radar screen:
CEA Praises House Judiciary Committee for Looking Skyward on Drones
Leading members of the Judiciary Committee have remarked on the potential societal benefits of this game-changing new technology.
HASCO COMBINES STRATASYS 3D PRINTING WITH QUICK-CHANGE MOLD SYSTEM TO CREATE NEW PRICE/PERFORMANCE BENCHMARK FOR LOW VOLUME INJECTION MOLDING
Mold making pioneer reports significant time and cost efficiencies utilizing this approach for low volume production, enabling molders to quickly change inserts for different products
BLUE OCEAN ROBOTICS LEAD DELEGATION TO SILICON VALLEY
Over 50 delegates from 8 countries visit 20 Bay Area companies
New Thomson video shows how the Motorized Lead Screw's Taper Lock allows quick, easy de-coupling in the field
Thomson Industries, Inc., a leading manufacturer of mechanical motion control solutions, has released a new educational video to help design engineers correctly service the Thomson Motorized Lead Screw in the field. The precision-engineered units combine a hybrid stepper motor and lead screw in one compact envelope to provide clear advantages with a solution that is smaller, stronger, and more efficient than alternate technologies.
Indiegogo - BUDDY, the Companion Robot from Blue Frog Robotics, Raises More Than $600,000 on Indiegogo
Blue Frog Robotics, developer of companion robot BUDDY, said its Indiegogo crowd funding campaign exceeded its goal by more than six times. More than 1000 funders participated in the campaign.
Qualcomm Announces Reference Platform with High-end Performance Capabilities to Advance Consumer Drones
-- Qualcomm Snapdragon Flight Supports Small, Light Drones with Advanced Video and Image Capture, Communication and Navigation Features --
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