Intralogistics warehouse automation and software provider Swisslog recently announced Walmart will install a Swisslog automation system within its Robinson, Texas facility. Swisslog said Walmart’s new system has the potential to enable seamless material flow and increase uptime. Walmart is planning to break ground on the milk processing facility later this year, with the facility scheduled to open in 2026. The Robinson location is Walmart’s third milk processing facility to deploy Swisslog’s automated storage and retrieval system (AS/RS) featuring SynQ software and Vectura cranes. Walmart worked with Swisslog in 2018 to open its first milk processing facility in Fort Wayne, Ind.…
The global collaborative robot (cobot) market topped $1 billion in revenues during 2023, according to new data from market intelligence research firm Interact Analysis. The cobot market growth comes despite overall demand recovering more slowly than expected post pandemic. Looking to the future, Interact Analysis predicts the global market for cobots will see a 22% increase in shipments during 2024 and anticipates similar levels of growth (>20%) each year through to 2028. Strong financial returns on cobots Annual revenue growth for cobots was around 11.9% in 2023, despite a challenging year for manufacturing, tough economic conditions and supply chain issues.…
Many companies focus their attention on the hardware aspects of robotics systems - that’s what you can easily see. But equally important is the software side of the equation, from navigating integration with WMS and ERP systems to designing and optimizing workflows, orchestrating fulfillment processes, and innovative use of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. There have been dramatic advances in the past two years in terms of warehouse robotics software. This broadcast will provide a non-commercial look at those advances, how they impact use cases and deployment, and where robotics software is headed. What do organizations need to know to…
Motor and drive designer and manufacturer Akribis Systems recently announced a new addition to its motion control product line. The company’s new RDM-A series rod motors are designed for space-constrained applications requiring high motor forces and smooth linear motion. Akribis said its RDM-A series rod motors are compact in size and feature a tubular design to distribute magnetic flux evenly along the circumference of the stator. With this approach, the motors can achieve continuous forces from 2.1 to 137.8 Newtons - about 0.5 to 31 pounds force - and peak forces from 6.2 to 413.4 Newtons - about 1.4 to…
Fulfillment software platform provider Roboteon has recently announced the addition of new capabilities to its multi-function Innovation Lab near San Jose, Calif. The 3,000 square foot lab, located a few minutes from the San Jose airport, features Roboteon’s Robotics Fulfillment Platform software working with different types of robotics and hardware systems from a variety of vendors. Roboteon said its platform can help companies achieve success with their investments in warehouse robotics. The lab supports demonstrations of different applications and use cases. Those applications include: Basic warehouse and manufacturing robotic transport functions using a variety of autonomous mobile robots (AMRs). Full…
Sonair, a Norway-based ultrasonic sensor company, revealed its innovative developments in sensor technology designed to improve safety in industrial automation. The company, which has now exited stealth mode, also announced the upcoming launch of their first evaluation kit this summer, signaling a significant advancement in the field of robotic and machine autonomy. Confident navigation with a 3D ultrasonic sensor The Sonair 3D ultrasonic sensor allows autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) to detect distance and direction to all objects in a 180x180 field of view, up to a five-meter range. Combined with 2D images and AI, the outcome is confident navigation. The…
Medical robotics company Clarapath recently announced it has entered into a strategic collaboration with the Mayo Clinic. Clarapath said pathology laboratories currently rely on labor intensive, manual procedures to process tissue specimens for purposes of diagnosing cancer and other diseases. Faced with labor shortages, quality control challenges, and rapidly increasing sample volumes, pathology laboratories seek to improve the reliability and efficiency of creating glass slides for pathological review. Clarapath’s SectionStar is an automated tissue sectioning, transfer, and quality control system that combines robotics, computational AI, and integrated histopathology workflows, which the company said can provide standardized slide outputs and quantitative…
S&S Activewear (S&S), a wholesale apparel company, announced the expansion of its partnership with Körber Business Area Supply Chain and deployment of Geekplus robotics offerings at three warehouse sites across the Americas. The collaboration enables S&S to optimize on-site staff, order quality and delivery efficiencies to meet the surging demands of a rapidly evolving market, according to the companies. Integration has improved S&S performance “Innovation is a core tenet of S&S’s decades-long history in the wholesale apparel industry,” said Brian Beale, CTO for S&S. “Advancing our warehouse operations with Körber and Geekplus’s robotics and automation expertise has been a natural…
Sanctuary AI recently unveiled the seventh generation of its general-purpose robot Phoenix. The latest generation robot and its AI control system, Carbon, draw even closer to that of a person, according to the company. The newest Phoenix releases comes with wide ranging improvements to both the hardware and AI software. The announcement comes less than 12 months after Sanctuary AI’s sixth-generation robot was launched, and less than 16 months after its fifth-generation robot was first commercially deployed in January 2023. Improvements to Phoenix According to Sanctuary AI, this generation of Phoenix is one of the most sophisticated human behavioral data…
