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Startup Gets Ready For Factory Robots Working Alongside Humans (bloomberg.com)
A startup called Veo Robotics is preparing to roll out sensor technology that lets industrial robots work safely side-by-side with humans. "Veo's proprietary technology uses lidar sensors to create real-time maps of factory work spaces, so that robots can slow or stop completely when human workers get too close," Bloomberg reports. From the report: There are more than 2 million industrial robots in operation worldwide, mostly toiling inside metal safety cages. The seclusion is fine for repetitive tasks that can be done entirely by machines, such as arc welding, but the majority of work even in the most automated factories requires involvement of people. Embedding force sensors into industrial limbs is one way to prevent them from plowing through obstacles, but the same technology that makes the arms safe also makes them weak. Most so-called cobots cannot handle weights heavier than 10 kilograms (22 pounds). Computer vision offers a way to get robots into more complex environments, without compromising their strength. Another obstacle is that manufacturers increasingly have to make multiple products on the same assembly line and are constantly retooling their production to accommodate shifting consumer tastes. There are also not enough workers to do the job.
Veo, based in Waltham, Massachusetts, is working closely with the world's biggest robot makers Fanuc Corp., Yaskawa Electric Corp. and Kuka AG. But Veo's first customers are likely to be car companies, manufacturers of durable goods such as household appliances and oil and gas equipment makers, where the shale revolution created demand for more customization. The technology could be used to get machines to present parts to human workers, for loading and unloading fixtures and in palletizing.
Veo, based in Waltham, Massachusetts, is working closely with the world's biggest robot makers Fanuc Corp., Yaskawa Electric Corp. and Kuka AG. But Veo's first customers are likely to be car companies, manufacturers of durable goods such as household appliances and oil and gas equipment makers, where the shale revolution created demand for more customization. The technology could be used to get machines to present parts to human workers, for loading and unloading fixtures and in palletizing.
Kuka and Fanuc have been working on this for years. The current tech uses capacitive plates to detect when a robot hits something that isn't supposed to be there. It can come to a complete halt in a ridiculous time frame, something like 1/1000 of a second. Fast enough that, if it's traveling full speed and hits your shirt, it will stop before hitting your skin. Lidar will be a nice addition, but I wouldn't rely on it alone.
My Other Computer Is A Data General Nova III.
Hey baby, wanna kill all humans?
Many industries literally work on or adjust their machines while the robots are in full-tilt operation. It is certainly done like that at my plant. Slowing down the robot with a technician nearby would defeat the purpose of being right there to see how your adjustment works before it sends out a fucked up waste of money.
Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
Why do you think that only "the rich" will have robots?
The rest of us will get apes.
And it won't end well.
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!