GTC—NVIDIA announced a portfolio of technologies to supercharge humanoid robot development, including NVIDIA Isaac GR00T N1, the world’s first open, fully customizable foundation model for generalized humanoid reasoning and skills. The other technologies include simulation frameworks and blueprints such as the NVIDIA Isaac GR00T Blueprint for generating synthetic data, as... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz is transforming its production network by reinforcing Berlin-Marienfelde’s role as the center of innovation for MO360 digital production technologies, now enhanced with Artificial Intelligence (AI), humanoid robots, and innovations such as the production of high-performance electric axial-flux motors. In 2022, Berlin-Marienfelde established itself as the global center of expertise... Read more →

> ABB Robotics’ third Automotive Manufacturing Outlook Survey, in partnership with the publication Automotive Manufacturing Solutions, has highlighted how moving to the “Smart Factory” is viewed as a critical next step by global manufacturers and major suppliers. The benefits of increasing the use of advanced manufacturing technologies, ranging from AI-powered... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporation will partner with Samsung SDI to develop high-performance batteries specifically for robots, with the aim of increasing energy density, output and usage time significantly. The three companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for this joint development at Hyundai Motor Group’s Uiwang Research Center.... Read more →

ABB’s latest RB1000i-S high-transfer efficiency paint atomizers have been installed at Mazda’s Ujina plant, Japan, as the automotive manufacturer accelerates efforts to achieve carbon neutrality in its global production facilities by 2035. The digitally-enabled atomizers, which began operation earlier this year, significantly reduce paint usage by increasing the paint transfer... Read more →

Boston Dynamics and Toyota Research Institute (TRI) will join forces to accelerate the development of general-purpose humanoid robots utilizing TRI’s Large Behavior Models and Boston Dynamics’ Atlas robot. The latest generation of Atlas is the result of years of hardware/software co-design aimed at building the most capable humanoid platform, both... Read more →

The first comprehensive robot exhibition center in Beijing—Robot World—has established a permanent exhibition hall. The National Robot Testing and Evaluation Center (Headquarters) Beijing Evaluation Center provides authoritative domestic and world-class testing and certification services. The Beijing Embodied Intelligence Robot Innovation Center focuses on solving common industry challenges in the development... Read more →

The BMW Group is exploring the use of humanoid robots in production for the first time. During a trial run lasting several weeks at BMW Group Plant Spartanburg, the latest humanoid robot Figure 02 from California company Figure successfully inserted sheet metal parts into specific fixtures, which were then assembled... Read more →

BMW Group Plant Hams Hall in the UK is using one of the four-legged Spot robots developed by Boston Dynamics to scan the plant, support maintenance and ensure production processes run smoothly. Equipped with visual, thermal and acoustic sensors, SpOTTO is deployed in a number of unique use cases: On... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporation unveiled the new design of their DAL-e Delivery robot. This robot, based on the delivery robot introduced in December 2022, is expected to improve delivery performance, particularly in complex settings, such as offices and shopping malls. Drawing from the insights gained from Hyundai Motor... Read more →

Figure, a California-based company developing autonomous humanoid robots, signed a commercial agreement with BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC to deploy general purpose robots in automotive manufacturing environments. Figure’s humanoid robots enable the automation of difficult, unsafe, or tedious tasks throughout the manufacturing process, which in turn allows employees to focus on... Read more →

Together with the Volkswagen subsidiary Cariad, Bosch is testing automated valet charging. This solution, which is based on Bosch’s automated valet parking system, guides electric vehicles driverlessly to an unoccupied parking space furnished with a charge spot, where a charging robot recharges them automatically. Once recharging is complete, the vehicle... Read more →

HL Mando, a South Korean company specializing in components for electric cars and self-driving vehicles, is developing an autonomous valet parking robot named Parkie. The company plans to conduct field testing for Parkie early next year. Parkie, a sleek 3.5-inch-high (90mm) flat platform, is designed to park various vehicle types... Read more →

BMW i Ventures announced an investment in Formant, a robotics data and operations platform. The $21-million round was led by BMW i Ventures, with participation from new investors Intel Capital, GS Futures, and previous investors, including SignalFire, Hillsven, Goodyear Ventures, Pelion Ventures, Holman, Ericsson, PICUS Capital, and Thursday Ventures. Formant... Read more →

Toyota Research Institute (TRI) announced a breakthrough generative AI approach based on Diffusion Policy to teach robots new, dexterous skills quickly and confidently . This advancement significantly improves robot utility and is a step towards building “Large Behavior Models (LBMs)” for robots, analogous to the Large Language Models (LLMs) that... Read more →

To reduce the number of accidents in the global oil and gas industry caused by damaged pipelines, University of Houston researchers are developing an autonomous robot to identify potential pipeline leaks and structural failures during subsea inspections. The transformative technology will make the inspection process far safer and more cost... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Group has developed an automatic charging robot (ACR) for electric vehicles (EV). The ACR for EVs is a one-arm robot capable of plugging a cable into an EV’s charging port and removing it again once charging is complete. The ACR will help to make EV-charging easier and more... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Group has started two pilot delivery service programs using autonomous robots based on its Plug & Drive (PnD) modular platform (earlier post) at a hotel and a residential-commercial complex located in the outskirts of Seoul. The delivery robot consists of a storage unit integrated on top of a... Read more →

Rocsys, the first provider of autonomous charging solutions powered by robotics and artificial intelligence (earlier post), has joined ROCIN-ECO, a consortium with IONITY, Audi, TÜV SÜD, Porsche, BMW, Ford, Mercedes-Benz, AVL, and Huber+Suhner. The new consortium aims to find the optimal concept for enabling carefree e-mobility across Europe. The vision... Read more →

Comau, part of Stellantis, is integrating its technology and automation expertise to manage the assembly and production of fuel cell components and electrolyzers. Comau’s portfolio includes technology and systems for electric, hybrid and traditional vehicle manufacturing, industrial robots, collaborative and wearable robotics, autonomous logistics, dedicated machining centers and interconnected digital... Read more →

A project consortium funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and led by the BMW Group was launched three years ago, with small and mid-sized enterprises, large companies and research institutes. The common goal was to revolutionize metal 3D printing in standard automotive production. The 12... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) reaffirmed its commitment to expand investment in the US to further its goal to provide sustainable and smart mobility solutions to its US. The Group’s plans, which involve an investment of more than US$10 billion, are designed to accelerate innovation and mobility electrification. Last week, Hyundai... Read more →

At Ford’s Advanced Manufacturing Center, a mobile robot from KUKA operates the 3D printers completely on its own. Called Javier by Ford’s additive manufacturing operators, the robot is integral to the company’s development of an industry-first process to operate 3D Carbon printers with an autonomous mobile robot rather than a... Read more →

Rocsys, the first company offering autonomous charging solutions that automate industry-standard CCS connectors, has signed an order of agreement with SSA Marine, the world’s largest independent, privately-held marine terminal operator, to supply ROC-1 autonomous charging systems. The systems will autonomously charge part of the electric yard tractor fleet of SSA... Read more →

Comau, a member of Stellantis, has developed and deployed an automated e-drive assembly line for Geely Automobile Holdings at its Geely Veremt plant in Ningbo (China), for the end-to-end assembly of the electric motor, gearbox and inverter. Designed in close collaboration with the Geely team, the complete line uses a... Read more →

Hyundai Motor used CES in Las Vegas as the platform to describe its new “Metamobility concept”, which will incorporate the use of robotics in both the real world and the metaverse to allow “unlimited freedom of mobility” unconstrained by the physical limitations of movement in time and space. The company... Read more →

04/01/2022 Images are for editorial use only. Partnership builds on existing relationship to deliver increased automation and sustainability for auto parts production New joint venture agreement signed by both parties on December 30th 2021 and expected to commence operation in Q2, 2022 Automation expert ABB and China’s leading automotive parts... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Group (the Group) revealed the Mobile Eccentric Droid (MobED), an all-new and pioneering small mobility platform using advanced robotics technologies. The MobED has an innovative design arrangement. A flat, rectangular body rides on four large wheels, with an independent suspension that enables optimal body posture and stable movement... Read more →

China-based EV maker XPeng unveiled a series of technology innovations at its annual 1024 Tech Day, including the latest and most sophisticated version of its in-house developed advanced driver assistance system XPILOT 3.5 and XPILOT 4.0; the design of a new generation road-capable flying car; high-voltage supercharging technology; and robotic... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Group introduced Factory Safety Service Robot, a robot for industrial site safety, and announced its pilot operation at Kia’s plant in South Korea. The Robot is based on Boston Dynamics’ quadruped robot, Spot, with applied artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous navigation, teleoperation technologies, and computing payload (AI Processing Service... Read more →

Dürr has built a high-tech paint shop for Ford in Hermosillo, Mexico, in order to accommodate a new vehicle that Ford will be producing. The project in Hermosillo represents the largest order that Ford has given to Dürr in Mexico. The new replacement paint shop is located next to the... Read more →

Since 2017, Proton Motor Fuel Cell GmbH has been working with Aumann AG as part of the larger EU program “Fit-4-AMandA” (Fit for Automatic Manufacturing and Assembly) on hydrogen fuel cell stack production with financing from the agency FCH JU (Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking). Aumann is a leading... Read more →

The COVID-19 pandemic boosted interest in automated transport technologies as a contactless way to help customers get their purchases. However, there hasn’t been an assessment of how robots and automated vehicles impact the already energy-intensive process of transporting packages from local distribution centers to customers’ front doors. Now, researchers from... Read more →

Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a robotic disassembly system for spent electric vehicle battery packs to recycle and reuse critical materials safely and efficiently while reducing toxic waste. With the anticipated growth in EVs over the next two decades comes the issue of... Read more →

Southwest Research Institute received an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract valued at up to $34 million over five years to support the US Army Ground Vehicle Systems Center through research and development of autonomous and robotic vehicles. SwRI develops autonomous drones and ground vehicles, such as this high mobility... Read more →

Volkswagen has launched a digital transformation push across its assembly plants in the United States and Mexico. As part of Volkswagen’s estimated $1-billion investment in electric mobility and digitalization in North America up to 2025, the company is working to bring technologies such as cloud-based industrial software, intelligent robotics and... Read more →

Identifying defect sources, determining the optimal maintenance schedule, improving manufacturing processes: until now, artificial intelligence only made this possible in a paint shop equipped with state-of-the-art robots. Now, however, Dürr is significantly expanding the scope of its AI applications with the enablement of analysis software from the DXQ product family... Read more →

ABB will acquire ASTI Mobile Robotics Group (ASTI), a leading global autonomous mobile robot (AMR) manufacturer with a broad portfolio across all major applications enabled by the company’s software suite. This will expand ABB’s robotics and automation offering, making it the only company to offer a complete portfolio for the... Read more →

Toyota Research Institute (TRI) unveiled new robotics capabilities aimed at solving complex tasks in home environments. Specifically, TRI roboticists were able to train robots to understand and operate in complicated situations that confuse most other robots, including recognizing and responding to transparent and reflective surfaces in a variety of circumstances.... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Group, Boston Dynamics, Inc. and SoftBank Group Corp. announced the completion of Hyundai’s acquisition of a controlling interest in Boston Dynamics from SoftBank, following the receipt of regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. The deal valued the mobile robot firm at $1.1 billion. Additional financial details were... Read more →

The Toyota Research Institute (TRI) is helping to accelerate the field of soft robotics by sharing the design source files and full build instruction for its innovative domestic robot hands. Today, any research institution or aspiring roboticist can visit punyo.tech and build their own Punyo Soft Bubble Gripper. TRI Soft... Read more →

A pre-prototype seabed polymetallic nodule (earlier post) collector being tested on the Pacific Ocean floor by Global Sea Mineral Resources (GSR) has become detached from its lifting cable on its final dive and is sitting on the ocean bed 4.5 kilometers beneath the surface. GSR, the in-house deep-sea exploration and... Read more →

BMW i Ventures has invested in Plus One Robotics, the leading provider of vision software for logistics robots. The Series B fundraise will help accelerate automation across the broader supply chain and logistics industry and deliver a transformative experience for warehouse operators. The company, co-founded by industry veterans including CEO... Read more →

Porsche AG has developed a new production process at its headquarters in Zuffenhausen in collaboration with Tesa SE. Using this process, the holes in the car body, which are necessary for corrosion prevention, can now be sealed much more effectively; these holes are required so that all of the body... Read more →

The University of Michigan and Ford Motor Company are opening a new advanced robotics facility. U-M’s Ford Motor Company Robotics Building is a four-story, $75-million, 134,000-square-foot complex situated on the north campus. As the new hub of the U-M Robotics Institute, its first three floors hold custom U-M research labs... Read more →

Spin, the micromobility subsidiary of Ford Motor Company, announced an exclusive international alliance with software company Tortoise to bring Spin S-200 remotely-operated e-scooters to cities in North America and Europe in 2021. The company’s new Spin Valet platform makes it possible to operate Spin’s fleet remotely and automatically re-park scooters... Read more →

The Toyota Research Institute (TRI) has selected 13 additional academic institutions to participate in the next five-year phase of its collaborative research program. These universities join MIT, Stanford and the University of Michigan which have worked with TRI over the last five years to expand the body of research into... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Group has launched the DAL-e, a customer service robot that independently communicates with people using precise recognition capabilities and mobility functions. The DAL-e is an acronym for “Drive you, Assist you, Link with you-experience.” Designed to pioneer the future of automated customer services, the DAL-e is equipped with... Read more →

Volkswagen Group Components provided the first glimpse of the prototypes of its mobile charging robot. This is one of the visionary charging concepts that Volkswagen hopes will expand the charging infrastructure over the next few years. The robot’s task is the fully autonomous charging of vehicles in restricted parking areas,... Read more →

Velodyne Lidar introduced the Velarray M1600, a solid-state lidar sensor designed to serve mobile robotic applications. The sensor is the latest in a new line of Velarray products and first in the new M-series. It is built using Velodyne’s proprietary micro-lidar array architecture (MLA) and leverages Velodyne’s manufacturing partnerships for... Read more →