Plus One Robotics, a manufacturer of 3D and AI-powered vision software, this week announced a partnership with Tompkins Robotics, an autonomous mobile robot maker focused on sortation. By working together, the companies said they will provide more options for sorting and classifying different types of packages. This in turn, will boost throughput rates with less downtime, they claim. Addressing labor shortages through robotics “We are thrilled to be combining Plus One’s 3D and AI software with Tompkins' cutting-edge robots,” said Brent Barcey, vice president of business development at Plus One Robotics. “Supply chains and warehouses are stretched now more than…
Partnering with Anantak, ePicker (Booth C7294b), a robotics company, has developed an autonomous pallet mover and is introducing it during Modex. Using 3D cameras, lasers and vehicle telemetry, along with a proprietary self-driving software package, the pallet mover can accompany users’ existing workflows, rather than replacing them. Additionally, the pallet mover enables quick adoption—distinct from traditional mobile robotics that generally require considerable modifications to their infrastructure and processes to ensure they can run autonomously. This fast adoption is primarily because users remain at the front-end of the process, prior to the engagement of onboard autonomy. Transportation and drop-offs to facility…
FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp., is working with aviation company Elroy Air to deliver packages via autonomous drones. San Francisco-based Elroy Air claims to be building the first end-to-end, autonomous electrical vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aerial cargo system, the Chapparal. It has been working with FedEx since 2020. FedEx Express said it plans to test Elroy Air’s technology within the company’s middle-mile logistics operations, moving shipments between sortation locations. The companies plan to begin test flighting by 2023, after receiving the proper certifications. Elroy Air unveiled its pre-production Chaparral autonomous aircraft in January 2022. The company said…
During MODEX 2022, Oceaneering International announced that BlueBotics SA will provide the navigation technology for its line of industrial mobile robots. Founded in 1964, Oceaneering International said it has deployed more than 1,700 autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) worldwide, with over 30 million miles accumulated. The Houston-based company has offices in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. Its products include the MaxMover CB D 2000, the Compact Mover FOL U 1200, the MontoMover Dual O 2000, the MontoMover Quad O 1200, the MontoMover U 400, the UniMover U 1500, the UniMover 0 600 and the UniMover D 100. More than…
RightHand Robotics Inc. yesterday announced at MODEX 2022 that it has partnered with Vanderlande to deploy piece-picking robots to meet the demands of general merchandise warehouses and distribution centers on a global scale. Vanderlande has added RightHand's RightPick item-handling system to its Smart Item Robotics, or SIR, portfolio of technologies. “The market wants integrated robotics that work, so we’ve tested the world’s leading robot solutions,” stated Terry Verkuijlen, vice president of warehouse solutions at Vanderlande. “Our findings showed that RightHand Robotics’ use of gripper technology, vision systems, and software algorithms is the best fit for automated general merchandise warehouses.” Established…
Oceaneering International (Booth B9408) has completely revamped its autonomous mobile robots (AMR) product portfolio and announced the North American launch of three new mobile robots. The UniMover D 100 is a small underride vehicle, designed to transport light goods such as boxes, totes and trays. The UniMover O 600 is an underride vehicle suitable for transporting a variety of bulk items such as engineered parts, food, laundry, medical equipment, packaging and pharmaceuticals. The MaxMover CB D 2000 is designed as a true replacement of conventional counterbalance forklifts. Oceaneering selected BlueBotics to provide navigation technology for its industrial autonomous mobile robots.…
Today at MODEX 2022, Vecna Robotics jointly announced with pedestrian material handling equipment company Big Joe Handling Systems its latest robot—the Vecna CPJ. The pallet jack is designed to bring human-assisted robotics to warehouses and manufacturing facilities with labor-intensive workflows that have been long ignored by robotics automation, the companies said. Waltham, Mass.-based Vecna and Hayward, Calif.-based Big Joe claimed that their robot has been proven to improve throughout by 45% versus human work alone. Will be available through RaaS To maximize the accessibility of the product and help with immediate labor shortages, the Vecna CPJ will be available through…
GXO Logistics Inc., which claims to be “the world's largest pure-play contract logistics provider,” has picked Locus Robotics Corp. as the primary supplier of mobile robots to support high-volume order fulfillment for a large sports-fashion retailer in the U.K. and the Netherlands. “This partnership reflects our ongoing commitment to deploy innovative logistics solutions that use advanced technology to address increasingly complex fulfillment challenges,” said Gavin Williams, managing director of GXO for the U.K. and Ireland. “Customization, flexibility, and scalability are the hallmarks of our solutions, and the Locus AMRs [autonomous mobile robots] support our ability to make warehouse space even…
Geekplus Technology Co. announced the global launch of its multi-level storage and retrieval system this week. The Beijing-based mobile robot maker said the Sky-Storage & Ground-Pick system uses Geek+’s X-series four-way shuttle robots to boost storage density while devoting the ground-floor picking operations to its P800 robots. Founded in 2015, Geek+ has over 1,500 employees, with offices in Germany, the U.K., the U.S., Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong SAR, and Singapore. Last year, Interact Analytics named the company as the global market leader in autonomous mobile robots (AMRs). Shuttles use vertical space On the upper levels of the warehouse,…
Flytrex Inc., a drone delivery company based out of Tel Aviv, Israel, today announced the launch of its drone delivery service in Granbury, Texas, just outside of Dallas-Fort Worth. As part of the Texas launch, the company will expand its partnership with Brinker International and two virtual brands – It’s Just Wings and Maggiano’s Italian Classics, delivering food orders via drone to front and backyards of local residents, with a flight time of just five minutes. The service will operate in cooperation with longtime partner Causey Aviation Unmanned under a newly granted Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) waiver allowing a delivery…
SpaceGuard Products (Booth B6629) launched a new guarding solution for robotic automation systems, dubbed RageWire, on Monday at a booth press conference. RageWire Robotic Guarding consists of five essential components: 5-foot wide panels; 6 foot, 7 foot, 8 foot tall universal posts; wire panel hanger brackets; universal swing and slide door access; and electric interlock access. Additionally, its design and wire mesh opening size of 1.25 x 4-inch vertical grid pattern conforms to RIA/ANSI Standards allowing for a 17.5-inch compact, clear distance between the machine and the enclosure. This distance between the robot and the guarding is important because it…
Collaborative Robots Bring Productivity