Motion Control/​Automation

What Are Bio-Inspired Robots?

Bio-inspired robots have many applications ranging from inspections and rescue operations to surgery and space exploration. Test your knowledge about bio-inspired robots in this quiz.

Shape-Changing Smart Speaker Lets Users Mute Areas of a Room

Researchers have developed a shape-changing smart speaker, which uses self-deploying microphones to divide rooms into speech zones.

Combustion-Powered, Bug-Sized Robots can Leap, Lift, and Race

Researchers combined soft microactuators with high-energy-density chemical fuel to create an insect-scale quadrupedal robot that is powered by combustion.

NASA’s Oxygen-Generating Experiment MOXIE Completes Mars Mission

As part of the NASA’s Perseverance rover, MOXIE (Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment), has generated oxygen for the 16th and final time, successfully completing its mission goal.

Bendy-but-Sturdy Robot Autonomously Travels Through Lung Tissue

Researchers have demonstrated that their steerable robot can autonomously maneuver the intricacies of the lung, while avoiding important lung structures.

Executive Roundtable: Autonomous Mobile Robots

Autonomous mobile robots are one of the most exciting technologies in the robotics and automation sector. How important is the integration between the hardware and software? How will AI influence the next generation of AMRs? Tech Briefs posed these questions to five industry experts to garner their views on the current status and future outlook for AMRs.

Optimizing Multi-Robot Workcell Performance

One way to try to improve performance is to use multiple robots in the same workcell. In a multi-robot workcell, the tasks can be divvied up among the robots, with the expectation that the robots can perform their work concurrently and thus shorten the cycle time.

New Products

See the new products, including PI's custom air-bearing motion systems, Kollmorgen’s multi-axis servo systems, HEIDENHAIN CORPORATION's EnDat 3 encoder interface, Nexen Group's new line of Rotary Indexers, and more.

A New Method to Measure the Motion of Soft Robots

Prompted by conversations regarding soft robotics, a research group has developed a design for a new sensor using 3D electrodes inspired by the folding patterns used in origami, able to measure a strain range of up to three times higher than a typical sensor.

Maneuvering Robot Control Using Machine Learning

Researchers from MIT and Stanford University have devised a new machine-learning approach that could be used to control a robot, such as a drone or autonomous vehicle, more effectively and efficiently in dynamic environments where conditions can change rapidly.

An AI-Enabled Soft Robotic Implant Monitors Scar Tissue

Research teams at University of Galway and MIT have detailed a new breakthrough in medical device technology that could lead to intelligent, long-lasting, tailored treatment for patients thanks to soft robotics and artificial intelligence.

Small Shape-Shifting Miniature Robot with Big Impact

Engineers at CU Boulder have designed a robot called CLARI, which stands for Compliant Legged Articulated Robotic Insect, that has the potential to aid first responders after major disasters in an entirely new way.

Elevating Workpiece Handling During Plasma Surface Treatment Process

Plasmatreat recently unveiled a new plasma treatment unit. A key innovation with this treatment unit is that it uses XPlanar, a planar motor system from Beckhoff, to transport workpieces with high precision and flexibility.

How Simple Component Improvements Can Revolutionize Plant Processes

Since its introduction, dozens of steel mills — ranging from hot to cold and bar to sheet — have recognized the benefits of incorporating INSTAclamp Lock Rings into their operations. Despite a redesign with a new material, the product is not restricted by which mill types it can operate within.

Turnkey Yet Versatile Cobot Design Improves Sanding, Grinding, Finishing

Manufacturing teams in multiple industries, from aerospace to oil and gas, are finding relief in the form of new collaborative robots (cobots), like Kane Robotics’ GRIT ST and GRIT XL, that can sand off coatings, grind welds, or polish metal finishes in half the time and more safely than humans.

Microelectronics for Smarter Industrial Automation

Moving to a smarter manufacturing industry requires new technologies, including initiatives such as TSN for using Ethernet in real-time control applications.

Learning to Control a Robot

Researchers from MIT and Stanford University have devised a new machine-learning approach that could be used to control a robot, such as a drone or autonomous vehicle, more effectively and efficiently in dynamic...

Lehigh Researchers Make Sand That Flows Uphill

The team’s findings were published today in the journal Nature Communications. A corresponding video shows what happens when torque and an attractive force is applied to each grain — the...

Soft Valve Technology Enables Sensing and Control Integration in Soft Robots

Soft inflatable robots have emerged as a promising paradigm for applications that require inherent safety and adaptability. However, the integration of sensing and...

How Much Do You Know About Drones?

Since they arrived on the scene around the turn of the century, drones have enhanced the applications of many different industries. So, how much do you know about drones and their technology? Find out with this quiz.

Accelerating Solar Energy Research More Sustainably

A robot developed at North Carolina State University can conduct experiments more sustainably and accelerate energy materials research.

Products of Tomorrow

See the products of tomorrow, including microscale robots, LOTUS coating, and a wearable e-tattoo.

Self-Sensing Electric Artificial Muscles

Taking inspiration from nature, a team of researchers at Queen Mary’s School of Engineering and Materials Science has successfully created an artificial muscle that seamlessly transitions between soft and hard states while also possessing the remarkable ability to sense forces and deformations.

An Effective Roadmap to Mobile Automation

To achieve the numerous benefits of mobile automation, manufacturers must take some key implementation considerations into account and follow essential guidelines. Doing so ensures that they apply the right mobile automation solution.