Automation

Omron Adept Technologies Inc.’s LD-series mobile robot can gather information about its surroundings and automatically generate a map with just one run through any given environment.

The major wire EDM builders are still in competition, of course, but on other playing fields. The latest developments in wire electrical discharge machining focus on throughput, ease of use and automation.

Engineers who currently ask humans for advice about cutting tool selection will one day direct their questions to advisers derived from artificial intelligence. So says MachiningCloud Inc. (www.machiningcloud.com), a single-source provider of digitized product data gathered from manufacturers of cutting tools and workholding devices.

More lathe purchasers are choosing automated material handling options, according to the February 2017 Machine Technology column by Bill Leventon.

According to Autonetics LLC, automated gaging units (AGUs) for threads are hot. The Cary, N.C.-based AGU manufacturer reported that it shipped 10 systems in the third quarter of last year to U.S. pipe mills that produce oil country tubular goods. No shipments occurred in the fourth quarter because the industry experienced a downturn, so capital expenditure projects got cut or delayed, noted Jeff Heath, COO of Autonetics. However, he said, the projects are starting to receive funding again. “We have about four in the build phase.”

More than 150 U.S.-based robotics researchers contributed to the 2016 edition of the report titled “A Roadmap for US Robotics From Internet to Robotics.” Released Oct. 31, the document calls for improving policy frameworks to safely integrate new technologies, such as self-driving cars and commercial drones, into everyday life. The document also advocates for increased research efforts in the field of human-robot interaction and for more STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) courses for students.