Global warehouse automation specialist Swisslog recently worked with KUKA to strengthen its AGV-based CarryPick system — namely by bringing mobile goods-to-person systems in-house. CarryPick is an automated storage and order fulfillment system. It works as a flexible and scalable asset for supporting multi-channel fulfillment operations. The CarryPick system’s new KMP600 AGV was developed in an…
MODEX 2018: Old and new have never been so far apart
MODEX, ProMat and CeMAT are the biggest global material handling and logistics supply chain tech trade shows. But as I walked the corridors of this year’s MODEX in Atlanta, I was particularly aware of the widening disparity between the old and new. Stats: Material Handling and Logistics The 2018 MHI Annual Industry Report found that…
Robotics Fundings, Acquisitions and IPOs: March 2018
Twenty-four startups were funded in March raising a combined total of $350 million. That brings the 3-month total to $1.5 billion! There was an additional funding of $2.5 billion to JD Logistics, an 81.4%-owned spin-off that is the logistics arm of JD, China’s 2nd largest online retailer. Funding came from Hillhouse, Sequoia, China Merchants, Tencent,…
Robotics fundings, acquistions, IPOs and failures: February 2018
Nineteen different startups were funded in February raising $377 million; a substantial two-month start for the new year. Five acquisitions were reported during the month while the IPO front had no activity whatsoever. CB Insights said that China dominated the funding of AI-related startups during 2017. So far in 2018, the China funding percentage appears…
New warehouse automation and logistics reliant on conveyors: Catino of Interroll explains the trend
One trend in the area of logistics is tighter integration of warehousing and assembly — a trend that’s especially evident in the automotive industry but on the rise elsewhere too. That’s according to Maurizio Catino, industry sales manager at Interroll, a material-handling technology supplier. “Traditional facilities have a warehouse (from which parts originate) and an […]
Motion controller basics video: Electronics, automation tasks, and networking
Motion controllers are pieces of electronics (and in an increasing number of integrated cases, electrical supplies) that run software to command movements on automated pieces of machinery. For more information on this, visit motioncontroltips.com/motion-controller. Motion controllers are designed to regulate the specific actuator type on the axes they’re commanding. That means these controllers include intelligence […]
Couplings for warehouse automation systems
When it comes to automated warehouses, precision is key. Hundreds of shuttles and miles of conveyors must all work together to ensure products are transported successfully to their designated location for storage or delivery. Of all the components that play a role in the precision of these systems, don’t forget about couplings and locking devices—both […]
Autonomous picking robot streamlines logistics operations
The Swift, a fully autonomous mobile picking robot from IAM Robotics, is designed for supply chain and warehouse logistics operations. The robot is a key part of a complete order fulfillment solution, which includes IAM Flash, a 3D item scanner, and SwiftLink fleet management software. “Properly executed robotic picking is a game changing technology for…
Motion and control objectives for automated storage and retrieval systems
Automated storage and retrieval systems are a key enabler of the next-day delivery we’ve come to expect from online retailers. But like other types of automation, AS/RS equipment must meet the customer’s objectives for safety, footprint, and energy efficiency. It used to be that as you drove through industrial suburbs, just beyond cities such as […]
Vertical linear motion: Hoists to lifts to AS/RS reach new heights
New technologies boost the reliability and efficiency of vertical motion designs (including an array of lifts and hoists) for setups of various sizes. In the feature, we get input from one industry expert on the subject and then outline five key parameters that dictate what makes linear actuators suitable for lifting. Mounting orientation — especially […]
AS/RS design to run new manufacturing and distribution center by 2019
Cimcorp North America of Murata Machinery (Muratec) will supply an installation for end-to-end material handling to Giti Tire at a new South Carolina manufacturing facility. Scheduled for completion in 2019, the turnkey Cimcorp system is called a Dream Factory and will include all the facility’s automation equipment and system control, project management, and integration. Singapore-based […]
Rittal’s €40 million AS/RS setup supports 24 or 48-hour delivery
Rittal, a manufacturer of modular enclosure, power management, and software products is using a massive new global distribution center in Haiger, Germany to deliver enclosures and housings twice as fast as before. The state-of-the-art logistics center has an area of more than 4,000 m2 to 32 m high in some sections to fully automate the […]
Motion Systems Applications Digital Issue – Aerospace: Showcasing motion excellence
NASA engineers and scientists saw years of design work come to fruition when the Mars rover Curiosity, a 2,000-lb feat of excellence, settled onto the red planet in a gentle touchdown of glory. But it wasn’t just the efforts of NASA personnel that gave humanity that moment—and every other win in the thousand-plus days that…
New Brushless Motor Offerings from Applimotion
Applimotion is now offering interior permanent magnet (IPM) versions of their ULT, UTH, UTS, and UTO frameless motor kits, extending capabilities to new applications. The IPM frameless motor kits cover…
Kollmorgen and KNAPP Systemintegration GmbH Announce Partnership
RADFORD, VA – Kollmorgen and KNAPP Systemintegration GmbH, a member of KNAPP group and leading warehouse automation specialist, have reached a strategic partnership agreement, whereby KNAPP will license and integrate Kollmorgen’s NDC Suite technology in warehouse applications for automated order-picking and automating standard forklifts for operator-less transport applications on a global basis. For automated order…