Category Archives: Robotics

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The spotlight on robotics in the restaurant industry has been largely focused on behind-the-scenes deployments, where automated machines perform some repetitive kitchen tasks.

As technology advances, however, restaurant operators might want to consider opportunities for robotics in the front of the house as well. Robots that can move autonomously and have the ability to communicate with guests can provide a novel experience that can differentiate one restaurant from others and create opportunities for sharing on social media.

Research from Deloitte found that restaurants have a significant opportunity to win over customers by creating moments that surprise [them] and exceed their expectations. Fewer than half of the consumers surveyed in the report43%said they were delighted by their restaurant experiences, on average, indicating a key area where restaurants have room for improvement.

Robots that interact with customers can play a role in enhancing restaurant guests overall experience. In fact, according to a report issued last year, consumers say they might be enticed to visit a restaurant with a robot on staff, just for the novelty of the experience.

Sugar Mediterranean Bistro in Stockton, Calif., for example, recently added a Matradee robot, made by Richtech Robotics, to carry trays of food out to customers tables, and the new addition to the staff is generating considerable attention.

People are coming in with their phones, recording, taking pictures. Everybody is loving it, Ana Ortiz, general manager of the restaurant, told NBC News.

Matradee autonomous foodservice robots, which are available in two versions, can also open kitchen doors, speak several languages, tell jokes and sing Happy Birthday to customers to help create special experiences for guests.

The robots also have a personality. If diners dont retrieve their food quickly enough for example, the robot gives them some encouragement with the sassy one-liner: Please take your food; I have to go back to work.

The Matradee autonomous foodservice robots leverage state-of-the-art sensor technologies, including LiDAR (light detection and ranging) and machine vision, that allow them to navigate dining rooms safely.

A recent report from Research and Markets predicted that the global robotics market would expand significantly in the next five years across a wide range of industries and use cases. The report noted that consumer acceptance has grown for the deployment of robotic technology in customer-facing situations.

Robots are finding their way into more consumer use cases, the report concluded.

For more information about how robotics can play a role in enhancing restaurant operations, visit Richtech Robotics.

This post is sponsored by Richtech Robotics

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Robots gain a place in the front of the house - Restaurant Business Online

Doctors are to use a remotely operated robot to give check ups to care home residents with Alzheimers disease and other conditions.

The pilot will use technology pioneered by The National Robotarium at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh and uses machine learning and artificial intelligence.

It will see health practitioners control a robot over the internet to interact with residents in facilities run by Blackwood Homes and Care in Scotland.

Clinicians will be able to see through the eyes of the robot, move around the room or between rooms and operate its arms and hands to carry out more complex assessments.

It can also operate semi-autonomously 24/7.

Toyotas Human Support Robot will be used by the researchers alongside commercially available tele-presence robots.

The developers believe it can help those with Alzheimers and other cognitive impairments by providing regular monitoring and health assessments.

The research was led by Dr Mauro Dragone from the National Robotarium alongside Dr Mario Parra Rodriguez from the University of Strathclyde.

Dr Dragone said: With gaps between assessments lengthening, the care and support that is being prescribed to assist vulnerable people may become unsuitable as an individuals physical and cognitive abilities change over time.

He said the prototype robot however can carry out a thorough, non-intrusive assessment and will allow carers to to spot cognitive decline more quickly.

He added that the assessment can be conducted without the patient leaving home or the clinician leaving their office.

Dr Rodriguez said: The experience of inhabiting a distant robot through which I can remotely guide, assess, and support vulnerable adults affected by devastating conditions such as Alzheimers disease, grants me confidence that challenges we are currently experiencing to mitigate the impact of such diseases will soon be overcome through revolutionary technologies.

Colin Foskett, head of innovation at Blackwood Homes and Care, said: Blackwood is always looking for solutions that help our customers to live more independently whilst promoting choice and control for the individual.

He added that robotics have the potential to improve independent living and that the research will aid independent living and improve outcomes for our customers.

The National Robotarium is supported by funds from both the UK and Scottish Governments.

UK Government minister for Scotland Iain Stewart said: It was fascinating to visit the National Robotarium and see first-hand how virtual teleportation technology could revolutionise healthcare and assisted living.

He added that the research centre is a world leader for robotics and AI, bringing jobs and investment to the area.

For more stories from where you live, visit InYourArea.

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Doctors to send robots in to assess patients in care homes - Wales Online

GREENVILLE, Texas, Sept. 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundationannounced today that it is partnering with the Texas Workforce Commission's Texas Youth Robotics Initiative to expand access of competitive robotics to rural and Title 1 high school students for the 2021/2022 academic year throughout the state. The grant will also support nearly 220 existing competitive robotics education teams.

With a nearly $700K grant from the Texas Workforce Commission, theREC Foundation will develop 125 new teams for educational robotics competition. Of those 125 teams, 25 are dedicated to teams composed of intellectually disabled and/or deaf and hard of hearing students through partnerships with Special Olympics Texas and the Texas School for the Deaf, respectively. Furthermore, both organizations are partnering with the REC Foundation tohost events dedicated to Special Olympics and deaf and hard of hearing teams from across the nation. The primary goal for the remaining new team grants is to, in partnership with the Texas Rural Education Association (TREA), begin robotics programs across rural Texas high schools.

The REC Foundation works in close partnership with VEX Robotics, creator of the robotics kits and educational tools used by students, educators and mentors. Teams will engage in fun and hands-on learning while having the opportunity to potentially compete in a regional VEX Robotics Competition.

"We're honored to receive this impactful grant and for our partnership with the Texas Workforce Commission. These funds will help expand and continue the much-needed access to robotics and create more workforce development opportunities for Texas students," said Dan Mantz, CEO of the REC Foundation. "We're thrilled to welcome more teams to our global robotics community of more than one million students."

Through the creative process of designing, building, and programming robots for competition, students gain a wealth of technical knowledge and develop communication and teamwork skills that will serve them well throughout their lives. To learn more about the REC Foundation and how your high school can apply for this grant, visithttps://www.roboticseducation.org/grant/twc-grant/.

About the Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation

The Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation's mission is to increase student interest and involvement in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by engaging students in hands-on, affordable, and sustainable robotics engineering programs.

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The Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation Receives a Nearly $700K Grant from Texas Workforce Commission to Continue Expanding Robotics...

Starting at 3 or 4 years old, Steamboat Springs native Eva Reynolds asked her mom for a screwdriver so she could take apart her toys.

She would take apart the kitchen appliance in the play kitchen, take the screws out, see how the gears worked and put it back together, said mom Kira Reynolds.

As a youngster, Eva watched intently when her dad, Nathan Reynolds, fixed equipment, snowmobiles and dirt bikes so that she could see how they worked.

Now at age 14, Eva is this years 4-H robotics state grand champion, beating out both her age group and the older teen group at the recent Colorado State Fair. She was the only girl competing in robotics at this years fair, her second year qualifying for state competition. In order to compete in Pueblo, she beat out a smart group of kids in the local 4-H robotics club, which is coached by retired Texas Instruments engineers Kim and Jack Smith.

At the fair, Reynolds earned a perfect score of 400.

Its hard to get a perfect score, especially with this challenge. Some things dont go exactly the way you planned, Eva said. When we did practice runs, I was getting a perfect score, but I was not completing one of the challenges. I had to struggle at state to rewrite code.

Robotics youth competitors write computer code to pre-program hand-sized Lego Mindstorms robots, which look like mini forklifts, to run a course of tasks in five minutes for three runs.

After the races, a competitor asked Eva if she would show him her winning code, and she did.

The great thing with Eva is she has the brainpower and the heart power, coach Kim Smith said. She is always willing to help others. Shes just an all-around amazing person.

Eva is now a freshman at Steamboat Mountain School, where she is joining a new robotics club using FTC, or FIRST Tech Challenge, where teams of students in seventh to 12th grades are challenged to design, build, program and operate robots to compete in a head-to-head challenge in an alliance format.

Eva said participating in 4-H robotics for the past three years taught her problem-solving, the ability to stick with something when its very frustrating, team work and patience.

Its one thing to write a code and know that it works, but the biggest part of robotics is knowing how to think on the spot, said Eva, whose other hobbies include putting together 3D metal puzzles when she is not skiing or reading books. Figuring out how to make something work is very difficult, but its very rewarding to do.

She also acknowledges the Smiths, the enthusiastic local volunteer coaches for the past four years.

They are amazing, super fun, super supportive and the most knowledgeable people Ive ever met, said Eva, who attended North Routt Community Charter School when she was younger and then was home schooled for the past four years.

Smith said the local 4-H robotics program usually includes 30 to 35 kids, but the COVID-19 pandemic limited the current group size.

Its really great to give these kids a taste and touch of that to add to their well-roundedness of living in Routt County, Smith said. This is really hard stuff, coding on a computer and downloading to a robot. Our future is all going to be robotics and coding. Its so cool to see these young kids embrace this.

Eva said she spent 40 hours on a laptop since April, creating code to teach the robot how to deliver specific boxes on certain routes.

After robotics, she always comes home with a smile, Kira Reynolds said of her curious, creative, deep-thinker daughter. Its really fun to see how much she enjoys it.

To reach Suzie Romig, call 970-871-4205 or email sromig@SteamboatPilot.com.

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Steamboat teen wins 4-H state grand champion in robotics - Steamboat Pilot and Today

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Today, the range of opportunities for robots and other autonomous machines is enormous. The COVID pandemic has seen robots deployed for applications as diverse as UV cleaning of hospitals to last-mile delivery, for logistics and warehouse work, as well as for inspection services for off-shore wind farms. Robots, as well as a growing number of consumer electronics products, are demonstrating increasingly sophisticated autonomous skills especially in the crucial area of simultaneous location and mapping (SLAM), the process of building and updating a map of an operational environment, while simultaneously maintaining the location of a systems location within it.

Where Am I?To operate effectively and safely in dynamic environments among people and other devices, robots must be able to calculate exactly where they are at all times. Using SLAM technologies and techniques, robotics systems must be able to accurately, reliably and consistently answer the question Where am I?, without recourse to external systems like GPS or beacons and other way-point systems.

Bespoke SolutionsMany robotics firms are already creating robots that can determine their position with high levels of accuracy. But each sees the world around it in its own way, and in a manner completely incomprehensible to other machines or humans. Hardware and software set-ups are tailored for specific use cases and operational environments, and the systems will fail if the systems are used in any way other than what they were precisely engineered for.

To illustrate, consider an automated cleaning robot and a hospitality robot working in the same shopping mall. The two robots perceive their operational environment around them completely differently. Each operates in a narrowly defined spatial silo engineered for specific routes, functions and parameters. They are unable to collaborate with other robots, machines, or people.

The tight integration of sensors and SLAM software in each of the cleaning and hospitality robots means that mapping, localization and navigation information cannot be shared between them, and positioning related algorithms cannot be reused in other systems. Without its own bespoke combination of sensors and software, each robot is unable to answer that core question Where am I?

For both start-ups and larger established players, what is required for robotics systems to reach their full potential is access to a common, shared approach for mapping, positioning and understanding their operational environment.

Missed OpportunitiesDeveloping SLAM systems is resource intensive, technically challenging and expensive. In addition, the lack of common and shareable approaches for understanding the physical space around autonomous devices has resulted in a multitude of system specific, spatial intelligence silos. This robotics Tower of Babel threatens the projected growth and viability of the robotics industry, and inhibits the development of devices and robots that could address some of the most pressing challenges in the economy, the environment and society.

Reinvention QuagmireHundreds of innovative, entrepreneurial companies are desperate to deploy their proof-of-concept designs in the real world. These are the next generation of businesses that will drive the growth and increase the value of the robotics market.

Many of these firms have brilliant designs and applications that could literally change the world. But many are stuck reinventing the core technology of spatial intelligence. Each pursues their own approach, establishing new silos, and then struggling to adapt to the thousands of edge-cases that cause their designs to fail in unexpected ways.

For both start-ups and larger established players, what is required for robotics systems to reach their full potential is access to a common, shared approach for mapping, positioning and understanding their operational environment.

Multiple Designs, One ApproachThere is no one-size fits all for robotics systems. They each have their own form factors, hardware/software set ups, and parameters tailored to meet specific requirements. But there can be a consistent and repeatable way of perceiving the world around these devices. Nature provides a clue.

There are thousands of different designs for living creatures on Earth, but a surprisingly consistent way lifeforms position themselves in the world around them. This approach, honed through millions of years of evolution, emphasizes a combination of two eyes and inertial sensors in the inner ear to calculate position.

At SLAMcore, we have mirrored nature by creating a common approach to SLAM using two cameras and an inertial measurement unit (IMU). With these core components SLAMcore is creating a universal language of spatial intelligence that can benefit all robot developers. Simple, effective and widely available sensors, combined with SLAMcore algorithm, provides a consistent, repeatable and sharable way for any robot to perceive, map and describe the world around it.

Using a common language to describe the world around robots also means that information can be aggregated and shared. As such, it can unleash a new wave of growth in the robotics sector.

Vision is KeyEven basic, low-cost standard-definition cameras capture huge amounts of data. Processed in the right way, this information can support instant and accurate calculations of position even with no prior knowledge of the location or physical situation.

The algorithms developed by SLAMcore engineers are able to take visual data to create sparse point-clouds of the features in any scene that a robot or autonomous device can use to accurately and robustly calculate its position. The same data is also used to create detailed 2.5D and 3D maps that add more functionality, including identification of free space that is safe to occupy. Additionally, the software identifies and labels all the objects in a scene attaching semantic understanding of what the robot is seeing. This information is the basis for decisions on how it should react to objects in its environment.

A Common LanguageUsing vision as the primary input for mapping, localization, and navigation creates a common framework a language of spatial intelligence that can be shared with other devices, and with humans. If robots of all types, and the humans that work with and around them, all see physical space in the same way, it is much easier to begin to collaborate, share and build a common understanding.

Using a common language to describe the world around robots also means that information can be aggregated and shared. As such, it can unleash a new wave of growth in the robotics sector. Customers benefit not only from a shared language for spatial intelligence that will short-cut their own development cycles, but it also provides a constantly growing knowledge base.

Just as children learn through trial-and-error, robots, too, can learn from their failures, as well as the failures of other robotics systems.

Constant EvolutionAlthough robots and autonomous devices come in many different shapes and sizes, they tend to fail in common ways. Outside of the lab, robots quickly encounter unexpected situations unforeseen objects, different lighting conditions, new layouts or physical environments. These edge cases are difficult to anticipate, simulate and program for, and they are usually the source of robot failure in the real world. By describing these unexpected situations in a common way using data from cameras and IMUs processed consistently by SLAM algorithms every edge-case, and its solution, can be recorded and shared.

Just as children learn through trial-and-error, robots, too, can learn from their failures, as well as the failures of other robotics systems. In terms of positioning, sharing data and reusable maps allows knowledge about a physical environments to persist so that robots can learn from experiences of other robotic systems.

Virtuous CircleBy analyzing data from hundreds of previous positioning edge-cases, SLAMcore engineers have identified how and why SLAM estimations have failed in the past, and how they can be overcome. They have also developed a consistent frame of reference that allows them to leverage and contribute to a global body of data on how robots locate and map in real-world situations.

As data granularity and scale increases, and more edge-case solutions are found, SLAM algorithms are tweaked to make better positioning judgement calls. As mapping techniques improve, so do robot operations, allowing robotics systems to be used more widely, resulting in the collection of even greater amounts of edge-case data. This process creates a virtuous circle that benefits all participants.

Shared MapsConstantly updated, shared maps have immediate and obvious applications for wide scale robotics deployments. Fleets of robots can contribute to shared maps so that every change is noticed and passed on to all those affected. Robots learn from their peers experiences, and maps can be shared with humans so that both they and the robots have a commonly agreed map that accurately represents their shared operational space, and can be verified with the world around them.

As a universal language of spatial intelligence, digital twins will unleash a wave of robotic innovation and deployment, delivering significant benefits across industrial, commercial and consumer sectors.

Digital TwinsThe accuracy, currency and robustness of these maps, constantly updated as every robot surveys a scene, become the foundation for a real-time digital twin of the physical world. This provides many benefits for those managing facilities, locations or properties, providing real-time data on the exact state of the physical world, but also the opportunity to test and simulate actions before implementing them.

As a universal language of spatial intelligence, digital twins will unleash a wave of robotic innovation and deployment, delivering significant benefits across industrial, commercial and consumer sectors. The value and the utility of a hyper-accurate, real-time digital twin of the physical world, automatically updated and shared as every robot or autonomous device passes through an operational environment, is immense.

Common LanguageAt SLAMcore, we have developed a common language for spatial intelligence allows developers and designers to learn from the errors of others, enabling them to progress further, faster. With tens of thousands of sessions, thousands of hours of operation, and well over three million meters traveled and recorded by our customers, this common language has incorporated deeper knowledge, across a wider range of scenarios, than any individual engineer can hope to master. Moreover, an event or failure experienced by one class of robotics systems (say, a drone designed for delivery), can provide valuable information to a designer of another type of system (a wheeled robot for hospitality, for example).

Tower of BabelThe story of the Tower of Babel was a warning to humankind not to attempt to reach the heavens. But in contrast to the humans in the origin myth, we want robots to share and benefit from a common language, one with which to describe the physical environment around them. We want robots to cooperate with each other, and to work alongside humans to find solutions to some of the worlds most pressing challenges. We want, and many would argue, need, robots to help build a better world.

At SLAMcore, this is the mission that drives us to make quality spatial intelligence accessible to all. If robots and other intelligent systems use a consistent language for shared spatial intelligence, we can democratize access to robust, accurate and fast SLAM. This would open up many opportunities and create the necessary building blocks for an explosion of robotics solutions to address critical challenges such as addressing climate change, supporting pandemic and disaster response, care for the elderly and disabled, as well as providing cost effective and efficient ways to deliver the economics of abundance.

About the Author

Owen Nicholson is the CEO/co-founder of SLAMcore, and an expert in IP management. He specializes in technology commercialization, with industrial experience of early stage technology transfer, intellectual property negotiations, and the successful delivery of multi-million pound projects. In his previous role as Operations Manager at the Dyson Robotics Lab (Imperial College London), Nicholson was responsible for the management of the laboratorys intellectual property and monitoring. He was also Head of Growth at IN-PART, an online platform showcasing academic advances within engineering and life science disciplines and creating opportunities for university-industry collaboration, including co-development, licensing, and long-term partnering, with a focus on technology transfer from the research laboratory to the market. Nicholson began his career as Graduate Scientist and Technology Manager at the UKs Ministry of Defence where he worked at the Counter Terrorism Science and Technology Centre. Holds a BS in Physics and an MS in Innovation and Technology Management from the University of Bath

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Overcoming the Robotics Tower of Babel - Robotics Business Review

The repetitive tasks and constant movement demanded by secondary packaging are ideally suited for the deployment of robotic solutions. Feeding secondary cartons, pick-and-place case packing, and a variety of palletized configurations all require a high level of precision and speed, making them well-suited for modern robots.

Secondary packaging is the first area to see significant deployment of automation technology at many manufacturers. Of the respondents to the report Secondary Packaging Trends, 67% said their end-of-line operations are already heavily automated, though 21% said that some of their operations still rely on human labor. A challenge of the ongoing manufacturing labor shortage is pushing many companies to seek innovative and cutting-edge automation solutions, with significant room for expansion of automated technologies.

Faster and shorter production runs caused by SKU proliferation and the growth of the CPG industry means manufacturers will need even more automation to meet future production goals, with 85% of participants stating that they are still looking to expand their current portfolio of automation solutions in secondary packaging.

Nearly 65% of CPGs stated that they would like to achieve faster changeover through automation upgrades to keep up with the pace demanded by production schedules. In addition to improving changeover efficiency, manufacturers are also looking to modernize their quality control systems, with 45% of participants planning to implement automated vision inspection systems.

Applications where robotics will be deployed in the future:

Case packing

Palletizing

Loading and unloading

Printing

Vision inspection

Pick-and-place

In-feeding products

Cartoning

Harvesting

Lifting

Download this FREE report below.

Source: PMMI Business Intelligence, Secondary Packaging Trends

PACK EXPO Las Vegas andHealthcare Packaging EXPO(Sept. 27-29, Las Vegas Convention Center) will reunite the packaging and processing community. With over 1400 exhibitors, no other event in 2021 will bring together a more comprehensive gathering of suppliersoffering new products, technologies, and solutions. Attendee registration is nowopen.

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Robotics in the Digital Age of Secondary Packaging: Future Trends - Packaging World

FeaturesNewsday Reporter5 Hrs AgoStudents at the Sylphil Home in Love, Tobago enjoy using coding to create their very own personalised webpages. -

The first staging of the IGT Coding and Robotics Rock! Camp engaged youth participants from the International Game Technology (IGT) After School Advantage (ASA) Centers in Trinidad and Tobago, who are now better equipped with introductory tech skills.

The IGT-sponsored camp was done in collaboration with Mona Geoinformatics Institute (MGI) located at The University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica, through its flagship philanthropic initiative, the IGT After School Advantage Programme.

This student from Rainbow Rescue is intrigued by the outcome of his webpage creation. -

Introductory lessons in various aspects of coding and robotics were presented by the highly-skilled MGI team, assisted by Dr Nalini Ramsawak-Jodha who is an education specialist and STEM educator at UWI, St Augustine campus. Ramsawak-Jodha structured and aligned the curriculum to suit the needs of participants ranging from 11-18 years, said a media release.

The virtual camp was simultaneously held in August in five of the territories where IGT operates Barbados, Jamaica, St Kitts, St Maarten and TT.

Rainbow Rescue manager Kirwin Samuel helps a student during the IGT Coding and Robotics Rock! Camp sessions. -

Participants from Amica House, Jairah Boys Rainbow Rescue and Sylphil Home in Love in TT, were among the 36 total youth participants from the Caribbean, who were deeply engrossed in the two-week, ground-breaking virtual coding and robotics camp.

Rainbow Rescue manager Kirwin Samuel said in the release, At first when I registered the boys into the camp, they were very fussy about why them, why not someone else, just another boring camp they have to attend. By the second day, their whole perspective on the camp changed. Looking at their work and building their own webpages and having fun during the sessions indicated to me that MGI and IGT really wowed their expectations.

Two Amica House participants listen to closing remarks by IGT regional director Brendan Hames. -

Marie-Louise Belmar, supervisor at Amica House, was also in praise of the project. I think what captured the girls interest the most was the fact that they were able to create a webpage on their own, and they totally enjoyed it. If anyone had problems or got lost during the weekly sessions, the MGI instructors and tutors took the time to help each person. This was great.

During the camp, the students were comprehensively guided and exposed to a variety of coding and robotics concepts through computer applications and hardware. The MGI tutors instructed each student through the development of web pages incorporating the practical basics of: HTML, JavaScript and CSS projects along with group robotics activities during Zoom breakout rooms.

Participants from Amica House receive their virtual certificates during the wrap-up ceremony for the IGT Coding and Robotics Rock! Camp. -

Brendan Hames, regional director for IGT in the Caribbean, said, The technological awareness that we have placed in the hands of these Caribbean youth will help them to better navigate, not just the digital educational landscape, but also the digital economic and professional landscapes.

Hames expressed his gratitude to MGI, the ASA supervisors and, most importantly, the students of IGTs first Coding and Robotics Rock Camp for making it a success. Addressing the children, he shared some advice from Nelson Mandela: Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.

Each student received a certificate of participation.

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IGT coding and robotics camp give youth a tech boost - TT Newsday

Melonee Wise, CEO of Fetch Robotics, aptly describes herself as a robot ninja. She has spent close to 20 years designing and building innovative and complex robotics systems. Along the way, she has won multiple awards and amassed 13 patents. Wise is a driving force behind the development and deployment of safe, reliable and autonomous robots across the supply chain industry. She is passionate about the direction in which her industry is heading, and serves as a mentor and role model to her team at Fetch and to the wider robotics community as a whole.

When the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic stretched supply chains thin in 2020, Wise changed several of her robotic strategies to keep up with demand. In order to meet social distancing measures, she helped shift the company to short-distance runs between workers. In addition, she replaced forklifts with some of Fetchs larger automated mobile robots (AMRs) to autonomously transport heavy objects.

Wise enabled flexible global warehouse automation through a combination of AMRs and Fetchs leading cloud-based enterprise software, securing her spot as Supply & Demand Chain Executives 2021 Supply Chain Woman of the Year.

Melonee Wise, CEO of Fetch Robotics, believes that having a diverse team whether its socioeconomic, gender, ethnic or religious diversity can deliver the best results.Fetch Robotics

The Women in Supply Chain award honors female supply chain leaders and executives whose accomplishments, mentorship and examples set a foundation for women in all levels of a companys supply chain network.

This is a great honor. Im delighted that SDCE has chosen to recognize Fetch and myself for the great work we continue to do to reinvent and transform our customers supply chain experience, says Wise. I think its a step in the positive direction to highlight women and to show that they can be successful in this industry.

It hasnt always been a smooth ride for Wise, though. Working in a startup company brought on a series of challenges. In the early days of Fetch Robotics, when products from other startups were removed from the market after being acquired, part of Wise's role as CEO was to win customers' trust and assure them that her company would be around the long-haul. On top of that, she helps people overcome the misconceptions that surround robotics by educating them on how they can benefit their organization.

If you actually get into it, people are not afraid about losing their job because the robots are going to do their job. I think, for most people, it's pretty easy to show them that the robot can't do it all, explains Wise. What we encounter with people is that they're actually afraid that they're not qualified to work with robots. We spend a lot of time helping them understand that they already have the skills. We work with the customer on doing training early, bringing robots in on site earlier, to help the associates get comfortable with them and show them that they're more than capable of working with the robots. I think a lot of people have a concern that they're just too stupid, or they don't have the right training or education to continue to work with their new robot co-workers. That's very far from the truth.

As a self-proclaimed robot ninja, Wise understands how automation and robotics can be viewed as disruptive technologies when it comes to their capabilities. She listens to her customers needs so that Fetch can minimize any potential disruptions when implementing new AMRs. With her support and guidance, she allows companies to be successful in ways that they couldnt have been before.

When we look at the whole space of supply chain, which is a very large space, I think that really understanding the customer's needs is extremely important as a leader. Listening to the problems that they have and trying to come up with creative solutions while continuing to enable them to carry out their processes the way they want, says Wise.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Melonee Wise, CEO of Fetch Robotics, enabled flexible global warehouse automation through a combination of AMRs and Fetchs leading cloud-based enterprise software.Fetch Robotics

Working in a male-dominated field can have its downsides, though. There have been times when people have assumed that Wise isnt a CEO, asks who she works for or makes other seemingly off-color comments. Regardless of how difficult it may be, she advises people to not take it personally and do your best to let it roll off.

Many people are coming from a place of good intent, but a place of either lack of education, lack of information or lack of life experience. We all have our journeys. We all make mistakes. I'm not perfect - I've made many mistakes myself, says Wise. I think the important thing in many cases is to try to assume as much positive intent whenever possible and try to educate and inform without making it personal.

Theres also still a lot that needs to be done in the supply chain industry in terms of recruiting and retaining a diversity of talent. Wise believes that having a diverse team whether its socioeconomic, gender, ethnic or religious diversity can deliver the best results because each person brings a different perspective to the table.

There's been many, many studies that have shown that diverse teams have the best outcomes, says Wise. So, from a purely greedy perspective, a business should be striving for diversity and inclusion because it produces the best results. That is the foundational basis for why any business should be striving for inclusion.

But, a lack of representation can hinder people from wanting to join certain industries. Wise credits the companies putting diversity and inclusion at the forefront because its helping shift the industry to a place where people feel more welcomed and are more likely to get better business results in the future.

Companies need to make strong efforts to identify talent across the board and put processes in place that don't just drive individual selection because people will select people like themselves. They need to drive toward more committee-driven processes that help highlight and accentuate the capabilities and the attributes of people who are not like them through a larger committee process, says Wise.

Wise hopes, though, that there will be a time when accolades and awards arent solely focused on gender or race, but rather solely on the contribution one has made within the industry. At the end of the day, what makes someone a great engineer isnt based on their gender expression or what they look like. A great engineer is someone who puts an energy and passion into their projects, day in and day out, and works to make the community better with each decision. Its why Wise is so good at what she does. In fact, shes pretty great at it.

As the industry matures, I think it will be important to move away from highlighting just one minority within a sea of minorities within the supply chain and to focus on identifying the great leaders outside of just one aspect of their biology that they have no control over, says Wise. I think more modern robotics is breaking away from some of that old boys club. There's a lot more openness in the community, and were just starting to break down these barriers.

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2021 Women in Supply Chain: Fetch Robotics' Melonee Wise Opens Doors to Diversity in Robotics - Supply and Demand Chain Executive

CHICAGO, Sept. 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the new market research report "Warehouse Robotics MarketWith COVID-19 Impact Analysis by Type (AMR, AGV, Articulated, Cylindrical and SCARA) Function (Pick & Place, Palletizing & Depalletizing, Transportation, Packaging), Payload, Industry, and Region - Global Forecast to 2026", published by MarketsandMarkets, the market size is expected to grow from USD 4.7 billion in 2021 to USD 9.1 billion by 2026, at a CAGR of 14.0%. Expanding e-commerce industry, increasing funding from venture capitalists, rising need for enhancing the quality and reliability of warehouse operations, and growing adoption of warehouse robotics by SMEs are some of the factors driving the growth of warehouse robotics in the market. However, the high installation cost and lack of a skilled workforce are expected to restrain the market growth. The integration of Industry 4.0 with warehouse robots and technological advancements in AMRs are expected to create lucrative opportunities for the players operating in the warehouse robotics market.

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As a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, businesses worldwide have been impacted by revenue losses and disrupted supply chains as factory shutdowns and quarantine measures have been implemented across the globe, restricting movement and business activities. The economic impact is increasing, and the world's top economies are likely to enter a global recession.

Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) segment is expected to hold the largest market share during the forecast period

The Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) segment captures the largest share of the warehouse robotics market. AGVs are robots designed to follow predetermined programming commands. Warehouses equipped with AGVs are installed with navigation aided strips such as filoguiding, optoguided, and laserguiding so that they can travel through a dedicated path and avoid collisions. Typical AGV applications include transportation of raw materials, work-in-process and finished goods in support of manufacturing production lines, and storage/retrieval or other movements supporting picking in warehousing and distribution applications. AGVs similar to collaborative mobile robots assist in the picking process by guiding warehouse associates through tasks and transporting picked orders to packaging and shipping workstations. One of the drawbacks of these vehicles is that they cannot go around the obstacles and have to wait till the obstacle is removed

Browsein-depth TOC on"Warehouse Robotics Market"

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Transportation function is estimated to be the dominating market during the forecast period

The warehouse robotics market for the transportation function accounts for the largest market share of warehouse robotics. Manufacturing companies, third-party logistics providers, and independent warehouse operators are increasingly relying on efficient inbound and outbound transportation to remain competitive in the market. In a demanding warehouse and distribution environment, the internal transportation of goods and products needs to be done efficiently and cost-effectively. Thus, warehouse operators are widely using robots for performing automated transportation of goods between different locations within a warehouse. Warehouse robot helps minimize the risk of accidents by reducing labor intervention, ensuring timely delivery of goods, and reducing inventory cost thereby increasing the productivity of warehouse operations.

The Asia Pacific is expected to grow at the highest rate

The rising investments in the deployment of robotics in various industries is one of the key factors driving the growth of the market in APAC. The expanding e-commerce industry in APAC, mainly in China, is also supporting regional market growth. The e-commerce industry in China has evolved rapidly over the last 5 years supported by the high internet and smartphone penetration, increasing consumer confidence in online shopping, emergence of various e-commerce platforms, and availability of several payment solutions, such as Alipay and WeChat Pay. The COVID-19 pandemic has further accelerated the growth of the industry as consumers are preferring online channels for shopping.

Major players in the warehouse robotics market include ABB Ltd. (Switzerland), KUKA AG (Germany), KION GROUP AG (Germany), Daifuku (Japan), FANUC Corporation (Japan), Geekplus Technology (China), GreyOrange Pte. Ltd. (US), Murata Machinery Ltd. (Japan), Omron Corporation (Japan), Toyota Industries Corporation (Japan), Shopify, Inc. (Canada), Hikrobot (China), IAM Robotics (US), inVia Robotics, Inc. (US), JBT (US), Knapp AG (Austria), Locus Robotics (US), Magazino GmbH (Germany), Scallog (France), Shanghai Quicktron Intelligent Technology Co. Ltd. (China), SSI Schaefer AG (Germany), Teradyne, Inc. (US), Vecna Robotics (US), Yaskawa Electric Corporation (Japan), and Zebra Technologies Corp. (US) among others.

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Warehouse Robotics Market worth $9.1 billion by 2026 - Exclusive Report by MarketsandMarkets - PRNewswire

This week'sWorld Robot Conference 2021in Beijing, China was ane-Town industry expo that saw over 110 corporate and academic research exhibitors largely Chinese fill three halls with more than 500 different B2B and B2C robotic technologies.

The 2021 event revealed a much greater business and industrial focus than previous years more consumer-oriented solutions, with many products revealing mature, sector-specific applications, particularly in manufacturing, public service roles, and logistics.

Energy, biomedicine, and aviation were among the other industries represented, while robotics for extreme environments, such as space, offshore engineering, deep mining, and nuclear decommissioning remain development hotspots in the US, UK, and Europe.

In Beijing, technologies on display included the inevitable humanoids and androids; mobile robots for use in factories and warehouses; service robots for public liaison and other tasks; robotic arms and hands; exoskeletons, power suits, and other wearable devices, such as e-knees, which enhance, strengthen, or protect the body during manual labour; industrial robots; collaborative robots (cobots), which work alongside humans in factories; surgical robots; social care devices; and intelligent logistics solutions.

Most of these developments are being mirrored in other countries, including the US, Japan, the UK, and the worlds most highly automated country, South Korea.

5G, autonomy, artificial intelligence, sensors, computer-vision, end-effectors, additive manufacturing (3D printing), digital twins, data analytics, and cloud-based platforms are among the enabling technologies underpinning robotics, as China automates faster than other nations to maintain its status as a low-cost, highly skilled manufacturing centre.

According to Chinas National Bureau of Statistics, industrial robot sales in China increased by over 194% between 2016 and 2020, from 72,000 units to 212,000. Meanwhile, its service robotics companies earned roughly $8.2 billion in 2020 alone, a year-on-year uptick of 41%.

Local technology incubators and accelerators have helped the industry grow within China, as they are doing in the US, UK, Japan, and elsewhere. Meanwhile, the pandemic has spurred numerous sectors to invest in robotics, automation, AI, and other Industry 4.0 technologies, to keep essential services running safely and efficiently.

Aside from the headline-grabbing humanoids, androids, and robot dogs on display in Beijing photo opportunities which attract less and less attention as public curiosity wanes more mature and useful concepts are beginning to dominate.

For example, Chinese company Siasun Robotics (the Siasun Robot & Automation Co Ltd) demonstrated a robotic factory floor, an integrated manufacturing facility of cobots, robotic arms, and smart devices working collaboratively to produce goods, linked by a software-based industrial control platform. Countries such as the UK, where manufacturing output has been falling and productivity is low, would do well to emulate some of these concepts.

The China Academy of Space Technology showcased a robot arm to assist Chinese astronauts (taikonauts) in satellite deployment and other tasks on Chinas new space station. Robot arms have also been deployed on Chinas moon landers and are already in service in the US and international space programmes, of course.

Space robotics is another key UK focus, particularly in Scotland, where Edinburghs Heriot-Watt University is one of several robotics centres and hosts the UKs Robotarium.

Another popular attraction at the Chinese event was Beijing-based Tinavi Medical Technologies, which demonstrated robotic orthopaedic surgery on a model of a human spine. Robotic surgery is a reality in some US and UK hospitals, particularly at the worlds largest medical facility, the Texas Medical Center (TMC).

But what about the humanoid machines so beloved of the media?

Aside from their obvious appeal as brand ambassadors, as memes, as the public faces of robotics, or as expensive toys, humanoid robots remain impressive engineering and design achievements that lack convincing applications in most industries.

Even as the likes of Tesla and SpaceX supremo Elon Musk promise a new world of domestic robots via the supposed Teslabot, the utility and affordability of such machines (real-world or investor-baiting vapourware) have yet to be demonstrated, particularly as AI remains a long way from general intelligence.

Even if human-like Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) were to be developed, any sci-fi style humanoids that embody it may never fulfil a useful enough function to justify their cost, development, and rapid obsolescence, especially in a gig economy in which public acceptance of the technology would be a critical factor.

However, an alternative view is that true AGI could only emerge alongside robotics, as advanced AI would need to learn about the world by interacting with it physically, as a human child does.

In the present day, Amazon might be able to push a domestic robot as a loss-leader to spur uptake of a range of own-brand services, content, products, and skills as it has done with its smart home devices but the utility of providing these functions in robot form is unclear.

The company has long been rumoured to be developing Vesta, an Alexa-based robot, but this has yet to materialise, despite chatter about it increasing in 2018-19.

As the CEO of a US service robotics company told me in 2019, No one makes money from selling robots. You make money by selling the service that robots provide. In his companys case, that is cleaning the floors of shopping malls.

If the robotics industry itself were a mall, it would be sensible to regard most humanoid machines as the mannequins that keep people window shopping.

An example of the underlying problem is Softbanks Pepper humanoid in Japan, production of which was suspended some months ago. While the robot is familiar to many alongside the smaller NAO models (originally developed by Frances Aldebaran Robotics, which Softbank acquired), its usefulness in real-world applications has rarely been proved.

Peppers friendly physical design is undermined by its limitations in human interaction, relying on apps activated by trigger phrases and a touchscreen interface, both of which rapidly lose peoples interest and engagement. In Japan, robots are a pop-culture phenomenon, yet Pepper still failed to find a big enough market there.

Although it is possible to link Pepper and NAO devices to a natural language service such as IBM Watson in the cloud, that concept has never caught on commercially.

Another example is Boston Dynamics, makers of the Atlas and Spot robots that are familiar to millions from videos and memes, alongside its Stretch and Pick industrial solutions. The company has changed hands several times, perhaps because no one is clear what many of its technologies impressive though they are are actually for.

Aside from some specific applications, such as working alongside astronauts on Mars which NASAs Valkyrie robot is being developed to do or collaborating with humans in other hazardous environments, it is hard to envisage the utility of most humanoid devices. Beyond a slow, evolutionary fusing of man and machine.

An alternative view would be to regard exoskeletons and other technologies that enhance our physical capabilities as a Trojan horse for humanoid robots. At some point, the question arises: why not just get a machine to do x, rather than make humans more like machines to do it? At that point Atlas named after the mythical titan who carried the Earth on his shoulders begins to make more sense.

Robots that can run across challenging terrain, jump, and somersault may grab public attention and alarm apocalyptic thinkers, but most teenage parkour fans, tricking street gymnasts, free climbers, and skaters can perform far more dazzling and impressive feats than that. Where are the jobs for them? As the China event proved this month, robotics needs to stay focused, real, practical, and fulfil real human needs.

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