by Gary Mintchell | May 19, 2025 | Robots
Perhaps the final news coming my way from Automate 2025 and again robotic-oriented, this news concerns release of an off-the-shelf palletizing solution, said to be the first in North America. Doig Corp. Developed Pallet EZ with OnRobot and its D:PLOY platform.
Unlike traditional automation systems that require weeks of integration and specialized expertise, Pallet EZ is ready to install and deploy the same day. It allows manufacturers to be up and running within hours, and adjust to changing production needs in minutes, without programming knowledge or external support.
The solution eliminates traditional integration hurdles. Applications can be deployed and re-deployed in minutes, empowering users to handle new workpieces, adjust pallet layouts, and evolve with changing production demands, all in-house, without coding.
by Gary Mintchell | May 16, 2025 | Robots
More news from Automate. Most of the news has been robotics. This piece reports on Universal Robots introduction of its fastest Cobot, the UR15. Looks like there is still room for improvement in this technology area. They say shipping is to begin in June 2025.
The release states the maximum TCP speed of 5 m/s.
For pick-and-place applications, the UR15 delivers up to 30% cycle time improvements compared to other UR models. All the while retaining the unique UR trademarks of lightweight design and small footprint.
Combined with OptiMove, UR’s new motion control technology, those gains go even further, enhancing trajectory smoothness and ensuring consistently accurate movements – even in high-speed and high-payload applications.
UR15 runs with both PolyScope 5 and PolyScope X, UR’s software platform, and is AI ready. The UR15 can be used with the UR AI Accelerator, UR’s toolkit for developing AI-powered applications. The UR AI Accelerator is developed in collaboration with NVIDIA using NVIDIA Isaac’s CUDA-accelerated libraries and models and running on the NVIDIA Jetson AGX Orin system-on-module.
The UR15 has a payload of 15 kg (33 lbs) which can be increased to 17.5 kg (38.58 lbs) for applications with wrist-down orientation, such as palletizing. UR15 is a versatile cobot designed to empower multiple applications and industries – each with their own unique challenges where flexibility, efficiency and reliability are critical.
by Gary Mintchell | May 14, 2025 | Manufacturing IT, Sensors, Technology
Most of the interesting developments for the past several years have been in software. But not in the MES area that I began my software career working with. The companions to software have been security and artificial intelligence (AI). The AI component assumes many forms. In today’s news, we have AI assisting visual inspection (in a way a quite old application updated with new developments) integrating with MES. The companies involved are Cybord and Siemens.
Cybord, a leading provider of advanced visual-AI electronic component analytics, and Siemens Digital Industries Software have signed a new OEM agreement to integrate Cybord’s cutting-edge AI technology with Siemens’ Opcenter software for Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES). The collaboration expands a previous OEM agreement and enables Siemens to offer Cybord’s powerful AI solutions to Opcenter customers and Siemens’ factories globally.
The integration of Cybord’s visual AI platform with Siemens’ Opcenter empowers manufacturers to enhance quality control of their Surface Mount Technology (SMT) processes. The solution will provide real-time detection of defective components, help build component repositories, and integrate visually verified traceability across the supply chain. Customers will be able to streamline their operations without the need for additional dashboards as the solution is fully integrated into Opcenter MES. This integration also allows customers to take immediate action on product integrity issues, improving their ability to address problems on the fly and helping to ensure consistent product quality.
by Gary Mintchell | May 13, 2025 | Security
Like I noted the other day, LLMs are so past tense. It’s all about Agents for marketing hype now. This release notes the release of “true” AI agents from a company called Abnormal AI. This relates to email security—which sounds like an oxymoron. These marketers do not hold back on bold claims.
Abnormal AI, the leader in AI-native human behavior security, unveiled its most ambitious product release to date—introducing autonomous AI agents that revolutionize how organizations train employees and report on risk and evolving its email security capabilities to continue to stop the world’s most advanced email attacks. In a year defined by the explosive use of malicious AI for cybercrime, Abnormal is doubling down on its mission to protect people. With its AI-native platform, Abnormal’s newest innovations bring intelligent automation to security awareness training, executive reporting, and advanced email threat detection.
In a recent survey, 53% of security leaders agreed that the effort required to run and maintain their organization’s current security awareness training program isn’t worth the impact it appears to be having. To solve this pain point, the launch of AI Phishing Coach allows organizations to replace ineffective, generic training with a personalized, autonomous AI platform. By converting real attacks blocked by Abnormal into tailored simulations for each user, it delivers instant coaching modules when users click—no more canned videos or impersonalized courses. For company-wide training, AI-generated videos are created on-demand, branded and customized to each organization’s threat landscape.
Unlike legacy training platforms that rely on static templates and outdated scenarios, AI Phishing Coach uses real-time behavioral threat data to deliver hyper-relevant training experiences. Because it’s powered by Abnormal’s behavioral AI engine, it learns from each organization’s threat environment and adapts training dynamically—providing proactive education before attacks succeed. It’s like giving every employee their own AI-powered security mentor—without adding any operational burden to security teams.
In addition to AI Phishing Coach, Abnormal is also launching AI Data Analyst to turn complex security data into instantly usable intelligence—providing admins with better reporting tools and saving teams dozens of hours in manual data aggregation. AI Data Analyst acts as an intelligent agent that proactively delivers reports directly to customers, highlighting the value Abnormal is bringing to their organization. Customers can then interact with the agent to ask follow-up questions, explore specific data points, or request customized board decks—complete with interactive slides and plain-language insights—tailored to showcase the impact of Abnormal AI on their security posture.
Earlier this month, Abnormal achieved FedRAMP Moderate Authorization in only 256 days, paving the way for federal agencies to easily adopt the platform. The company is also announcing expanded operations into Germany, with Japan and France to follow later this year. As we expand, the Abnormal Behavior Platform will be tuned for the nuances and language needs of each market.
by Gary Mintchell | May 9, 2025 | Robots
Last of a series of Automate show product announcements. More technology relative to robotics. And another one working to expand the function of Cobots to moving processes.
CoboMover is a robust linear track for cobots and small industrial robots launching at Automate 2025. At the show, Güdel is also showcasing a demo on how air bearings can eliminate the need for cranes or embedded rails, moving 3,800+ lbs on a cushion of air.
Güdel will unveil the Cobomover, a 7th-axis linear track purpose-built for collaborative and lightweight robots. Designed and manufactured in Switzerland, the Cobomover extends the working range of robots up to 5 meters (16.4ft), allowing them to operate multiple workstations and perform a variety of tasks without manual repositioning.
The CoboMover is compatible with over 60 cobots and small traditional robots. It offers mounting positions at 0° and 180°. The maximum payload, including robot weight, is 78 kg (172 lbs). Its drive system utilizes a toothed belt and Güdel’s HPG045 angular gearbox. Available stroke lengths include 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, and 5000 mm. The CoboMover has a maximum speed of 2 m/s and a maximum acceleration of 2 m/s², providing a repeatability of ± 0.05 mm.
by Gary Mintchell | May 9, 2025 | Sensors
Second of a series of Automate announcements. This technology enables better response for autonomous mobile robots. Another company I’ve only just learned about.
‘ADAR’, an award-winning 3D ultrasonic sensor poised to challenge the dominance of LiDAR in robotics perception, will launch at Automate 2025, May 12-15 in Detroit, Michigan. The first orders are already in place and the sensor is on track to achieve safety certification, an industry-first for 3D ultrasonic sensing in air.
Sonair, a Norwegian sensor firm, introduces ADAR, said to be the world’s first safe 3D ultrasonic sensor designed to boost safety in spaces shared by humans and robots to North American audiences May 12 at Automate 2025.
A typical 2D LiDAR safety scanner in an AMR only sees a person’s legs in one horizontal plane. In contrast, Sonair’s patented ADAR (acoustic detection and ranging) technology detects people and objects in 3D. A single ADAR sensor provides a full 180 x 180 field of view (FoV), and a 5 meters range, for the robot’s safety function.
The core technology behind ADAR has been in development at the MiNaLab sensor and nanotechnology research center in Norway for more than twenty years. The imaging method is called beamforming; it’s the backbone of processing for SONAR and RADAR, as well as in medical ultrasound imaging, and now ready for ultrasound in-air applications.
More than 20 global companies, including AMR manufacturers, industrial manufacturing conglomerates, automotive technology suppliers, and vendors within the autonomous health and cleaning industries, have quietly validated the Sonair ADAR sensor’s effectiveness as part of a successful Early Access Program launched in Summer 2024.
Acoustic detection and ranging (ADAR) uses airborne sound waves to interpret spatial information. ADAR is developed according to ISO13849:2023 performance level d/SIL2. The sensor creates a virtual safety shield with a range of 5 meters, that enables people and robots to share space safely. The innovation lies in combining wavelength-matched transducers with efficient signal processing for beamforming and object recognition algorithms.
Sonair ADAR is scheduled to be ready for shipment in July 2025.
