By Frank Tobe, Editor and Publisher, The Robot Report DEMO describes itself as the launchpad for emerging technology and trends. The DEMO Fall 2013 Conference was produced by IDG, the publishing giant of Computerworld, PC World, MacWorld, etc. I went to see the 40 start-ups presenting their new products and apps, searching for anything robotic,…

By Frank Tobe, Editor and Publisher, The Robot Report What happens when you mix big data analytics, a policeman, homeland security, some funding from an insurance company and robotics? You get Knightscope, a Santa Clara, California start-up developing a mobile robot which is a part of a multi-part augmentation strategy created to meet the needs of…

By Frank Tobe, editor/publisher, The Robot Report To be able to choose between proprietary software packages is to be able to choose your master. Freedom means not having a master. Freedom means not using proprietary software.   – Richard Stallman, open systems advocate Certainly robotics has its share of proprietary software and control systems. Each robot…

By Frank Tobe, editor and publisher, The Robot Report UPDATED: October 6, 2013 CBS Evening News focuses on jobs aspect of deploying robots in American factories. Click to see. Small and medium shops and factories (SMEs) are an untapped marketplace for robotics and direly in need of automation to remain competitive in this global economy.…

[This article first appeared on pages 191-198 in “World Robotics Service Robots 2013” published by the IFR (International Federation of Robotics) Statistical Department. Copies of that book and its companion “World Industrial Robotics 2013” both of which can be purchased here. It is reprinted with permission from the publisher.] By Frank Tobe, Editor, The Robot Report…

By Frank Tobe, editor/publisher, The Robot Report Explosives Handling Source: Dreamstime Stock Photos. A Chinese firm specializing in explosives manufacturing has decided to upgrade over 100 installations with parallel handling robots from Adept Technology. In a similar vein, iRobot just won a $30 million contract from the U.S. Army for robotic systems to be used…

Adept Technologies (NASDAQ:ADEP) has been in the financial news for months. First because of poor financial showings; then because of a management shakeup; and recently because the “turnaround plan” has worked well enough that shareholders are bidding the stock up to new highs. In 2010 Adept Technologies acquired MobileRobots and began a process of professionalizing their…

 By Frank Tobe, editor/publisher, The Robot Report In a joint research study by Israel-based RoboLogics Ltd. and the Israeli Manufacturers Association, 72% of respondents considered that their processes were suitable for robotics automation. However, 66% cited complexity and lack of familiarity with the technology as one of the main reasons for NOT having implemented robots…

By Susan McFarlane, robotguide, the guide to personal robots Most Russian robotics companies are clustered in north-western Russia, i.e., in St. Petersburg and Moscow, which corresponds to the main business and financial centers of the federation. The Russian Federation has a traditional and strong history in science and engineering. These days that pool of learning…

“To achieve long-term success, you have to manage for the long term.” Samuel Palmisano, Chairman, President and CEO, IBM Long-term thinking is a process we should but don’t do for various reasons. Very few governments make long-term planning a priority. China is an exception. [The sciences of robotics need long-term planning and funding for their development,…

By Frank Tobe, Editor & Publisher, The Robot Report Global Future 2045, held June 15-16 in New York City, had a big impact on me. The double-message promotion of GF2045 was intriguing and I thought it would be similarly interesting to my readers. PR stories featured the host, a wealthy young Russian, who wanted to…

The following article by Frank Tobe, editor and publisher of The Robot Report, first appeared on Robohub.org in their special focus series: High-risk / High-reward. Often funding sources – the groups taking the risk – are not the beneficiaries of the rewards of the venture. Intuitive Surgical and Rethink Robotics are two examples. NSF, DARPA and…

By Frank Tobe, Editor and Publisher, The Robot Report View from the exhibition floor at CIROS, July 2-5, Shanghai. The China International Robot Show CIROS was held July 2-5 in Shanghai. 30,000 people were expected to attend and 56 companies exhibited. Although most of the exhibitors were Taiwanese, Japanese, Korean, German and other international robot…

By Frank Tobe, Editor/Publisher, The Robot Report Dmitry Itskov, a wealthy Russian Internet entrepreneur, hosted and sponsored last weekend’s Global Future 2045, an event organized to highlight the state of present day science and its relentless exponential march toward 2045, the year of the Singularity, the year when computers are expected to surpass the human…

Headlines preceding the Global Future 2045 Congress proclaimed: WORLD’S MOST HUMAN-LIKE ANDROID TO BE UNVEILED AT GF2045 “The Dmitry Avatar-A head represents the most expressive facial robot in history and far exceeds the life-like characteristics of previous robot portraits of humans in both technology and artistry,” stated David Hanson. “The Dmitry Avatar-A head can establish eye…

By Frank Tobe, Editor/Publisher, The Robot Report University of Sheffield (UK) AI and Robotics Professor Noel Sharkey (red tie) leading a group to protest killer robots. There have been many headlines about “killer robots” and invasion of privacy. They protest that robots will soon choose targets and then bomb or shoot those targets under their…

[In July, 2011, I interviewed and then wrote about an inspiring high school teacher who spearheaded the founding of the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy, was the 2010 recipient of a $500,000 MacArthur Fellow award, and is the lead character in the book The New Cool by Neal Bascomb which tells the story of his high school’s winning entry in the…

By Frank Tobe, Editor and Publisher, The Robot Report Low-cost robots are marching into Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). Much has been said about the need to augment the skills and increase the productivity of small factory workers by using robotic assistants called co-robots. Europe funded an SME (Small and Medium-sized Enterprise) public-private consortium to…

By Frank Tobe, Editor and Publisher, The Robot Report UPDATED: 5-24-13 Jury finds Intuitive NOT GUILTY. Scroll to end to see details. One of robotics’ biggest stars, Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG), and their da Vinci robotic surgical systems, is receiving a lot of unfavorable media attention – including a 4-part “exposé” by MSNBC – because: A…

By Frank Tobe, Editor and Publisher, The Robot Report Parrot’s AR.Drone without styrofoam bumper guard (top) and with (bottom). A growing business within Parrot S.A., (PARRO:EUROLIST B) is their AR.Drone line of products, parts and software. Their first quadcopter product was developed internally by (1) observing the $1 billion market in radio controlled helicopters, (2)…

Games, sensors and robots are among the tools beginning to come to market to help aging people live in their homes as long as possible. By Frank Tobe, Editor and Publisher, The Robot Report Source: BusinessWeek Magazine In December, 2003, BusinessWeek Magazine interviewed Joseph Engelberger, the robotics pioneer. The article was entitled “How Robots Lost Their…

Foxconn-built robot FoxBot. Source: TechWeb.com.cn Foxconn, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Taiwan-based Hon Hai Precision (2317:TW), has begun deploying their own brand of industrial robots to their factory in Jincheng, Shanxi Province, China, according to various reports from China news sources. Shanxi Province is an area where Foxconn is partnering with local governments – spending $16…