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Via Zero Beta

This merger was equivalent to the marriage of a somewhat hot thirty-something bachelorette (who is unsecure nervous that all her friends were getting married and she would never be a bride) marrying the 60 year old rich guy (who never got to have that hot girl earlier in life but now that he has money, he can make up for it) – it was a GREAT marriage. Both people got what they wanted.

Domo arigato, Mr Roboto | Economist.com

At the 2007 International Robot Exhibition in Tokyo, which began late last month, Kokoro, a Japanese manufacturer, showed off a robot for training dentists, which it developed with Nippon Dental University. As student dentists drill into its teeth, replete with sensors, the robot yelps “ouch!” when the work is not up to par. But the robot would really squeal if the dentist accidentally leaned in so much that he or she accidentally pressed upon the robot’s breasts.

This Russian Mi-24 HIND helicopter can fly without rotating its main rotor. It can achieve this by pitching the rotor’s propellers against the direction of movement, thus effectively working like an airplane’s wings. Also the pilot can vector downwards the turbine’s engines, giving it partial lift. Quite an amazing feat of engineering! Enjoy these two videos!

The Robot Hall of Fame : Home

The Robot Hall of Fame recognizes excellence in robotics technology worldwide and honors the fictional and real robots that have inspired and made breakthrough accomplishments in robotics. The Robot Hall of Fame was created by Carnegie Mellon University in April 2003 to call attention to the increasing contributions from robots to human society.

Each year, Carnegie Mellon University assembles a jury of scholars, researchers, writers, designers, and entrepreneurs to select real and fictional robots for recognition and induction into the Robot Hall of Fame. The robot inductees are honored at an annual induction ceremony conducted by Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Computer Science in association with the Robotics Institute and the Entertainment Technology Center.

Via TP Wire Service:

Soldiers and spies of the future could be given “Spider-Man” suits to climb up sheer surfaces and even stick to the ceiling, according to BAE Systems.

The British engineering firm has developed a material that closely mimics the feet of a gecko lizard. The gecko’s foot is covered with hairs so small that they merge with molecules of things that they touch. This incredibly strong bond can also be easily peeled off.

Via Robots.net:

According to a recent NSF
news release, a robot named Madeleine
has been used to test theories of locomotion in existing and extinct
animals. Madeleine swims underwater using four flippers like many
extinct animals or with two flippers like modern animals. The scientsts
learned that having four flippers doesn’t improve the top speed but does
increase energy use. This may explain why natural selection favored two
flipper animals over four flipper animals like the plesiosaurs.

Via
Robots.net:

Dartmouth College researchers used MEMSCAP’s MEMS-based (MicroElectroMechanical System) MUMPS (Multi-User MEMS Processes Service) prototyping service to build a fleet of tiny robots. With two actuators and a whopping 2 bits of memory, they can crawl at the fantastic speed of 100 microns per second on the specially designed grid plate, and are capable of pushing a speck of dust.

Brain-Computer Interface

Who says we aren’t in the future yet?

“Cerebral electric activity is recorded via the electroencephalogram (EEG): electrodes, attached to the scalp, measure the electric signals of the brain. These signals are amplified and transmitted to the computer, which transforms them into device control commands. The crucial requirement for the successful functioning of the BCI is that the electric activity on the scalp surface already reflects motor intentions, i.e., the neural correlate of preparation for hand or foot movements. The BCI detects the motor-related EEG changes and uses this information, for example, to perform a choice between two alternatives: the detection of the preparation to move the left hand leads to the choice of the first, whereas the right hand intention would lead to the second alternative. By this means it is possible to operate devices which are connected to the computer; such a communication can even be realised via the internet.”

Almost Human?:

Mark Tilden on Bugs and Bots:

Robotic Car Parking Garage:

Konarka, which specializes in plastics that convert light into electricity, has raised $20 million in its latest round of venture funding, bringing the total of venture investments in the company to $60 million since 2001.

The company is one of the more noteworthy start-ups trying to bring alternative energy into the mainstream. Konarka’s photovoltaic material can convert a broader spectrum of light, including invisible light, into electricity than traditional silicon solar cells. The material can also be embedded in plastic and is invisible. Thus, solar harvesting materials can be embedded unobtrusively into windows and roof tiles. Other start-ups such as HelioVolt and NanoSolar (a Stanford start-up with investments from Sergey Brin and Larry Page) are also touting materials that perform the same functions.

British venture firm 3i was the lead investor in the latest round of fundraising. Previous investors include Draper, Fisher, Jurvetson and New Enterprise Associates.

Celebrating 50 Years: The Eisenhower Interstate Highway System:

FDA Approves Inhalable Insulin:

I am trained as an electronic manufacturing engineer (a specialised area of Mechanical Engineering). I have two Masters degrees in this area. Nothing fascinates me as much as opening up the innards of a high-tech product and marvelling at the precise organization of the individual parts. Together with my last few years of finance, I now wonder about the cost aspects and profit margin too.

Extremetech talks about the ‘Bill of Materials’ of a an Apple iMac. As a major Apple fan (I own a iPod Nano and iMac G5 and the Apple stock!), this was interesting to me. I plan to buy a MacBook Pro sometime this year.

Apple Computer’s hardware costs to create the new $1,299 dual-core Intel iMacs total about $898, according to analyst firm iSuppli.

The firm opened up one of the new iMacs, which were officially announced at Apple’s recent Macworld show, inventoried the contents, and came up with an estimated cost for the parts. The teardown did not include the mouse, keyboard, or other documentation included with the iMac, and not attempt to estimate Apple’s cost of developing its operating system and related software.

What iSuppli discovered, however, is that Apple selected components typically found within an Intel-based notebook PC, to minimize power consumption and the noise generated by fans to cool them.

“Users want quiet and powerful machines,” said Matthew Wilkins, senior analyst for compute platforms research for iSuppli, in a statement. “Intel is very focused on designing microprocessors that deliver the maximum performance without generating excessive heat or consuming huge amounts of power. For now, the Intel Core Duo fits that bill perfectly.”

Not surprisingly, Intel’s chips form the heart of the iMac, and the bulk of its cost. Inside the iMac, iSuppli found an Intel Core Duo T2400, which the firm estimated cost about $265 apiece. That, combined with the Intel 82945GM north bridge and related NH82801GBMSL8YB south bridge, added another $45 to the total.

On its web site, Intel advertises the Core Dup T2400 for $294, although those prices reflect a purchase of 1,000 processors at a time. The Apple volume discount ascribed to the iMac teardown would be an additional 11 percent.

The firm estimated that the included ATI Radeon X1600 graphics card cost approximately another $30, while the included 512 Mbytes of Samsung memory added another $20. iSuppli did not publicly break out the costs for the LG.Philips 17-inch LCD or the Maxtor DiamondMax 10 160-Gbyte SATA hard drive, leaving such details for its paying clients.

In addition, the iMac carries another $25 in test costs, the firm said.

A good summary of Computer Integrated Manufacturing.

Computer Integrated Manufacturing, known as CIM, is the phrase used to describe the complete automation of a manufacturing plant, with all processes functioning under computer control and digital information tying them together. It was promoted by machine tool manufacturers in the 1980’s and the Society for Manufacturing Engineers (CASA/SME). Quite often it was mistaken for the concept of a “lights out” factory. It includes CAD/CAM, computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing, CAPP, computer-aided process planning, CNC, computer numerical control machine tools, DNC, direct numerical control machine tools, FMS, flexible machining systems, ASRS, automated storage and retrieval systems, AGV, automated guided vehicles, use of robotics and automated conveyance, computerized scheduling and production control, and a business system integrated by a common data base.

The heart of computer integrated manufacturing is CAD/CAM. Computer-aided design(CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing(CAM) systems are essential to reducing cycle times in the organization. CAD/CAM is a high technology integrating tool between design and manufacturing. CAD techniques make use of group technology to create similar geometries for quick retrieval. Electronic files replace drawing rooms. CAD/CAM integrated systems provide design/drafting, planning and scheduling, and fabrication capabilities. CAD provides the electronic part images, and CAM provides the facility for toolpath cutters to take on the raw piece.

The computer graphics that CAD provides allows designers to create electronic images which can be portrayed in two dimensions, or as a three dimensional solid component or assembly which can be rotated as it is viewed. Advanced software programs can analyze and test designs before a prototype is made. Finite element analysis programs allow engineers to predict stress points on a part, and the effects of loading.

Once a part has been designed, the graphics can be used to program the tool path to machine the part. When integrated with an NC postprocessor, the NC program that can be used in a CNC machine is produced. The design graphics can also be used to design tools and fixtures, and for inspections by coordinate measuring machines. The more downstream use that is made of CAD, the more time that is saved in the overall process.

Generative process planning is an advanced generation of CAD/CAM. This uses a more powerful software program to develop a process plan based on the part geometry, the number of parts to be made, and information about facilities in the plant. It can select the best tool and fixture, and it can calculate cost and time.

Flexible machining systems (FMS) are extensions of group technology and cellular manufacturing concepts. Using integrated CAD/CAM, parts can be designed and programmed in half the time it would normally take to do the engineering. The part programs can be downloaded to a CNC machining center under the control of an FMS host computer. The FMS host can schedule the CNC and the parts needed to perform the work.

Computer integrated manufacturing can include different combinations of the tools listed above.

The Issues

One of the key issues regarding CIM is equipment incompatibility and difficulty of integration of protocols. Integrating different brand equipment controllers with robots, conveyors and supervisory controllers is a time-consuming task with a lot of pitfalls. Quite often, the large investment and time required for software, hardware, communications, and integration cannot be financially justified easily.

Another key issue is data integrity. Machines react clumsily to bad data, and the costs of data upkeep as well as general information systems departmental costs is higher than in a non-CIM facility.

Another issue is the attempt to program extensive logic to produce schedules and optimize part sequence. There is no substitute for the human mind in reacting to a dynamic day-to-day manufacturing schedule and changing priorities.

Just like anything else, computer integrated manufacturing is no panacea, nor should it be embraced as a religion. It is an operational tool that, if implemented properly, will provide a new dimension to competing: quickly introducing new customerized high quality products and delivering them with unprecedented lead times, swift decisions, and manufacturing products with high velocity.