The manufacturing industry keeps evolving and advancing in terms of technological developments. In the past, humans were involved in every aspect of manufacturing; the industry thrived on manual labor. Yes—machines provided manufacturers with some sort of [much needed] relief. However, human intervention in pretty much [...]
NATO, Russia, and China have been engaged in a new arms race for quite a while. The top prizes now include hypersonics, railguns, and lasers. After years of study and development, not to mention billions of dollars spent, the three technologies are now finally starting [...]
A briefcase-sized device housing a powerful laser sounds like a sci-fi gadget, but it is precisely what NASA intends to deploy to search for water and ice on the surface of the Moon. The proposed CubeSat, dubbed “Lunar Flashlight”, will play a key role in [...]
Every industry will find a plethora of new applications as machines become smarter. The first two parts of this series explored how machine vision can help with defect detection and quality control. The final part will look at its use in the food industry, which [...]
The first installment of this series examined the role of machine vision in defect detection. Part two will look at its role in quality control. Robots are capable of astonishing feats well beyond the capabilities of us mere mortals. The Fanuc Corporation’s M-2000iA/2300 Super Heavy [...]
Machine vision technologies enable the development of hardware and software that can examine its surroundings and derive conclusions based on what it observes. The concept is not new, but recent advancements enable a wide range of fascinating industrial solutions, from defect detection to vastly better [...]
Robotic systems have made their way into retail, from 6-feet machines catching spills at Giant Foods Stores to automated shelf-scanners monitoring inventory in Walmart. In many Lowe’s stores, a “LoweBot” can answer simple questions, such as where to find certain things, and assist with stock [...]
No industry is immune to technological advances in the 21st century. Every day, it seems that new and improved products are launched to reduce (or eliminate) the possibility of human errors and make the processes within the industry more efficient and reliable. The drain-cleaning industry [...]
Poor air quality is a tell-tale sign of the widespread air pollution that has blanketed our country for several years. With rising concerns about air pollution, federal authorities are now turning to science and technology to develop advanced air quality monitoring systems. [...]
Errors are unavoidable in the food production, packaging, and distribution processes due to the number of intricate steps involved. So it comes as no surprise that manufacturers are now resorting to advanced food inspection systems to perform quality checks on food items—this helps avoid human [...]
