Autonomous vehicles will change all mobility sectors. The reasons for removing the driver, helmsman or pilot are diverse, and range from increased safety to greater efficiency and less environmental impact. Self-driving cars, unmanned aircraft or driverless tractors – autonomous vehicles stopped being merely an idea on paper a long time ago. Now they are becoming…
Try to see into the future and you’ll receive a vision that is fraught with uncertainty. “It’s not possible to say exactly what will happen in the future, of course – either in general terms or focusing on specific aspects,” says Matthias Horx. “But you can shine a light on it.” Horx is considered to…
When a stereo camera captures an object, there is a spatial disparity between corresponding points in the left and right image. The disparity is inversely proportional to the range of the point been viewed. This enables depth information of a scene to be calculated from a stereo image. The result of the calculation is a…
Time-of-Flight (ToF) sensors emit a light pulse which is reflected back from the viewed object and received by a detector. For each pixel, the sensor measures the time the light pulse took to get to the object and back again, and calculates the distance from it. A ToF camera thus indicates the range of the…
At the core of a Digital Light Processing (DLP) system is a chip carrying more than eight million micro-mirrors. Individually controlled, the micro-mirrors are tilted either towards a light source (ON) or away from it (OFF). This generates a bright or dark pixel on the viewed object. A a result, a light pattern can be…
Will robots kill jobs, or create new ones? The issue is a controversial one among experts. We investigate the differing views. The introduction of robots will turn much of our world of work upside-down,” claims Dr Martin Sonnenschein, Partner and European Head of Management Consultancy A.T. Kearney. “In 20 years’ time, almost half the current…
With new technologies and ever expanding capabilities, robots will have gained a foothold in every area of life in just a few years. That not only offers companies creative opportunities for new business models, as the participants in the TQ Round Table believe, but will also deliver more creative freedom for working people. In 10…
In Zenbo, the Asus corporation has launched a robot for the whole family onto the market. It plays with the children, gives reminders of appointments, takes care of the elderly, and watches over the home when the family is out. The way the little guy looks at you with his big eyes, you just has…
Cruise company Costa Crociere has taken five robots on-board to entertain its passengers. They not only provide the guests with up-to-date information, but are also able to detect how they are currently feeling. On the Costa Diadema, the flagship of the Costa Crociere line, guests are now welcomed on-board and provided with assistance by five…
Robots are one of the potential solutions to the issues of an ageing society. They can assist nursing staff, and enable disabled people to live a more independent life. US veteran Romy Carmago had the opportunity to try out Toyota’s HSR assistance robot in his day-to-day routine. There is still a lot of development work…
NASA is developing a humanoid robot which will be deployed ahead of any manned missions to Mars in the future. However, a little more research work is needed before “Valkyrie” will be able to operate autonomously on another planet. A mission to Mars is one of NASA’s loftiest goals, yet robots are set to do…
A new sensitive and teachable robot available to everyone is intended to democratise robotics. The system can be set up and programmed in just a few minutes. A cheap, sensitive robot that can be deployed as a universally accessible multifunction tool – that is the vision of start-up company Franka Emika. With this goal in…
Amsterdam is home to the world’s first self-driving city bus to operate in real traffic. But there is still a driver on-board. Somewhere between Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport and the town of Haarlem, on the longest express bus route in Europe: a bus stands at a traffic light, waiting for the signal to move off. At…
Artificial intelligence enables robots to perform tasks autonomously and find their way around unfamiliar environments. Ever more powerful algorithms and ultrahigh-performance microprocessors are allowing machines to learn faster and faster. The term artificial intelligence (AI) has been in existence for over 60 years. During that time, research has been conducted into systems and methodologies capable…
Even autonomous robots have to be integrated into a wider control system – whether in production or in the service sector. That demands fast, reliable communications standards, and the resources of the cloud. The latest keyword being used in this context is “fog computing”, which brings resources closer to the robot. For robots to move…
At Harvard University, researchers from a wide range of fields are working on a minuscule flying robot. The size of a bee, it is intended to explore inaccessible areas in a swarm or act as an artificial pollinator in the future. More and more robots are being released onto the market whose form and function…
The security robot SAM3 was designed to be a security guard’s best friend. Using its sensor systems, it can detect intruders, defects in electrical equipment or dangerous gases. It knows no weakness in operation and can provide effective, 24/7 support to its human colleagues. The small, box-shaped robot completes lap after lap of the car…
Chinese firm Ehang is developing a drone designed to fly one person to their desired destination entirely autonomously. The first test flights have demonstrated that the future of passenger transport is already close at hand. Simply board, enter your destination and take off – this is Chinese drone manufacturer Ehang’s vision for the future of…
Robots are going to be interacting ever more closely with humans in future. For that to happen, it is essential that robots are able to perceive people, react to their actions, and do not endanger them in any way. One of the key trends in robotics is direct collaboration between humans and machines. Whereas just…
Ford has integrated collaborative robots into the Fiesta assembly line at its Cologne plant. They are working hand-in-hand with the human personnel, and assisting them by carrying out the difficult overhead installation of shock absorbers. Collaborative lightweight robots from Kuka have been operating for some time at the Ford plant in Cologne. The LBR Iiwa…
Sight is a key factor in enabling robots to assist humans in their everyday lives. Equipped with various sensor systems, they not only detect objects, but also precisely measure their alignment and position. The technology is by now so advanced that robots are even able to view an object down to its molecular level –…
Wireless network standard for connecting devices in the near range between 1 and 100 metres, in the 2.4 GHz, 868 and 915 MHz frequency bands.
Wireless LocalArea Network
Designation for a consortium of companies issuing certification of devices with wireless interfaces as well as for the associated brand name. The consortium comprises over 300 companies and certified products from various manufacturers based on the IEEE-802.11 standard. This ensures interoperability with a range of different wireless devices.
Miniature electronic systems embedded into everyday objects which can be worn on – or even in – the body.
Creation of a virtual (as opposed to a real) version distinct from the actual operating resources, such as of a hardware platform, an operating system, a storage medium, or network resources.
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
Capacitors characterised by an extremely high capacitance of up to several thousand farads. Supercapacitors have capacitances between those of conventional capacitors and rechargeable batteries and can be used as energy stores.
Touch-sensitive user interface with which software, for example, can be controlled by touch.
Technique for calculating or measuring distance
A wide variety of circuitry components.
The continuous transfer of compressed data in the form of a data stream over the Internet.
An intelligent meter
An intelligent power grid
In the Smart Factory, people, machines and resources communicate freely.
Lock code to restrict the use of SIM cards
Subscriber Identity Module
Central network computer via which functional and infrastructural network services are provided.
Radio detection and ranging
IT environment operated by an IT service provider. Users access resources over the Internet and share a virtualised infrastructure.
Profinet is a universal concept devised by the German Profibus user organisation PNO for the homogeneous integration of Profibus into the IT environment.
A standardised Cloud environment controlled and operated by a company itself. It is available exclusively to the company’s employees and partners.
Mostly public data which is freely available and usable.
Method for determining the position of a mobile robot in motion. The positioning is based on measurement of the movements of the individual robot wheels.
Near Field Communication
Computer programs inspired by the functionality of organic neurons and capable of learning tasks.
Machine-to-Machine
Successor to LTE. The mobile communications technology enables transfer rates of up to 1 gigabit per second.
Long Term Evolution
Wireless network for machine-to-machine communication
The light field camera’s image sensor detects not only the brightness and colour values but also the many different incidence angles of the light beams. The focal plane can be adjusted to specific objects so as to place some image planes in sharp focus while others are out of focus.
Internet Protocol version 6 enables unique identification of a corresponding number of devices
An address within a computer network
Internet of Things
also known as Smart Manufacturing
Combination of private and public Cloud and traditional IT environment.
Hypertext Markup Language
Someone who gains unauthorised access to IT systems by bypassing their security
A gyrosensor or gyrometer registers and measures rotary motion.
Global System for Mobile Communications
Link between two networks or subnetworks
A system is considered to be functionally safe when its electrical, electronic and programmable components always react in such a way that no intolerable harm is created in the environment of the machine or device concerned.
Field Programmable Gate Array
The result of a standardisation initiative by the Japan Electrical Manufacturers Association (JEMA) led by Mitsubishi. FL-Net is an Ethernet-based standard for communications between intelligent controllers.
Umbrella term for various physical bus systems used in industrial automation, production engineering, building automation and automotive engineering.
Ethernet Industrial Protocol (EtherNet/IP) is an open industry standard for industrial real-time Ethernet, based on TCP/IP and UDP/IP.
A field bus developed by the Beckhoff corporation characterised by extremely short and predictable delay and cycle times (real-time Ethernet).
Hardware and software components integrated into a unified system to implement system-specific functional features.
Umbrella term for measures to improve healthcare based on the use of information and communications technology.
Laws and technical measures aimed at preventing the unauthorised storage, processing and distribution of sensitive data.
Protection of the sensitive interests and privacy of natural persons and legal entities against misuse by electronic media.
A short form of the phrase “cybernetic organism”.
Solutions to counter the risks posed by connecting to and over the Internet.
Software-intensive embedded systems which are linked to each other but also to data and services on the Internet.
Provision of IT resources over the Internet on demand, billed according to actual usage.
Charge-coupled Device
In a bus system, numerous end devices share a single data line (bus line). Since only one end device may use the data line at any given time, bus systems always require a protocol to regulate access rights.
Umbrella term for Internet access via networks operating at high data transfer rates, implemented as DSL, cable TV or wireless technology (UMTS, WLAN, LTE, satellite etc.).
Highly energy-efficient variant of Bluetooth, standardised primarily for the transfer of sensor values and control data.
Internationally standardised wireless data interface. It enables different mobile devices, such as mobile phones or laptop computers, to connect wirelessly. A wireless connection is made between the various devices’ transmitter and receiver units. A range of around 10 metres can be covered – enough to connect vehicles’ on-board devices, or a smartphone with accessories.
Term combining the words “biology and “electronics”. According to VDI standard 6220 defined as follows: Bionics is a discipline combining biology and electronic technology to deliver technical solutions based on abstraction, transfer and application of findings from biological models.
The back-end is the component of a client/server architecture or computer system kept away from the ultimate user. In a client/server architecture, the back-end is the server serving the clients. Back-ends may be mainframe or workstation computers, for example, to which peripherals are connected.
The back-end is the component of a client/server architecture or computer system kept away from the ultimate user. In a client/server architecture, the back-end is the server serving the clients. Back-ends may be mainframe or workstation computers, for example, to which peripherals are connected.
Ensures that the communication partner at the other end is authentic.
A combination of the perceived real world and virtual reality generated by computer. Users are provided with information to complement and enhance what they experience in the real world.
A generally interpretable unique description of a sequence of actions to resolve a – usually mathematical – problem.
A component which converts electronic signals into mechanical motion or other physical quantities, such as pressure or temperature.
Production process by which a component is printed layer by layer. Depending on the method, the individual layers may be of powderous polymer, metallic powder or ink, and are hardened, sintered or fused together after each layer has been printed.
Non-contact laser measuring systems which scan their surroundings two-dimensionally. A pulsating laser beam scans the surroundings in one plane by way of a rotating mirror. When the individual beams encounter objects, they are reflected. By evaluating all the reflected beams, a map is created of the surroundings in the scan plane
By publishing his three Laws of Robotics in 1942, Isaac Asimov defined rules for humans and robots to coexist which are more relevant today than ever before. The author and scientist, who died in 1992, didn’t just inspire the science-fiction community with his stories, but robotics developers as well. Speedy no longer knows what to…