Artificial Intelligence Platform Ludo Revolutionizes Games Creation

Ludo AI, available now in open beta, gives developers access to the world’s first AI platform for games concept creation – accelerating and democratizing games creation



Seattle, USA. AI (Artificial Intelligence) games creativity platform Ludo has announced its open beta, following a deeply successful closed beta and attracted participation from independent studios across the globe. Games creators tasked with delivering the next hit game to emulate the success of the likes of Call of Duty, Among Us, Fortnite and Fall Guys, now have the answer in Ludo – the world’s first AI games ideation tool.

Ludo, Latin for ‘I Play’, uses machine learning and natural language processing to develop game concepts 24 hours a day. The platform is constantly learning and evolving. Ludo is built on a database of close to a million games and is agile and supremely intelligent. When asked to find a new game idea, based on intuitive keyword searches, Ludo returns almost immediately with multiple written game concepts, artwork and images that developers can rapidly work on to take the next stage (concept presentation, MVP or accelerated soft launch).

AI has never before been used at the start of the games creation process: In a 159.3 billion* dollar industry, the pressure to release new hit games is relentless: And coming up with new exciting and sticky games is the Holy Grail. Ludo is set to revolutionize game creation enabling developers by arming them with unique games concepts within minutes of their request being processed. Furthermore, as Ludo’s powerful capabilities are within the reach of any size of studio, the creation process has been democratized.

Games publishers and developers must deliver hit new games at a pace: The industry landscape is changing as it grows in value: Large, acquisitive publishers are constantly on the lookout for growing independents, with great new games and creative ideas, to absorb as they, in turn, need to deliver value to their stakeholders.

“Creativity is the new currency in the games industry,” said Tom Pigott, CEO of JetPlay, Ludo’s creator. “The next hit game could be worth millions and you never know where it will spring up from. With Ludo anyone can come up with a great new game idea without having to waste hours on the process and then invest even more time in researching what is already out there and how successful any similar games have been. Ludo does it all for you: Ludo brings the playfulness back into the game creation process, increases the probability of coming up with a great new game, and saves time and money.”

Since the global pandemic the games industry has seen exponential growth and it is estimated to be worth $200 Billion by 2023. Every developer is under pressure to create a viable pipeline and now with so many ways of testing games quickly ( a large percentage being rejected before they get through the gates) the appetite is at an all time high for new games ideas and concepts.

Ludo has been created by a small outstanding global team of AI Ph.D.’s and the brainchild of seasoned entrepreneur Tom Pigott, CEO of Jet Play, the developer of Ludo. The new open beta follows a highly successful closed program that saw a select group of studios harness the creative power of AI. Now, with an open beta, games developers can try the platform free of charge for a trial period.

„We’ve been extremely pleased by the feedback and the usage of our platform by the game makers that were part of the closed beta,“ said Pigott. „AI, when used as part of the creative process, delivers great results. It is easy to use, working intuitively with keyword searches, and those involved in our closed beta have already proved that amazing things can be done, and all without detracting from their development or marketing time. Very soon Ludo will become an integral part of every studio’s games ideation process.”

The Ludo open beta program offers an opportunity to enjoy all the benefits of early adoption, giving a head start on a mobile game creation approach that works. Due to the tremendous interest there is a waitlist: those interested in joining the Ludo open beta can apply or find out more here.

Boston Dynamics expands Spot® product line

NEW SELF-CHARGING ENTERPRISE ROBOT, REMOTE OPERATION SOFTWARE, AND ROBOT ARM ENHANCE SPOT’S CAPABILITIES FOR AUTONOMOUS SITE MONITORING


Waltham, MA – February 2, 2021 – Boston Dynamics, the global leader in mobile robotics, today announced an expanded product line for its agile mobile robot Spot. The new products include a self-charging Enterprise Spot, web-based remote operations software, Scout, and the Spot Arm. These additions extend Spot’s ability to perform autonomous, remote inspections and data collection, and enable the robot to perform manual tasks.

With more than 400 Spots out in the world, the robot has successfully undertaken hazardous tasks in a variety of inhospitable environments such as nuclear plants, offshore oil fields, construction sites, and mines. Customers have leveraged Spot’s advanced mobility, autonomy, control, and customizability to improve operational efficiency, enhance worker safety, and gather critical data. Spot’s new products are designed to enable customers to fully operationalize continuous, autonomous data collection on remote or hazardous worksites of any size, from anywhere they have access to their network.

Autonomy is critical to enhancing Spot’s value. In order to support long, remote deployments, Boston Dynamics is introducing Spot Enterprise, a new version of Spot that comes equipped with self-charging capabilities and a dock, allowing it to perform longer inspection tasks and data collection missions with little to no human interaction. In addition to the basic capabilities that the base Spot robot offers, Spot Enterprise leverages upgraded hardware for improved safety, communications, and behavior in remote environments. These upgrades expand the range that autonomous missions can cover, extend WiFi support, add flexibility to Spot’s payload ports, and enable users to quickly offload large data sets collected during the robot’s mission.

Pivotal to refining Spot’s value at scale is remote operation. Scout is Boston Dynamics’ web-based software that enables operators to control their fleet of Spots from a virtual control room. Operators can use Scout to take Spot anywhere a person could go on-site, allowing them to inspect critical equipment or hazardous areas from afar. The software is designed with a simple user interface to run pre-programmed autonomous missions or manually control the robot, to perform various tasks such as walking or posing the robot to capture images and thermal data of obscured gauges or pipes using the Spot CAM+IR thermal imaging payload.

Combined, the Spot Enterprise robot equipped with a Spot CAM+IR thermal imaging payload, Scout software, and Boston Dynamics’ premium support now create an out-of-the-box solution for asset-intensive environments. Operators can deploy this solution on site to proactively maintain and manage assets while maximizing worker uptime and improving worker safety.

In addition to launching products designed to make remote inspection safer and easier, Boston Dynamics is also releasing the Spot Arm, which enables users to act on data insights and perform physical work in human-centric environments. The arm is equipped to operate through both semi-autonomous actions and telemanipulation. It can manually or semi-autonomously grasp, lift, carry, place, and drag a wide variety of objects. It is also capable of manipulating objects with constrained movement and can open and close valves, pull levers and turn handles and knobs in coordination with its body to open standard push and pull doors.

“Since first launching Spot, we have worked closely with our customers to identify how the robot could best support their mission critical applications,” said Robert Playter, CEO of Boston Dynamics. “Our customers want reliable data collection in remote, hazardous, and dynamic worksites. We developed the new Spot products with these needs in mind, and with the goal of making it easy to regularly and remotely perform critical inspections, improving safety and operations.”

Interested parties can purchase Spot Enterprise, Scout, and the Spot Arm via Boston Dynamics’ sales team. For more information on these new offerings, please visit: www.bostondynamics.com.



About Boston Dynamics

Boston Dynamics is the global leader in developing and deploying highly mobile robots capable of tackling the toughest robotics challenges. Our core mission is to lead the creation and delivery of robots with advanced mobility, dexterity and intelligence that add value in unstructured or hard-to-traverse spaces and positively impact society. We create high-performance robots equipped with perception, navigation and intelligence by combining the principles of dynamic control and balance with sophisticated mechanical designs, cutting-edge electronics and next-generation software. We have three mobile robots in our portfolio – Spot®, Handle™ and Atlas® – as well as Pick™, a computer vision-based robotics solution for logistics. Founded in 1992, Boston Dynamics spun out of the MIT Leg Lab and is one of Inc. Magazine’s Best Workplaces of 2020. For more information on our company and its technologies, please visit www.bostondynamics.comhttp://www.bostondynamics.com.

Mitmacher*innen gesucht – Maker Faire Hannover goes digital

Die virtuelle Maker Faire bietet Makern, Speakern und YouTubern eine Plattform für ihre Ideen


Hannover, 2. Februar 2021 – Aufgrund der Corona-Situation hat das Maker Faire-Team entschieden, das beliebte Veranstaltungsformat für Innovation und Macherkultur 2021 digital durchzuführen. Am Freitag, 18. Juni 2021 ist ein vielseitiges Online-Event geplant – mit jeder Menge Inspiration, Know-how, Networking und einer Extraportion Entertainment. Mit dem Call for Participation ruft das Veranstaltungsteam engagierte Macher, Künstler und Wissenschaftler auf, die erste digitale Maker Faire Hannover durch eigene Sessions mitzugestalten.

Die Begeisterung für Innovationen, das Tüfteln mit Herzblut, das schnelle Umsetzen von Ideen und die Inspiration anderer: Das alles macht den Kern einer Maker Faire aus. Mit der Digital Edition der Maker Faire Hannover wollen die Veranstalter das Reinschnuppern in die faszinierende Welt des Makings ermöglichen. Dafür hat das Maker Faire-Team drei verschiedene Bausteine konzipiert:

  • In virtuellen Ausstellungsbereichen stellen sich Maker und Unternehmen vor und beantworten Teilnehmern in Live-Chats Fragen zu ihren Projekten und Produkten.
  • In einem Wissenshub diskutieren Experten, warum DIY so beliebt ist, welche Trends sich abzeichnen und wie Innovationen und nachhaltiges Engagement in der Maker-Bewegung möglich sind. Auch das Ideenmanagement im HR-Bereich steht auf der Agenda
  • In einer Entertainmentshow begeistern Maker live mit spektakulären Experimenten, Wissenskunststücken und kreativen Ideen.

„Für alle drei Tracks suchen wir talentierte Unterhaltungskünstler, begeisternde YouTuber, Wissenschaftler oder Hobbymaker, die ihr Projekt, ihre Werkstatt, ihr Experiment live mit Esprit und Witz vorstellen wollen“, erklärt Daniel Rohlfing vom Maker Faire-Team. „Dabei sind wir völlig offen, was die Themen angeht. Es können Fachbeiträge rund um Innovation und Prototyping sein oder aber Vorstellungen von Fab-Lab Cities, wie jüngst in Hamburg. Faszinierende Biohacking- oder Physik-Experimente sind genauso willkommen wie kuriose Lego-Basteleien oder ungewöhnliche Upcycling- oder KI-Ideen. Wichtig ist uns, dass die Sessions Wissen mit ganz viel Spaß transportieren. Und da es sich um die Maker Faire Hannover handelt und wir den regionalen Bezug unterstreichen wollen, freuen wir uns besonders über Teilnehmerinnen und Teilnehmer aus Hannover.“

Hinsichtlich der Inhalte gibt es keine strikten Vorgaben. „Es können digitale Vorträge, Paneldiskussionen, Projektvorstellungen und Posterslams sein“, sagt Rohlfing. „Wir freuen uns auch über Werkstätten-Streams oder Interview-Sessions.“ Alle Beteiligungsideen können unter folgendem Link eingereicht werden. Das Maker Faire-Team prüft die eingehenden Vorschläge und stellt dann ein packendes mehrstündiges Programm zusammen.

Die Teilnahme an der Digital Edition der Maker Faire Hannover ist nach Registrierung kostenfrei möglich.

Nähere Informationen zum Programm und den Teilnahmemöglichkeiten werden in den kommenden Wochen auf maker-faire.de veröffentlicht. Ein kostenloser Newsletter informiert regelmäßig über das aktuelle Geschehen.

Blaize Delivers First Open and Code-free AI Software Platform Spanning the Entire Edge AI Application Lifecycle


El DORADO HILLS, CA — December, 2020 — Blaize today fully unveiled the Blaize AI Studio offering, the industry’s first open and code-free software platform to span the complete edge AI operational workflow from idea to development, deployment and management. AI Studio dramatically reduces edge AI application deployment complexity, time, and cost by breaking the barriers within existing application development and machine learning operations (MLOps) infrastructure that hinder edge AI deployments. Eliminating the complexities of integrating disparate tools and workflows, along with the introduction of multiple ease-of-use and intelligence features, AI Studio reduces from months to days the time required to go from models to deployed production applications.



“While AI applications are migrating to the Edge with growth projected to outpace that of the Data Center, Edge AI deployments today are complicated by a lack of tools for application development and MLOps,” says Dinakar Munagala, Co-founder and CEO, Blaize. “AI Studio was born of the insights to this problem gained in our earliest POC edge AI hardware customer engagements, as we recognized the need and opportunity for a new class of AI software platform to address the complete end-to-end edge AI operational workflow.”



“AI Studio is open and highly optimized for the AI development landscape that exists across heterogeneous ecosystems at the edge,” says Dmitry Zakharchenko, VP Research & Development, Blaize. “With the AI automation benefits of a truly modern user experience interface, AI Studio serves the unique needs in customers’ edge use cases for ease of application development, deployment, and management, as well as broad usability by both developers and domain expert non-developers.”



The combination of AI Studio innovations in user interface, use of collaborative Marketplaces, end-to-end application development, and operational management, collectively bridge the operational chasm hindering AI edge ROI. Deployed with the Blaize AI edge computing hardware offerings that address unserved edge hardware needs, AI Studio makes AI more practical and economical for edge use cases where unmet application development and MLOps needs delay the pace of production deployment.



“In our work for clients, which may include developing models for quality inspection within manufacturing, identifying stress markers to improve drug trials or even predicting high resolution depth for autonomous vehicles, it is vital that businesses can build unique AI applications that prove their ideas quickly,” says Tim Ensor, Director of AI, Cambridge Consultants. “AI Studio offers innovators the means to achieve this confidence in rapid timeframes, which is a really exciting prospect.” Cambridge Consultants, part of Capgemini Group, helps the world’s biggest brands and most ambitious businesses innovate in AI, including those within the Blaize ecosystem.

Code-free assistive UI for more users, more productivity
The AI Studio code-free visual interface is intuitive for a broad range of skill levels beyond just AI data scientists, which is a scarce and costly resource for many organizations. “Hey Blaize” summons a contextually intelligent assistant with an expert knowledge-driven recommendation system to guide users through the workflow. This ease of use enables AI edge app development for wider teams from AI developers to system builders to business domain subject matter experts.

Open standards for user flexibility, broader adoption
With AI Studio, users can deploy models with one click to plug into any workflow across multiple open standards including ONNX, OpenVX, containers, Python, or GStreamer. No other solution offers this degree of open standard deployment support, as most are proprietary solutions that lock in users with limited options. Support for these open standards allows AI Studio to deploy to any hardware that fully supports the standards.



Marketplaces collaboration
Marketplace support allows users to discover models, data and complete applications from anywhere – public or private – and collaborate continuously to build and deploy high-quality AI applications.

AI Studio supports open public models, data marketplaces and repositories, and provides connectivity and infrastructure to host private marketplaces. Users can continually scale proven AI edge models and vertical AI solutions to effectively reuse across enterprises, choosing from hundreds of models with drag and drop ease to speed application development



Easy-to-Use application development workflow:
The AI Studio model development workflow allows users to easily train and optimize models for specific datasets and use cases, and deploy quickly into multiple formats and packages. With the click of a button, AI Studio’s unique Transfer Learning feature quickly retrains imported models for the user’s data and use case. Blaize edge-aware optimization tool, NetDeploy, automatically optimizes the models to the user’s specific accuracy and performance needs. With AI Studio, users can easily build and customize complete application flows other than neural networks, such as image signal processing, tracking or sensor fusion functions.



Ground-breaking edge MLOps/DevOps features
As a complete end-to-end platform, AI Studio helps users deploy, manage, monitor and continuously improve their edge AI applications. Built on a cloud-native infrastructure based on microservices, containers and Kubernetes, AI Studio is highly scalable and reliable in production.



Blaize AI Studio Early Adopter Customers Results
In smart retail, smart city and industry 4.0 markets, Blaize customers are realizing new levels of efficiency in AI application development and deployment using AI Studio. Examples include:

– Complete end-to-end AI development cycle reduction from months to days
– Reduction in training compute by as much as 90%

– Edge-aware efficient optimizations and compression of models with a < 3% accuracy drop

– New revolutionary contextual conversational interfaces that eclipse visual UI



Availability
AI Studio is available now to qualified early adopter customers, with general availability in Q1 2021. The AI Studio product offering includes licenses for individual seats, enterprise, and on-premise subscriptions, with product features and services suited to the needs of each license type.



About Blaize


Blaize leads new-generation computing unleashing the potential of AI to enable leaps in the value technology delivers to improve the way we all work and live. Blaize offers transformative computing solutions for AI data collection and processing at the edge of network, with focus on smart vision applications including automobility, retail, security, industrial and metro. Blaize has secured US$87M in equity funding to date from strategic and venture investors DENSO, Daimler, SPARX Group, Magna, Samsung Catalyst Fund, Temasek, GGV Capital, Wavemaker and SGInnovate. With headquarters in El Dorado Hills (CA), Blaize has teams in Campbell (CA), Cary (NC), and subsidiaries in Hyderabad (India), Manila (Philippines), and Leeds and Kings Langley (UK), with 300+ employees worldwide.

GrubTech and Wobot.ai join forces in the automation and digitization of restaurant & cloud kitchen operations

9th November 2020, Dubai, United Arab Emirates: GrubTech, the UAE-based tech start-up that is taking the foodservice industry by storm with the introduction of the world’s most technologically advanced digital commerce tool for restaurant and cloud kitchen owners, and India-based AI-powered video analytics powerhouse Wobot.ai are proud to announce a global strategic collaboration. The partnership brings together GrubTech’s native technology expertise in the foodservice landscape and Wobot’s state-of-the-art platform to curate an optimum experience for restaurateurs and cloud kitchen operators globally.

In this age of the technological revolution, rapidly evolving technology is expected to provide much-needed tailwinds to the foodservice business, as tech enablement is no longer a luxury, but a necessity to survive and succeed. The alliance between GrubTech and Wobot.ai establishes a comprehensive solution for restaurants and cloud kitchens, encompassing the digitization of everything from order capture and operations to compliance management and marketing.

GrubTech’s integration with food aggregators, points of sale and third party logistics providers, eliminates the need for the manual, error-prone and often cumbersome entry of orders into siloed solutions. Rather, it digitizes the order lifecycle, providing comprehensive visibility over sales and operations and resulting in reduced costs, increased efficiencies and shortened food preparation and delivery times, i.e. from click to doorbell in far less time.

„GrubTech provides restaurants, cloud kitchens and virtual brands with the first end-to-end management system, automating manual processes in order to drive operational efficiencies and improve the customer experience. Wobot’s AI-powered insights & business intelligence tools create a perfect synergy with our platform, setting us on course to completely revolutionise the global foodservice industry. We look forward to helping to drive future fit and profitable operations for our customers, as they strive to win in this ever-changing landscape” said Mohamed Al Fayed, Co-Founder and CEO of GrubTech.

Wobot.ai today powers 10,000+ units globally, helping them reduce their risk of non-compliance, cost of monitoring, and increases their customer NPS with its computer vision technology.

Mr Adit Chhabra, CEO of Wobot added „Our vision with the Wobot-GrubTech alliance is to create a seamless workplace optimized to deliver operational excellence in the hospitality industry with our combined technology platforms. Our service offerings tailored specifically for restaurants and cloud kitchens, offers the unmatched capability to deliver massive value for these businesses. Wobot’s platform monitors health, safety & operational checklists & helps you ascertain if you meet global foodservice industry standards“.

GrubTech’s solution is highly scalable and easily deployable remotely, and the company is in advanced discussions to deploy across a number of large enterprises and SME’s across the MENA region and beyond into SE Asia, and Europe. The agreement with Wobot.ai will significantly enhance the offering, as with heightened food safety requirements and increased restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, countries are frequently updating their compliance legislation creating an urgent need for an effective and multi-purpose operations platform.

Igus Robolink Programming Session #1

My workplace for today was kind of different. Thanks @igusgmbh (https://www.igus.de/robolink/roboter) for making this possible. I am learning a lot about robot programming today. I wish I could have such a powerful robot next to my desk any given day.

Robo Wunderkind Explorer Lite Freestyle Build Session

Robo Wunderkind Explorer Lite Freestyle Build Session Timelapse Video. I built my first own creation and used the Robo Blockly app to program it.

Robo Wunderkind: Programmieren lernen, spielerisch wie nie zuvor

Wien, September 2020 – Ab heute lassen sich die neuen Roboter-Kits für zu Hause und für die Schule von Robo Wunderkind vorbestellen. Die Roboter-Sets des innovativen EdTech-Unternehmens aus Wien fördern spielend die kognitiven Fähigkeiten und die Problemlösungskompetenz von Kindern ab 5 Jahren. Dadurch erwerben Kinder bereits in jungen Jahren wertvolle Skills, die den Grundstein für den späteren Ausbau ihrer MINT-Fähigkeiten legen und ihre Erfolgschancen im weiteren Leben erhöhen.

Spielend den Entdeckergeist wecken

Die Roboter-Sets bestehen aus mehreren dreidimensionalen Modulen, die Kinder zu verschiedensten Strukturen, wie Leuchttürmen, Figuren oder Autos zusammensetzen können. Dabei sind der Kreativität der Kinder keine Grenzen gesetzt, da die Roboter-Kits auch mit LEGO Technic-Teilen kompatibel und damit beliebig erweiterbar sind. In Kombination mit den Apps von Robo Wunderkind fördern die Roboter-Sets das räumliche Denken, die Problemlösungskompetenz und die kognitiven Fähigkeiten von Kindern. Diese Skills sind entscheidend für die spätere Weiterentwicklung von MINT-Fähigkeiten. Mit den Roboter-Kits und Apps von Robo Wunderkind können Eltern und Lehrer somit spielend die Grundlagen für den späteren Erfolgs ihrer Kinder und Schüler legen.

Für die neuen Roboter-Kits Explorer Lite, Explorer Prime und Explorer Pro hat Robo Wunderkind die Vorgängerversionen umfassend analysiert und anhand von Kundenfeedback zahlreiche Verbesserungen vorgenommen. So sind die einzelnen Module der Roboter-Sets aus robusteren Materialien gefertigt und die Seiten wurden abgeflacht, damit Kinder mit ihren Teilen von Lego Technic noch leichter kreative Konstruktionen und Ideen entwickeln können. Die zusätzlichen Module bieten eine verbesserte Haptik und noch mehr Platz, um die verschiedenen Sensoren anzuschließen. Mit der dritten Generation der Roboter-Kits präsentiert Robo Wunderkind die Robo Blocky App, um weitere Möglichkeiten zur Weiterentwicklung von Programmierfähigkeiten zu schaffen. Die App ermöglicht es Kindern, sich mit nur einem Roboter-Kit von der einfachen Fernsteuerung bis hin zur komplexen, block-basierten Programmierung vorzuarbeiten. Damit finden Kinder jeden Alters Aktivitäten und Aufgaben, die ihren Interessen, Vorlieben und Kompetenzen entsprechen.

Kinder – die Programmierer und Entwickler der Zukunft

Das Besondere am Ansatz von Robo Wunderkind: Das Unternehmen verknüpft die physischen Spielzeug-Module mit Apps, über die sich die Roboter programmieren lassen. Insgesamt stehen drei Applikationen für Smartphones und Tablets zur Verfügung: Robo Live, Robo Code und Robo Blockly. Darüber können Kinder die von ihnen gebauten Roboter so programmieren, dass sie beispielsweise beim Umherfahren bei einem bestimmten Abstand zu einem Objekt stehen bleiben. Alternativ können Kinder die Lichtaufsätze so steuern, dass sie je nach Abstand zu einem Gegenstand in verschiedenen Farben leuchten.

Über die App lernen Kinder also spielend erste Programmierfähigkeiten. Das fördert nicht nur Technik-Skills, sondern weckt ihre Begeisterung für entsprechende Aufgaben. Die Roboter Kits von Robo Wunderkind setzen bei der Entwicklung von Kindern also auf zwei Komponenten. Der physische Aspekt, das Zusammenbauen der Module, fördert die kognitiven Fähigkeiten, während Kinder durch die Kombination mit der Software-Komponente zudem wertvolle technische Skills und Problemlösungskompetenzen erwerben. Mit diesem Ansatz erlernen Kinder mit Spaß Fähigkeiten, die für ihren Erfolg im weiteren Leben entscheidend sind. Mit den Roboter-Kits von Robo Wunderkind wächst die nächste Generation an Programmierern und Entwicklern heran.

Über Robo Wunderkind

Robo Wunderkind ist ein EdTech-Unternehmen mit Hauptsitz in Wien/Österreich und hat bereits Anwender in über 60 Ländern. Das innovative Start-Up-Unternehmen hat es sich zum Ziel gesetzt Kinder zu inspirieren, damit sie durch Technologie kreativ sein können. Schon ab 5 Jahren können Kinder mit den Roboter-Kits von Robo Wunderkind ihre eigenen Roboter und Gadgets bauen und programmieren.

Das österreichische Unternehmen erarbeitet mit Experten und Lehrern Unterrichtspläne, die es erleichtern die Roboter in den Vorschul- und Schulunterricht zu integrieren und so die MINT-Fähigkeiten von Kindern zu entwickeln und auszubauen. Robo Wunderkind ist bereits in mehr als 500 Schulen im Einsatz und kooperiert mit ausgewählten europäischen Non-Profit-Organisationen wie SSPCA, Get Your Wings, Digitale Wolven. Das Unternehmen startete außerdem die Initiative Robo Makers Marathon für das den Unterricht zu Hause. Hunderte von Kindern und Eltern auf der ganzen Welt nahmen an Webinaren und Online-Aktivitäten teil und lernten so, bequem von zu Hause aus zu programmieren.

Weitere Informationen erhalten Sie unter: www.robowunderkind.com/de

igus robot control: free simulation and cost-effective control of robots

Fast entry into Low Cost Automation using a digital twin in intuitive robot control

To programme robots with ease, igus has now developed control software for its Low Cost Automation solutions. igus robot control is available online free of charge and offers the user an easy introduction to automation. Different robot kinematics can be programmed and controlled. A digital twin simulates the movements. In this way, the user can programme a suitable solution before purchase. The robot hardware, for example, a linear robot with switch cabinet, is offered by igus from as little as 5,000 euros.

Picking up goods from a box, helping to take samples and dispensing cans from a machine – all done by robots! Whether articulated arm robots, delta robots or linear robots: igus has all three kinematics as Low Cost Automation solutions in its portfolio. To enable users to try out in advance which robot is best suited for their application, igus now offers igus robot control, a software for the simulation and programming of all igus robots. „As a mechanical engineering company, we are very familiar with the different kinematics, so the next logical step for us was to develop a correspondingly simple and intuitive robot control system“, says Alexander Mühlens, Head of automation technology at igus GmbH. The special feature: the software is available online free of charge and license-free. In the software there is a digital twin for all igus robots, which can be simulated and taught like the real robot. The robot control system is also used later to programme the robot intuitively. Every programming can be applied to the real robot afterwards. The complete hardware package, for example, a drylin linear robot with integrated control system in the switch cabinet, is available from 5,000 euros.

With free igus robot control, the user can simulate, programme and control the dream robot from igus (source: igus GmbH)

Easy programming of robots

With igus robot control, the user can freely move all axes of the digital twin via a 3D interface. By means of a teach-in function the robot can be programmed very easily, even without a robot connection. To do this, the user must manually move the robot to the desired position and define how it is to be moved. The process is repeated until the desired motion profile is created. Matching end effectors, such as grippers, are easy to add and the tool centre point adjusts automatically. Virtual boxes can also be installed, for example, to prevent the robot from colliding with a machine. The igus robot control can also be connected to a higher-level control system, either via interface communication with Digital IO or via Ethernet communication using IP address. The igus developers want to expand the control system even further: „In the future, we want to offer cloud services such as vision integration, remote commissioning and also online training for a small cost, which the customer can book. Further services such as image evaluation via webcam or bin picking solutions are planned as cloud-based solutions“, says Mühlens.