Universal Robotics Lauches 3D Software Compatible With Webcams

Universal Robotics, Inc., a software engineering company, announced the launch of two simple-to-use 3D vision software products: Spatial Vision and Spatial Vision Robotics. The products can turn any pair of webcams into a highly accurate, cost-efficient 3D vision system that can be employed in virtually any setting without expensive equipment.

With Spatial Vision and Spatial Vision Robotics, a user can plug in the cameras, calibrate their space and receive highly accurate measurements in under 30 minutes. These products will expand the use of 3D vision to markets where it hasn’t been feasible before.

3D vision systems offer many benefits over their 2D counterparts, including better accuracy and object identification and tracking, which are essential features in security, engineering and robotics applications from biometrics to real-time control of machines. Despite their benefits, broad adoption of 3D vision systems has been limited in many markets because the systems can be costly to implement and maintain.

Universal’s Spatial Vision products eliminate the need for the precision mounting, specialized cameras, and time-consuming set up that is required for many 3D vision systems. Using two webcams that can be set up and calibrated within a matter of minutes, Spatial Vision and Spatial Vision Robotics can determine the 3D position of any point relative to the cameras with millimeter accuracy.

The Spatial Vision product can be easily deployed in any setting in which cameras can be installed, including laboratories, office buildings, department stores and warehouses, and is an affordable solution for anyone looking for an accurate way to observe and measure an environment. It can be employed in security applications, measuring in-store foot traffic patterns, and more scientific applications requiring object tracking and visual analytics without a wand or sensing device. Spatial Vision offers 30 percent improved accuracy over 2D systems used in object identification and tracking applications, such as facial recognition and other biometrics. It is optimized for use with popular Logitech 9000 webcams, but can be  customized to work with any USB 2.0 camera.

Spatial Vision Robotics has been specially designed to be used in concert with automated machines. By adding LEDs to points of interest on moving machinery, Spatial Vision Robotics provides 3D position on the machine and its surroundings in robot coordinates as seen from the camera. The program enables 3D calibration between the extrinsic object of interest, the robot and the cameras, as well as intrinsic calibration with the cameras. It can work with any robot and is currently optimized for Yaskawa America (Motoman) SDA-series robots. Spatial Vision Robotics can be integrated with path planning and high-speed inverse kinematics to enable real-time control of robots.

Spatial Vision and Spatial Vision Robotics were created as part of the development of Universal’s signature technology, Neocortex™, a sensory-motor based form of artificial intelligence that enables moving machines to learn from their experiences and perform tasks that are unsafe or difficult for humans. Neocortex was developed over seven years with NASA and Vanderbilt University, and was funded by U.S. Department of Defense.

www.universalrobotics.com

Sartorius Introduces ProBatch+ Software

Goettingen, Germany – The Sartorius ProBatch+ software used in conjunction with the Sartorius X-Family, Combics Pro, and other PLC controllers offers the user efficient management of original raw material and recipe data. The powerful ProBatch+ software program allows for visual presentation of the running process and enables all batch procedures to be both visually monitored and easily controlled.
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Motion and Easy-to-Use

I get a little crabby about some of the things I have seen over the years in the motion control and especially the American marketing mentality.  In particular, the words “motion control” and “easy to use” should not appear in the same sentence without great care and thought about the statements being made.  If there is any lesson in the last two blogs on simulations and analytical tools for system design, it is that the motion control field is complex.

It is certain that computers and ever more powerful software programs automate tasks so that we can work more quickly.  The tools are evolving to make design faster and more thorough.  Many programs embed software oscilloscopes to display important parameters of operation while we tune or test our work.  And I love anything that makes my job easier, as I’m sure you do. Read more

Danaher Motion Introduces MechaWare 3.0

SANTA BARBARA, CALIF ­— Danaher Motion introduces MechaWare 3.0 ­— the industry’s only mechatronic toolkit that seamlessly integrates mechanical systems and control software design resulting in faster design cycles, superior motion system performance, and faster time to market.

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Better Software Tools

Better Software Tools Help Machine Builders Reap the Benefits of Mechatronics.

Newer software programs intended for machine builders take advantage of mechatronic principles and easily blend the necessary and different engineering disciplines.

By John Pritchard, Global Product Marketing Manager
Kinetix Motion Control, Rockwell Automation

Traditionally, machines have been designed and built using individual mechanical, control, and electrical design teams — that work independently to produce separate pieces of the whole system. Often, the mechanical team will turn the design over to the controls team and hope they can integrate the software and controls before control and programming issues are addressed. The machine might deliver substantial performance and flexibility advantages, but typically the marriage of the mechanical functions with the control system is not optimal; it is merely sufficient. Read more

The Evolution of Motion Programming Devices

Here’s a closer look at software development for programming motion systems and how these choices affect software reusability.

By Chuck Lewin Performance Motion Devices

Software development can be the single greatest engineering cost for many machine design projects. This observation is especially true for motion control projects because of the inherent complexity of managing such real time tasks as profile generation, events, and throughput.

Do you protocol?

It’s easy to be a bit overwhelmed with the range of choices in motion control protocols, languages, interface standards, and control architectures. However, as it turns out, a few basic concepts provide the necessary foundation for understanding motion programming languages. Read more