Mitsubishi Electric
Canvas Category Machinery : Industrial Robot : General
As one of many Mitsubishi Electric automation affiliates around the world, Mitsubishi Electric Automation, Inc., is part of a $40 billion global company serving a wide variety of industrial markets with a family of automation products including programmable logic controllers, variable frequency drives, operator interfaces, motion control systems, computer numerical controls, industrial robots, servo amplifiers and motors, and industrial sewing machines. The corporate philosophy of the company includes a commitment not only to providing superior solutions and service to Mitsubishi Electric customers, but also to contributing to the local community and creating a rewarding work environment for its employees.
Assembly Line
Automated Machine Tending with RV-8CRL + ARIA | Mitsubishi Electric Automation
Hydrosome Labs Secures $3.7 Million in Seed Funding to Expand Sales and R&D
Hydrosome Labs, a pioneer in the nascent field of ultrafine bubbles, announced $3.7 million in seed funding to scale its operations, expand sales efforts, and continue to innovate.
The patented process that creates Hydrosome H2O delivers active ingredients to cells more efficiently and completely. Commercial uses include improving nutrient uptake in skincare, driving more efficient and sustainable processes for precision fermentation, delivering faster, longer-lasting, enhanced hydration in performance drinks, and helping plants grow faster and healthier with less fertilizer.
At its core is a new process leveraging established science to improve the ability of water to deliver active ingredients to cells more effectively and efficiently. How does it work? A common occurrence in water is the formation of bubbles, which create a structure that traps gases. But not all bubbles are created equal. About 30 years ago, scientists began to investigate the formation of very tiny bubbles in water, sometimes called ultrafine bubbles. These bubbles, invisible to the naked eye and among the smallest ever detected, have unique properties. Hydrosome’s ultra-fine bubbles, “Hydrosomes,” have characteristics no other water technology has.
Mitsubishi Electric, ME Innovation Fund Invests in Formic Technologies
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TOKYO: 6503) announced that its ME Innovation Fund has invested in Formic Technologies Inc., a U.S.-based startup company that designs, develops, and maintains industrial robots, offered through a subscription-based sales model. This is the eighth investment that the fund has made to date.
Through its investment in Formic Technologies, Mitsubishi Electric aims to develop a new business model that evolves its automation solutions into more accessible formats for its customers going forward.
Industry’s First Technology to Use Magnesium Alloys in Wire-Laser Metal 3D Printer Developed by Multi-sector Consortium in Japan
Magnesium Research Center (MRC) of Kumamoto University, TOHO KINZOKU CO., LTD., and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) announced the 3D printing industry’s first high-precision additive manufacturing (AM) technology for using magnesium alloys in a wire-laser metal 3D printer via the directed energy deposition (DED) method, marking a significant leap forward in industrial manufacturing. Unlocking the potential to process magnesium alloys with unparalleled precision and complexity will pave the way for rocket, automobile, aircraft, etc. components that are lighter and stronger than those made of iron or aluminum, leading to improved fuel efficiency and, in the case of rockets, reduced production costs. In addition, the envisioned production processes based on a wire-laser metal 3D printer will be more energy efficient and generate fewer greenhouse gas emissions compared to conventional processes, promising to deliver low-impact solutions for increased sustainability.
The consortium combined Mitsubishi Electric’s metal 3D printer, which uses the wire-laser DED method and metal wire instead of metal powder as a material, with a highly nonflammable KUMADAI heat-resistant magnesium alloy developed by MRC. In tests, Mitsubishi Electric repeated the molding process with the KUMADAI heat-resistant magnesium alloy produced by TOHO KINZOKU using advanced wire drawing technology. The result is a new technology that uses a magnesium-alloy wire as an AM material and precise temperature control to prevent combustion.
Mitsubishi Electric, ME Innovation Fund Invests in Pente Networks Inc.
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TOKYO: 6503) announced that its ME Innovation Fund has invested in Pente Networks Inc., a U.S.-based startup company that provides Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) to promote the introduction of private LTE/5G networks for enterprises. This is the seventh investment that the fund has made to date.
Mitsubishi Electric plans to combine its 5G core network with Pente Networks’ Orchestrator and Service Portal to create business opportunities using private networks.
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation Leads Series B Investment in Realtime Robotics
Realtime Robotics, the leader in collision-free autonomous motion planning for industrial robots, announced that it has secured a strategic investment from Mitsubishi Electric Corporation. This is the lead investment in Realtime Robotics’ recently opened Series B round. Mitsubishi Electric was also a participant in the Series A round, and will be adding a senior representative to Realtime’s Board of Directors.
The funds will be used to support the refinement and scalability of the company’s revolutionary robot workcell optimization and runtime solutions, which significantly help engineers and manufacturers reduce costs and increase productivity.
Customers, including automotive manufacturers BMW and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, as well as integrators Valiant TMS and Schaeffler Group, report improved cycle times, reduced downtime, and increased throughput as a result of working with Realtime.
By increasing its stake, Mitsubishi Electric plans to further integrate Realtime’s cutting-edge motion planning technology into 3D simulators and other software to optimize manufacturing through the power of digital twins. Later, Mitsubishi Electric expects to incorporate Realtime’s technology into factory automation (FA) control system devices, such as programmable logic controllers (PLCs), servo motors and computer numerical controllers (CNCs), to ensure uninterrupted plant operations by responding to needs for expanded automation capabilities, streamlined plant operations for improved efficiency, and fast responses to unexpected events.
Nozomi Networks Secures $100 Million Investment to Accelerate Mission to Defend the World's Critical Infrastructure from Cyber Threats
Nozomi Networks Inc., the worldwide leader in OT and IoT security, announced a $100 million Series E funding round to help accelerate innovative cyber defenses and expand cost-efficient go-to-market expansion globally. This latest round includes investments from Mitsubishi Electric, a global leader in digital manufacturing, electronics and electrical equipment and Schneider Electric, a global leader in digital automation and energy management. They join a growing list of OT original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) who have invested in Nozomi Networks, including previous investors Honeywell and Johnson Controls.
The company will use this latest investment to help scale product development efforts as well as its go-to-market approach globally. With criminal and nation-state cyber threats to industrial and critical infrastructure on the rise, the need for Nozomi Networks solutions has never been greater. At the same time, recent consolidation in the OT and IoT security space is driving a new need for full-featured solutions that aren’t limited to single-vendor support, but rather are able to holistically address the cybersecurity requirements of the vast majority of industrial and critical infrastructure organizations who must protect complex, multi-vendor environments.
The amazing and wonderful process of making a Japanese three-phase motor
H2Ok Innovations Interview
Mitsubishi Electric Automation Demo: Multi-Robot Bin Picking
Mitsubishi Electric, HACARUS to Expand AI Visual-inspection Business
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and HACARUS Corporation announced today that they have agreed to expand their collaboration in the development of AI-based visual-inspection applications for manufacturing. As part of the agreement, Mitsubishi Electric will take an equity stake in HACARUS.
The strategic partnership will leverage the resources and technologies of both companies to increase synergies aimed at maximizing mutual technological and business potential. By leveraging HACARUS’ expertise, Mitsubishi Electric expects to accelerate its development and provision of integrated and automated AI-based visual-inspection solutions that will enable customers to improve manufacturing quality and overall productivity. For HACARUS, the collaboration will provide access to Mitsubishi Electric’s extensive sales infrastructure in Japan and overseas.
HACARUS Check is a visual-inspection solution equipped with a unique, compact AI. In addition to AI development, HACARUS also specializes in integrating AI with various factory automation (FA) devices. In December 2023, Mitsubishi Electric released MELSOFT VIXIO, an AI-based visual-inspection software equipped with the company’s proprietary Maisart AI technology to automate visual-inspection processes for improved manufacturing quality and to address the problem of Japan’s shrinking labor force.
Mitsubishi Electric Automation Demo: Anti-Clog (Pump Cleaning) with VFD
Mitsubishi Electric and TXOne Networks to Cooperate in Mutual Expansion of OT Security Businesses
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and TXOne Networks Inc. announced today that they have signed a long-term cooperation agreement covering technology development and marketing, aiming at expanding the operational-technology (OT) security businesses of both companies.
OT and industrial control systems in manufacturing sites are often operated in closed environments, with IT and OT systems separated from each other. However, the emergence of the Internet of Things (IoT) and digital transformation (DX) is enabling convergence between these two domains. As a result, cyberattacks targeting manufacturing sites in industries such as semiconductors and automobiles have increased, leading to production disruptions and highlighting the growing need for more robust security measures in factories.
Through their new collaboration, the two companies aim to create innovative new value in OT security by combining Mitsubishi Electric’s assessment, maintenance and operation services as well as control equipment and systems with TXOne’s OT security products. The new OT security solutions are expected to improve manufacturing productivity, efficiency and safety as well as security levels throughout the supply chains of various industries.
Mitsubishi Electric Partners with Software Developer ModuleWorks
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TOKYO: 6503) announced that it has agreed to strategically partner with and invest in ModuleWorks GmbH, a leading software component provider for the digital manufacturing industry. The agreement builds on Mitsubishi Electric’s ongoing collaboration with ModuleWorks, a highly regarded developer of cutting-edge CAD/CAM solutions, for the development of advanced technologies to generate machining-tool paths and conduct machine-tool simulations.
The simulation of machining operations and the avoidance of real-time collisions through machine verifications are critical to the operation and safe use of machines, as well as to reducing the burden of engineering.
Mitsubishi Electric intends to accelerate joint development and marketing through its partnership with ModuleWorks. By strengthening its software development, including machine-tool simulation and data integration with CAD/CAM, the company aims to realize easier and safer operation of machine tools, reduce engineering workloads, and optimize engineering chains. Ultimately, this is expected to contribute to the growth of Mitsubishi Electric’s Circular Digital-Engineering business, including the expanded use of digital twins and other advanced technologies in the machine tool field and the realization of increasingly smart production sites.
Mitsubishi Electric and Visual Components Form JV for 3D Simulators
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TOKYO:6503) announced today that it will partner with Visual Components headquartered in Espoo, Finland in a joint venture company, named ME Industrial Simulation Software Corporation, to develop and sell 3D simulators for manufacturing applications. Mitsubishi Electric and Visual Components will hold 70% and 30% stakes respectively in the company, which will begin operating on November 1.
Through the new company, Mitsubishi Electric plans to enhance its digital twin platform for circular digital-engineering business solutions. Visual Components’ software is compatible with Mitsubishi Electric’s factory-automation (FA) products thanks to standard functions for connecting with PLCs and robots as well as interfaces for expanding the functionality of 3D simulators. By combining Mitsubishi Electric’s advanced control technology and manufacturing expertise with Visual Components’ technology, the JV is expected to further strengthen the functionality and services of Mitsubishi Electric’s “MELSOFT Gemini” 3D simulator, which customers use to overcome labor shortages, improve productivity and upgrade the quality of their manufacturing.
The JV’s development base in Finland will enable it to fully leverage Visual Components’ development expertise in order to verify device control using 3D simulators, upgrade design efficiencies through control-logic generation, and improve productivity through the utilization of extensive manufacturing data. Furthermore, the customized-solution capabilities of Visual Components’ sales engineers will enable Mitsubishi Electric’s FA Systems business to better meet the diverse manufacturing needs of customers, particularly in Japan and other Asian markets where Mitsubishi Electric’s presence is particularly strong.
Japan's Denso, Mitsubishi Electric to invest $1 bln in Coherent's silicon carbide unit
Coherent (COHR.N), a major U.S. supplier of materials used to make chips for the automotive industry, said on Tuesday Japan’s Denso (6902.T) and Mitsubishi Electric (6503.T) will invest $1 billion in the company’s silicon carbide business. Denso and Mitsubishi Electric will invest $500 million each in exchange for a 12.5% non-controlling ownership interest in Coherent’s unit, as per the agreement. Coherent, which makes lasers and switches for circuits, has a market value of $4.69 billion and carries $4.4 billion in total debt as of fiscal 2023, according to LSEG data.
Mitsubishi Electric Leads the Pack with Support for Industry Standards (Inclusive of OMAC PackML)
Apera AI & Mitsubishi Electric Automation Making Robotic Vision Simple
Mitsubishi Electric Announces Strategic Investment in OTTO Motors to Accelerate Industrial Automation
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TOKYO 6503), a global leader in factory automation solutions, today announced a strategic investment in Clearpath Robotics, the parent company of autonomous mobile robot leader, OTTO Motors.
How Delta Robotics Optimize and Streamline Electronics Manufacturing Processes
Delta robots are relatively small robots employed in handling food items for packaging, pharmaceuticals for casing, and electronics for assembly. The robots’ precision and high speed make them ideally suited to these applications. Their parallel kinematics enables this fast and accurate motion while giving them a spiderlike appearance that’s quite different from that of articulated-arm robots. Delta robots are usually (though not always) ceiling mounted to tend moving assembly and packaging lines from above. They have a much smaller working volume than an articulated arm, and very limited ability to access confined spaces. That said, their stiffness and repeatability are assets in high-precision processing of delicate workpieces — including semiconductors being assembled.
Delta robots provide affordable and flexible automation for electronics manufacturing. They often provide higher speed and more flexibility than other robotics and automated pick-and-place machines.
Astroscale Raises $76 Million, Including Manufacturing Deal with Mitsubishi Electric
Astroscale raised $76 million in its Series G round, with funding from new investors Mitsubishi Electric, Yusaku Maezawa, Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, Mitsubishi Corporation, Development Bank of Japan, and FEL Corporation. Alongside the investment from Mitsubishi Electric, Astroscale and the company agreed to jointly develop and manufacture satellite buses for Japanese national security constellations.
Mitsubishi Electric and Realtime Robotics | Collision Avoidance Robotics
Mitsubishi Electric Develops Teaching-less Robot System Technology
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation announced it has developed a teaching-less robot system technology to enable robots to perform tasks, such as sorting and arrangement as fast as humans without having to be taught by specialists. The system incorporates Mitsubishi Electric’s Maisart AI technologies including high-precision speech recognition, which allows operators to issue voice instructions to initiate work tasks and then fine-tune robot movements as required. The technology is expected to be applied in facilities such as food-processing factories where items change frequently, which has made it difficult until now to introduce robots. Mitsubishi Electric aims to commercialize the technology in or after 2023 following further performance enhancements and extensive verifications.
Using tactile-based reinforcement learning for insertion tasks
A paper entitled “Tactile-RL for Insertion: Generalization to Objects of Unknown Geometry” was submitted by MERL and MIT researchers to the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) in which reinforcement learning was used to enable a robot arm equipped with a parallel jaw gripper having tactile sensing arrays on both fingers to insert differently shaped novel objects into a corresponding hole with an overall average success rate of 85% with 3-4 tries.
The Electrical Heart of Manufacturing
Once, servo amplifiers were tuned with screwdrivers to adjust the motion of the motors, with say three potentiometers, one for each of the elements of a PID controller. “Today, most servo drives have algorithms that autotune adjustments,” said Nausley. Promess can now position its presses within a few microns. “A few years ago, there’s no way we could have done that.”