RoboDK Partners with Comau

RoboDK announces its strategic partnership with Comau. The latest version of Comau Roboshop Next Gen software seamlessly integrates with RoboDK, making simulation more advanced.

This collaboration solidifies RoboDK’s presence in the OEM market, marking a significant step as an embedded solution. Comau users can now enjoy the benefits of RoboDK directly due to RoboDK’s integration into Comau’s Roboshop Next Gen software suite. This integration allows users to easily simulate and program robots using advanced CAD to path features, import 3D Models, detect collisions, integrate with external axes such as turntables and linear rails, support multiple robot cells in the same project, improved integration with CAD/CAM software and use advanced simulation features such as conveyors and grippers. This allows Comau robot programmers to easily use Comau robots for advanced manufacturing applications such as robot machining or 3D printing.

In addition to these technical benefits, the collaboration also introduces support for Realistic Robot Simulation (RRS), providing accurate path and cycle time estimates. This advancement aims to provide businesses with a clear understanding of robot behavior and precise cycle time details, ensuring more efficient and optimized robot operations.

Using RoboDK it will therefore be possible to create a program in a very intuitive way. Then through Roboshop Next Gen, it can be executed in a simulation with a Virtual

While this partnership marks a significant step for embedded solutions, RoboDK remains committed to its ongoing collaboration efforts with various partners, reinforcing its dedication to make automation more affordable across industries.

RoboDK distinguishes itself by embracing modern technologies, thus setting itself apart from peers reliant on older and more expensive software frameworks. With modern tools, integrations, competitive pricing, and an array of complementary features—including advanced CAD to path features, integrations with CAD/CAM software, collision checking, singularity avoidance, robot calibration and brand-agnostic offline programming—RoboDK stands out as a frontrunner. Users have access to extensive documentation and libraries at no cost. Moreover, RoboDK’s website, documentation and YouTube channel offers a rich collection of tutorials.

About RoboDK

Founded by Albert Nubiola in January 2015, RoboDK is a spin-off company from the prestigious CoRo laboratory at ETS University in Montreal, Canada. Designed to bring robust robotics simulation and programming capabilities to the automation sector, RoboDK supports over 1000 robots from more than 70 manufacturers.

About Comau

Comau, a Stellantis company, is a worldwide leader in delivering sustainable advanced automation solutions. With 50 years of experience and a global presence, Comau is helping companies of all sizes in almost any industry leverage the benefits of automation. Backed by a continuous commitment to designing and developing innovative and easy to use technologies, its portfolio includes products and systems for vehicle manufacturing, with a strong presence in e-Mobility, as well as advanced robotics and digital solutions to address rapidly growing markets in industrial sectors. The company’s offering also extends to project management and consultancy. Through the training activities organized by its Academy, Comau is committed to advancing the technical and managerial knowledge necessary to face the challenges related to automation and leverage the opportunities of a constantly changing marketplace. Headquartered in Turin, Italy, Comau has an international network of 5 innovation centers, 5 digital hubs, and 12 manufacturing plants that span 13 countries and employ 3,700 people. Together with its wide network of distributors and partners, the company is able to respond quickly to the needs of its customers, no matter where they are located throughout the world.

For more information, visit www.comau.com.

Nagakawa, u-blox Partner to Develop HVAC, VRF

THALWIL, Switzerland, Mar 28, 2024 – u-blox, a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies and services, has announced its partnership with Nagakawa Group, to develop smart Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) systems digitally integrated with a Building Management System (BMS) software. The aim is to optimize energy consumption and reduce CO2 emissions in various buildings in Vietnam, such as offices, factories, warehouses and homes.

Nagakawa’s comprehensive smart VRF/HVAC and BMS solution is particularly relevant for a country where nowadays up to 45% of electricity generation still comes from coal-fired sources. Such innovative developments will contribute to the Vietnamese government achieving its goal of net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050, as pledged at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 26) in 2021.

Nagakawa’s new smart building solution should play a crucial role in the digital transformation of various types of buildings. Supported by BEMServer, described as the world’s premier open source building energy management platform, and enabling manual or automatic adjustment of HVAC/VRF systems, the solution will help curb energy consumption and reduce CO2 emissions. Power consumption data from the VRF/HVAC systems is sent to an AIoT cloud server, where it is analyzed and pushed as a notification to the BMS dashboard. As the data is accessible through a wide range of devices, such as smartphones, tablets, laptops, or building control centers, the facility manager or system owner can take immediate action to prevent electricity waste.

Nagakawa is partnering with u-blox and the BEESOTA 6G Alliance to build a comprehensive system, with gradual implementation into buildings planned throughout Vietnam. u-blox provides cellular connectivity via its multi-mode LTE Cat 1bis LENA-R8 module, equipped with the global and ultra-low power MQTT Anywhere IoT communication service. The u-blox Thingstream cloud-based delivery platform then enables simple processing, transformation, and integration of messages to the enterprise. This integration ensures seamless connectivity and robust security for air conditioning systems.

Implementing Nagakawa’s comprehensive solution in buildings provides dual benefits to its initiators. Firstly, it reduces operational expenses and monthly electricity bills. Secondly, it makes it easier to acquire the Vietnam Green Label, certifying adherence to environmentally friendly Green Label Criteria set by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE).

The successful deployment of this sustainable solution across Vietnam could also lead to further expansion in other countries.

About u-blox

u-blox provides semiconductor chips, modules, and IoT services that reliably locate and connect every thing. Their cutting-edge solutions drive innovation for the car of the future and the Internet of Things. Headquartered in Thalwil (Zurich), Switzerland, they have a global presence of 1,400 experts who enable their customers to build solutions for a precise, smart, and sustainable future.

For more information, visit www.u-blox.com.

u-blox Launches F10 GNSS Platform

THALWIL, Switzerland, Mar 28, 2024 – u-blox, a global provider of leading positioning and wireless communication technologies and services, has announced F10, the company’s first dual-band GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) platform combining L1 and L5 bands to offer enhanced multipath resistance and meter-level positioning accuracy. The platform caters to urban mobility applications, such as aftermarket telematics and micromobility.

Applications that use GNSS receivers for accurate positioning are on the rise. Yet, current receivers do not fully perform in urban areas. Accurate and reliable positioning in dense urban environments, where buildings or tree foliage can reflect satellite signals, requires GNSS receivers to mitigate multipath effects. The L5 band’s resilience to these effects significantly improves positioning accuracy. Combined with the well-established L1 band, an L1/L5 dual-band GNSS receiver can deliver < 2 m positioning accuracy (CEP50), against about 4 m with the L1 band only. The u-blox team has conducted driving tests in several urban areas, confirming a significant improvement over GNSS L1 receivers.

The F10’s firmware algorithm prioritizes L5 band signals in weak signal environments, ensuring reliable positioning accuracy even when paired with small antennas. The platform is also equipped with protection-level technology that provides a real-time trustworthy positioning accuracy estimate.

When a cellular modem is extremely close to a GNSS receiver, it can interfere with the receiver’s reception. Some F10 module models (NEO-F10N, MAX-F10S, and MIA-F10Q) are equipped with a robust RF circuit that allows the GNSS and the cellular modem to operate without interference.

The u-blox F10 platform is pin-to-pin compatible with the previous u-blox M10 generation for easy migration. It also supports u-blox AssistNow, which offers real-time online A-GNSS service with global availability to reduce GNSS time-to-first-fix and power consumption.

The u-blox EVK-F101 evaluation kit will be available in April 2024.

About u-blox

u-blox provides semiconductor chips, modules, and IoT services that reliably locate and connect every thing. Their cutting-edge solutions drive innovation for the car of the future and the Internet of Things. Headquartered in Thalwil (Zurich), Switzerland, they have a global presence of 1,400 experts who enable their customers to build solutions for a precise, smart, and sustainable future.

For more information, visit www.u-blox.com.

Toshiba Launches SmartMCD with Embedded Microcontroller

KAWASAKI, Japan, Mar 28, 2024 – Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corp. (Toshiba) has started volume shipments of the SmartMCD Series of gate driver[1] ICs with embedded microcontroller (MCU). The first product, “TB9M003FG,” is suitable for sensorless control of three-phase brushless DC motors used in automotive applications, including water and oil pumps, fans and blowers.

Toshiba: SmartMCD Series gate driver ICs with embedded microcontroller (Graphic: Business Wire)

TB9M003FG combines a microcontroller (Arm Cortex-M0), flash memory, power control functions and communications interface functions into a gate driver that controls and drives N-ch power MOSFETs for three-phase brushless DC motor drives. This integration will reduce system sizes and component counts while realizing advanced and complex motor control for a wide variety of automotive motor applications. The new product also incorporates Toshiba’s proprietary vector engine, hardware for sensorless sinewave control, reducing the load on the microcontroller, and the size of the software.

A reference design using TB9M003FG, “Motor Driving Circuit for Automotive Body Electronics Using SmartMCD,” is now available on Toshiba’s website.

Toshiba: Reference Design “Motor Driving Circuit for Automotive Body Electronics Using SmartMCD” with TB9M003FG (Graphic: Business Wire)

The expanding market for electric vehicles (xEV) requires electrification, component integration, downsized electronic control unit (ECUs), and quieter motors. In response, the new product contributes to downsizing of ECUs by integrating a microcontroller into the gate driver, and to quieter motors by using vector control.

Note: [1] Gate driver: A driver to drive MOSFETs

Applications
Automotive

  • Water pumps
  • Oil pumps
  • Fans
  • Blowers, etc.

Features

  • Sensorless control gate driver IC for three-phase brushless DC motor (built-in charge pump circuit)
  • 32bit MCU (Arm Cortex-M0), operation frequency: 40MHz (built-in low-speed/high-speed oscillator)
  • Built-in memories
    Flash: 64Kbytes; ROM: 12Kbytes; RAM: 4KBytes
  • Built-in vector engine and programmable motor driver
  • Built-in 1-shunt resistor current sense amplifier, 12-bit A/D converter and 10-bit A/D converter
  • Various detection circuits
    Current limiter, over current, Vbat overvoltage, over temperature, etc.
  • Communications method: LIN and PWM communications selectable, UART
  • AEC-Q100 (Grade 0), automotive-electronic-component-certification qualified.

Main Specifications

Part number TB9M003FG
Supported motors Three-phase brushless DC motor
Main functions 1-shunt resistor current sense amplifier, sensorless method, vector control, square wave control
Main error detections Undervoltage, overvoltage, external power MOSFET open / short failure, over temperature
Absolute

maximum

ratings

Supply voltage Vbat (V) -0.3 to +40
Operating

ranges

Supply voltage Vbat (V) 6 to 18
Operating temperature

Topr (°C)

Ta=-40 to 150
Tj=-40 to 175
Package Name P-HTQFP48-0707-0.50-001
Size (mm) Typ. 9.0 × 9.0
Reliability AEC-Q100 (Grade 0) qualified
 

Follow the link below for more on the new product.
TB9M003FG

Follow the link below for more on Toshiba’s automotive motor drivers.
Analog Devices

About Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corp.

Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corp., a leading supplier of advanced semiconductor and storage solutions, draws on over half a century of experience and innovation to offer customers and business partners outstanding discrete semiconductors, system LSIs and HDD products.

The company’s 21,500 employees around the world share a determination to maximize product value, and promote close collaboration with customers in the co-creation of value and new markets. With annual sales approaching 800-billion yen (US$6.1 billion), Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation looks forward to building and to contributing to a better future for people everywhere.

For more information, visit website.

Stratasys Launches Industrial Customer Advisory Board

EDEN PRAIRIE, MN & REHOVOT, Israel, Mar 28, 2024 – Stratasys Ltd., a leader in polymer 3D printing solutions, is excited to announce the launch of a new Industrial Customer Advisory Board (CAB). The CAB will provide the customer with added voice and insight as Stratasys continues to drive innovation in the additive manufacturing industry.

The 12-member Industrial Customer Advisory Board includes leaders from market leading manufacturers across Aerospace, Automotive, and Industrial Manufacturing, as well as institutions of research and higher learning. Some of the participants on the board include manufacturers such as Boeing, TE Connectivity, and Toyota, along with schools that have well known manufacturing programs such as Wichita State’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR), the University of Texas El Paso, and the Milwaukee School of Engineering.

Aligned with senior Stratasys leadership, the Customer Advisory Board provides input on requirements for scalable manufacturing applications and specific initiatives that focus on quality and reliability; characterization data; and alignment on an impactful sustainability strategy.

“Stratasys has and will continue to invest in capability development and to accelerate the realization of evolving addressable applications and associated customer value, we must work closely with market leaders to define and realize requirements,” said Jeff Hemenway, senior vice president, global industrial sales.

“This is very much a working advisory board that is excited to further the production-based value their companies and industries can realize with Additive Manufacturing,” Rich Garrity, chief industrial business officer, Stratasys. “This is an important step for Stratasys and our customers as we advance into applications that are critical to their success.”

The Customer Advisory Board conducted its first workshop in December and is holding additional workshops throughout the remainder of 2024 and will continue into 2025 and beyond.

About Stratasys

Stratasys is leading the global shift to additive manufacturing with innovative 3D printing solutions for industries such as aerospace, automotive, consumer products and healthcare. Through smart and connected 3D printers, polymer materials, a software ecosystem, and parts on demand, Stratasys solutions deliver competitive advantages at every stage in the product value chain. The world’s leading organizations turn to Stratasys to transform product design, bring agility to manufacturing and supply chains, and improve patient care.

To learn more about Stratasys, visit www.stratasys.com.

Woolpert Acquires Murphy Geospatial

DAYTON, OH, Mar 28, 2024 – Woolpert has acquired Murphy Geospatial, a multidisciplinary geospatial solutions company that is headquartered in Kilcullen, Ireland. Murphy Geospatial is a private, family-owned geospatial solutions company that delivers a broad range of services that include survey, mobile and indoor mapping, asset monitoring, subsurface engineering, and 3D digital twin development. The firm has a staff of nearly 400 across six offices in Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Woolpert is a private, U.S.-based architecture, engineering, and geospatial firm that was founded in 1911 and has been providing comprehensive and integrated geospatial services for more than 50 years. Woolpert President Neil Churman said this acquisition is focused on the expansion and elevation of Woolpert’s geospatial capabilities in Europe. This union will enable the companies to align best practices, leverage operational efficiencies, and advance services that include survey, reality capture, BIM, asset monitoring, GIS, and all forms of mapping.

“Over the last four decades, Murphy Geospatial has solidified itself as an innovative geospatial partner throughout Ireland, the UK, and the surrounding regions,” Churman said. “Together with Murphy Geospatial, Woolpert will expand its geospatial presence in Europe to improve our offering to customers, accelerate next-level solutions, and provide vital support to the infrastructure, manufacturing, construction, property, utility, and natural environment sectors.”

Murphy Geospatial CEO Niall Murphy and his team will continue to lead Murphy Geospatial, a Woolpert Company, in strategic alignment with Woolpert. Murphy said the companies share a dedication to client service, geospatial innovation, industry leadership, and employee culture.

“We are thrilled to be joining forces with the Woolpert team,” Murphy said. “Their long-standing history in the geospatial sector and commitment to creating a great place to work for employees makes them an ideal match for us. We look forward to taking this next step to better serving our valued clients and advancing the industry together.”

About Murphy Geospatial

Founded over 40 years ago, Murphy Geospatial now has six offices across the UK and Ireland and employs nearly 400 experts who have delivered more than 27,000 projects. Murphy Geospatial captures, collates, verifies, and governs geospatial data, enabling its clients to make informed decisions to increase efficiencies, reduce risk, and enhance value across the project life cycle. Setting the standards in the industry, Murphy Geospatial delivers geospatial certainty you can trust. With proven geospatial solutions through the design, construction, and in-use phases of projects across six key sectors; Infrastructure, Manufacturing, Property, Natural Environment, Energy and Utilities. Services include geospatial consultancy, aerial/UAV surveys, BIM, digital construction, topographical surveys, laser scanning, property surveys, rail surveys, structural and environmental monitoring, subsurface investigation and more.

About Woolpert

Woolpert is the premier architecture, engineering, geospatial (AEG), and strategic consulting firm, with a vision to become one of the best companies in the world. They innovate within and across markets to effectively serve public, private, and government clients worldwide. Woolpert is a Global Top 100 Geospatial Company, a Top 100 ENR Global Design firm, has earned seven Great Place to Work certifications, and actively nurtures a culture of growth, inclusion, diversity, and respect. Founded in 1911 in Dayton, OH, Woolpert has been America’s fastest-growing AEG firm since 2015. Woolpert has over 2,000 employees and more than 60 offices on five continents.

For more information, visit woolpert.com.

Ansys Forms OEM Partnership with SynMatrix

PITTSBURGH, PA, Mar 28, 2024 – Ansys, announced a new OEM partnership with SynMatrix to streamline RF filter design workflows for wireless communications applications. SynMatrix develops industry-leading RF filter design and optimization tools that integrate with HFSS electromagnetic simulation. The Ansys SynMatrix Filter software enables accelerated development, helps reduce project risk, and fosters the design exploration of new filter technologies.

An accelerated filter design and simulation workflow from synthesis, automatic 3D modeling in HFSS, to AI-driven optimization

The demand for 5G/6G wireless communications systems is growing exponentially. RF filters are essential for quality systems including satellite communications, radar, and aerospace and defense, but meeting design requirements can be challenging. In the past, RF engineers used complex calculations and multiple software tools to design filters. They then meticulously assembled these filters and physically tested them in a lab.

The SynMatrix partnership simplifies the workflow and reduces the number of software tools throughout the entire development cycle. It automates HFSS integration and AI optimization workflows to reduce design time by over 50%, enabling more design throughput and exploration. The integration automatically generates parameterized HFSS 3D models of common filter types to deliver predictively accurate simulation results.

“SynMatrix and Ansys are all about accelerating R&D times in a cost-effective way,” said David Shin, director of global business development at SynMatrix. “Integrating our RF filter design solution into the Ansys portfolio will help our joint customers future-proof their investments through our low-risk approach. The partnership with Ansys ensures accessibility and reliability and empowers innovative design exploration.”

“MDA is very pleased with the SynMatrix software performance,” said Jean-Daniel Richerd, RF engineering, MDA Space. “Not only is the product robust, but the support is also proactive and efficient. SynMatrix capabilities go beyond quick filter design; they also encompass the development of complex R&D designs with demanding requirements for shape, size, and electrical specifications.”

In addition to offering SynMatrix software to industry customers, it is also accessible to students and educators through the Ansys Academic Program and to qualified participants in the Ansys Startup Program.

“We are happy to strengthen our partnership with SynMatrix by offering their world-class filter synthesis software,” said Shane Emswiler, senior vice president of products at Ansys. “The coherence of the SynMatrix-HFSS integration empowers our customers to explore new filter technologies to remain competitive in their rapidly evolving markets. With this partnership, Ansys offers the deepest and broadest set of tools, workflows, and solutions to the RF simulation industry.”

About Ansys

When visionary companies need to know how their world-changing ideas will perform, they close the gap between design and reality with Ansys simulation. For more than 50 years, Ansys software has enabled innovators across industries to push boundaries by using the predictive power of simulation. From sustainable transportation to advanced semiconductors, from satellite systems to life-saving medical devices, the next great leaps in human advancement will be powered by Ansys.

For more information, visit www.ansys.com.

Kubotek Kosmos Releases CAD Utilities v6.0

MARLBOROUGH, MA, Mar 28, 2024 – Kubotek Kosmos, a leader in engineering and manufacturing geometric software technology, today announced the 6.0 major release of its CAD/CAM software interoperability products: Validate, Revision, Convert, and View. These CAD file utility programs utilize proprietary Kubotek Kosmos modeling technology to support transfer of precise CAD data across the manufacturing supply chain. Version 6 updates support for major CAD files, improves performance, and adds capabilities for product manufacturing information (PMI) data used in model based definition (MBD) workflows. The new software is available for customers to download immediately.

Updated CAD File Support

To ensure customers are prepared for any CAD files sent to them, reading of 3D CAD files across all Kubotek Kosmos software programs has been updated to support new versions of eight major MCAD file formats:

  • Autodesk Inventor 2024
  • Dassault Systemes (DS) CATIA V5 R2024x
  • DS SOLIDWORKS 2024
  • DS Spatial ACIS 2024
  • PTC Creo 10.0
  • Siemens Digital Industries Software (SDIS) NX 2306
  • SDIS Solid Edge 2024
  • SDIS Parasolid V36

Version 6 adds support for all versions of the Mastercam file formats to read precise 3D solids and surfaces from .MCAM and .MCX files. Reading of CKD files has also been extended to support the KeyCreator 2024 format in the Validate and Revision products.

File read capabilities for all native CAD and STEP have been enhanced to support transparency properties stored on faces/bodies in the model. This improves visualization of interior portions of the model and a closer match to how the model looks in its originating system. Additionally, access to properties metadata for each CAD file has been added to the user interface.

The capability of the Convert product to write models to standard CAD formats has been significantly expanded in version 6. Export of Parasolid X_T files has been enhanced to allow control of the version of Parasolid used in the output file, in order to support older applications. (The Parasolid format is important because it acts as the native B-Rep solid/surface format of popular products such as SOLIDWORKS, NX, Solid Edge, and Mastercam.) Additionally, export of solid/surface, point, and curve objects to the JT file format has been added to the Convert 6.0 Premium package. The JT format is a published ISO standard file format used for lightweight visualization data and also as a container for B-Rep solid/surface data closely related to Parasolid.

MBD PMI Enhancements

The Kubotek Kosmos Validate product verifies and documents accurate movement of MBD data through supplier processes and systems. The product is able to quickly read the structure of complex 3D CAD models and PMI from all major MCAD file types. Version 6 includes improved support for PMI objects to assure full semantic associativity of these critical tolerance-type annotations to faces of the part model. Comparison between translated files now alerts users to inconsistencies in model connectivity of these PMI objects, even when they are graphically correct.

View and Convert products gain support for user-defined view orientation and world coordinate axis marker metadata objects stored in native 3D CAD files. For example, in the user interface CATIA V5 Named Views are now added to the views list pull-down and CATIA V5 Axis Systems are added to the part tree. Support for both of these data types allow users to quickly set the 3D display view to match this imported PMI data.

Performance Enhancements

The 6.0 release adds full support for high-resolution displays (4K+) across all four products. Users benefit from noticeably crisper model edges/lines and cleaner text in the graphics display area.

File opening in the View, Convert, and Revision applications has been further optimized. Testing with a suite of customer files confirmed load times are 40% faster on average than version 5. View and Convert products also provide an option for reading just mesh data from 3D CAD files for further significant gains when opening files for viewing.

Free trials of Kubotek Kosmos software are available. Kubotek Kosmos is also seeking referral partners and qualified resellers for these products.

About Kubotek Kosmos

Kubotek Kosmos develops software technology and end-user products to facilitate the efficient use of precise 3D data across all phases of the engineering and manufacturing process. The company participates in several international standards organizations around core topics such as 3D PDF, LOTAR (Long Term Archiving & Retrieval), and others. Kubotek Kosmos is a trade name of Kubotek USA, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Kubotek Corp., headquartered in Osaka, Japan.

For more information, visit www.kubotekkosmos.com.