PAL Robotics took part in Advanced Factories 2023 for the 7th year – a show that is a key event for automation and industry 4.0, including robotics, and this year welcomed over 34,000 professionals. As well as seeing some of the latest technology in the field, there was a chance to demonstrate some of our newest solutions, take part in industry talks and interviews, and catch up with our partners. Read on to hear more about our highlights of the event.
Advanced Factories is an annual meeting of industry leaders where the latest solutions on industrial automation systems, robotics, industrial software, Artificial Intelligence, Artificial Vision and virtual simulation solutions, Big Data, IoT, cybersecurity, Industrial Cloud Computing, Machine Learning, and all technologies 4.0 associated with digital manufacturing are showcased.
As well as demonstrations, the event includes the Factory Innovation Theater with presentations and roundtables on the latest innovations and developments from industry leaders, as well as forums on Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity.
Advanced Factories 2023 was launched with a welcome by Òscar Iñigo, Program Director, and Diana Ferreon, Event Manager on the highlights of this edition. Guest speakers included Xavier Sala-i-Martin (Columbia University), Pedro Ramos (Continental), and Daniel Casellas (Eurecat).
The PAL Robotics team took part in a round table discussion, presentations, and an interview, as well as showcasing some of the latest developments in service robotics to help businesses at our booth.
Workshop Arena talk on collaborative service robotics
On the first day of the event, PAL Robotics’ Marc Coma introduced the audience to PAL Robotics, our solutions for industry of today, including mobile bases, and inventory tracking solutions, along with use cases. In the talk, Marc also presented our solutions for the industry of the future, including cobots working side by side with humans on tasks such as mobile manipulation, and pick and place, and discussed collaborative projects such as CANOPIES, PILLAR-Robots, OpenDR and AGIMUS that we are project partners in, where our robots are further developed for such tasks.
Roundtable on mobile robotics: symbiosis of cobots, platforms, and sensors
Alexandre Saldes of PAL Robotics took part in the roundtable on Industry 4.0 with Jordi Pelegri (Universal Robots), Pier Francesco Fefè (E80 Group) which was moderated by Carles Soler to talk about mobile robotics and their impact and potential for businesses. In this session, Alexandre presented examples of our TIAGo Base mobile robot in various use cases including in the automotive industry, in healthcare, and in multi-technology projects. Also presented by Alexandre was our newest mobile base robot, ARan, and the robot’s recent use case in the food processing industry, as well as our inventory tracking solution StockBot working in Decathlon stores globally.
Interview with Kapital Empresa – RCE / Decisión Radio
There was also the chance to talk more about the future of industry and the challenges for Industry 4.0. Our colleague Alex Font gave an interview that included contributing to the discussion on topics such as industrial robots of today, challenges for humanoid robots, and the future of humanoid robots in industry working together with humans.
Partners at the event including AER, Eurecat, ACCIO, Ibermática and Dipole
At the event, we had the chance to catch up with various partners, including:
- AER – promotes the transformation of the productive fabric through automation technologies and industrial robotics.
- Eurecat – technological center that is a provider of innovative technology to companies in order to respond to their innovation needs.
- ACCIO – specialises in promoting innovation and business internationalisation and has a network of 40 offices around the world.
- Ibermatica – a Special Employment Center, which constitutes a pioneering initiative in Information and Communication Technologies. It is aimed at the social integration of people with different abilities.
- Dipole – RFID solutions for identification, data capture, and traceability.
Solutions and live demos at our booth at Advanced Factories 2023
During Advanced Factories, visitors had the chance to meet our robots in person, as well as see some live demos. PAL Robotics’ team attended the event with the following robots:
TIAGo OMNI Base that moves in all directions
TIAGo OMNI Base is a modular and customisable platform. With its omnidirectional mobility and advanced sensors, TIAGo OMNI Base can navigate complex environments and avoid obstacles with ease. TIAGo Base is available with omnidirectional mecanum wheels, and two LIDAR sensors for an unobstructed 360º FOV secure movement, including autonomous navigation, obstacle detection, and path planning.
ARan, the newest and most robust mobile base
ARan is the smartest AMR designed for professionals to automate their business: moving payloads up to 150 kg with excellent balance in any indoor environment thanks to the improved suspension system. ARan includes built-in Lidar and RGB-D cameras for optimal and complex navigation and obstacle avoidance. The robot’s wide 245º Field of View (FoV) enables 3D environment perception and richer data collection.
TIAGo Actuated Conveyor for indoor deliveries
TIAGo Base robot works autonomously to enhance logistics, cut down costs, and boost efficiency and productivity in business. The robot provides an affordable and versatile mobile robot with autonomous navigation to be used in logistics and transportation. The Actuated Conveyor version of the robot is able to deliver a load from point A to point B without human intervention, using the conveyor system.
TIAGo the mobile manipulator and social robot
Our TIAGo mobile manipulator robot is customisable and is, therefore, able to support a wide variety of end effectors (grippers or hands) to aid in research. TIAGo is also available with single and dual arms, and has a large manipulation workspace. As well as offering mobile manipulation capabilities, TIAGo is also a social robot suitable for Human-Robot Interaction. The robot is implemented in research fields such as Industry 4.0, smart cities, healthcare, and ambient assisted living.
Thank you to everyone that we had the chance to meet at Advanced Factories 2023 and to the organisers for what was once again a successful event. We look forward to joining again in 2024! Visit our website to learn more about us, and to ask us any questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
For more info on our participation at events and fairs, don’t forget to check our blog on robotics!