Suppliers of industrial paint finishing lines usually have only a relatively short time in which to submit tenders for the lines and get them up and running. “Simultaneous engineering” meets this need. Focuses on simulation software which allows the behaviour of projected installations as...

Reviews a presentation by Professor Robert Michelson of Georgia Institute of Technology in the USA about the growing interest in unmanned aerial vehicles, which can be used for military purposes, but also for tasks like traffic surveillance. Michelson has a particular interest in micro aerial...

In this paper, a new cooperation control scheme for multiple robot material handling is presented. First, the event‐based planning and control method is introduced, which lays down the foundation for sensor‐referenced cooperation of multiple robot systems. The key step is the development of...

Many research efforts have turned to sensing, and in particular computer vision, to create more flexible robotic systems. Computer vision is often required to provide data for the grasping of a target. Using a vision system for grasping of static or moving objects presents several issues with...

Describes interviews with the two surgeons that have performed the most surgeries worldwide using the RoboDoc system, an integrated system that combines computer‐based medical imaging and surgical robotics systems. For both doctors, the RobDoc system has exceeded their initial expectations....

Report of a lecture by Mr Koh Kikuchi, Chairman of Yaskawa Electric Corporation of Japan, which reviews the development of mechatronics by Yaskawa. It traces the history of the company in its involvement with robotics from the first simple single‐function hand in the 1960s to the latest...

Explains a simulation system, the Wheelbarrow Mk 8 Plus control training simulator, developed by Anite Systems to be used by the army for training operators of remote vehicles for making safe explosive devices.

Initially, we reviewed the robot welding equipment in terms of its purpose: greatly improved arc welding quality and reliability, and stimulation of the arc welding market. We then discussed the arc welding package, with its advanced ability to perform work tasks. This equipment also results in...

Every two years the International Robot Exhibition is held in Japan and is the biggest robotics trade show in the world. The 12th IRE took place from October 28 to 31, 1997 at the Tokyo International Exhibition Center (Tokyo Big Sight, Ariake). Apparently reflecting the recovery of the Japanese...

The big‐on‐asbestos (BOA) system is a mobile pipe‐external robotic crawler used to remotely strip and bag asbestos‐containing lagging and insulation materials (ACLIM) from various diameter pipes in (primarily) industrial installations. Steam and process lines within the Department of...