robotic forklift could be
a lifesaver
The U.S. Army has successfully tested an unmanned
robotic lift truck for potential use in high-risk work
environments. The truck is capable of locating, lifting,
moving, and placing palletized supplies in an outdoor
depot. As with many innovations developed for the
military, it may not be long before the technology
finds its way into commercial applications.
In June, the U.S. Army Logistics Innovation Agency
(LIA) held demonstrations of the robo-truck at Fort
Lee in Virginia. The modified internal combustion
Toyota 8-Series lift truck was put through its paces,
demonstrating its safety features, sensor capabilities,
The robot is the product of
a collaboration among scientists and engineers at the
Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT), BAE
Systems, and Lincoln
Laboratory with the LIA, the
Combined Arms Support Command Sustainment
Battle Lab, the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and
the Director of Defense Research and Engineering.
Researchers at MIT’s Computer Science and
Artificial Intelligence Laboratory modified the lift
truck to understand speech and gestures, estimate
shapes, to “see” using camera-based machine vision,
estimate motion, and move and manipulate pallets.
Toyota engineers provided proprietary controller area
network (CAN-bus) protocols to the MIT team, which
allowed researchers to connect algorithms directly to
the lift truck’s manual and electrical controls.
Beyond the obvious application in war zones, the
unmanned vehicles also hold promise for industrial
operations with dangerous working conditions.
“Robotic forklifts have the potential to protect both
military and civilian personnel working in high-risk
environments, such as hazardous material storage
facilities,” said Brett Wood, president of TMHU, in a
statement.
—Toby Gooley
JASON DORFMAN, MI T COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ARTIFICIAL IN TELLIGENCE LABORATORY
short takes
Heartland Steel Products, LLC (HSP) has acquired the
assets of R.L. Torbeck Industries. HSP, a privately held
company that does business as Eugene Welding Co. and
SpaceRak, will operate Torbeck Industries from its existing location in Harrison, Ohio. Torbeck Industries makes
material handling and safety equipment used in manufacturing, distribution, and warehousing facilities
throughout North America. … Printronix has
announced that its T5000r thermal bar-code and
SL5000r RFID printers have earned the Energy Star designation for imaging equipment. The company says the
devices are the only thermal printers in their class to
meet the latest (2009) Energy Star program requirements. To qualify for Energy Star certification, products
must meet strict energy-efficiency guidelines issued by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S.
Department of Energy. … The Beumer Group has
established a new subsidiary in Mexico. Headquartered
in Santa Fe, a business district of Mexico City, Beumer
de Mexico will help the company expand sales of its
palletizing, packaging, and sorting products in the
region.
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