The 2013 edition of the Hannover Fair wrapped up today in Hannover Germany. From April 8th through the 12th, hundreds of thousands of visitors descended on the northern German city to see the latest cutting-edge technology in industrial automation, energy, motion control, as well as research and technology, among others. In the motion control arena, there […]
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Reviewing Some Online Stepper Motor Selectors
How easy is it to select a stepper motor online? I decided to find out by visiting the web sites of some stepper motor manufacturers and seeing how easy or difficult it was. First up was Automation Direct. Offering everything from cables and fuses to terminal blocks and pneumatic components, the home page is quite […]
Parrot Pilots Robotic Vehicle
This video has everything; robots, motion control, a parrot piloting a robotic vehicle. The “Bird Buggy” was designed and created by University of Florida engineering grad student Andrew Gray for an intelligent machines design lab course.
Servomotors: More for Less
The hard-working servomotor is being asked to do ever more these days, and it’s stepping up to the challenge in a lot of different ways. The challenge isn’t new; more power, more torque, in a smaller package for less cost. And that’s exactly what’s been happening. Servomotor manufacturers are indeed increasing motor torque density while […]
Reshoring Picks Up Steam
The reshoring trend got a boost last week at the Reshoring Summit: Bringing Manufacturing Back to the U.S., held right here in Cleveland. The summit’s focus was on educating manufacturer’s on the benefits of bringing manufacturing work back to the U.S., which included making the business case for such a move, as well as hearing […]
Where are the Women Engineers?
Today is International Women’s Day, and it’s as good a time as any to reflect on the role and number of women in the engineering profession. The holiday itself originated as part of the women’s rights movement at the beginning of the 20th century as a way to raise awareness of issues including women’s rights […]
National Instruments Expands in Austin
Recently, Texas Governor Rick Perry announced that National Instruments (NI) plans to expand its operations in Austin by investing over $80 million and adding 1,000 technical and engineering jobs in the Austin area. The company, with sales of $1.1billion in 2012 and employing over 6,800 people worldwide, will receive some help from the state of […]
Can Manufacturing Save Our Economy?
President Obama’s State of the Union address to Congress Tuesday night placed a heavy emphasis on wind and solar energy, STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education initiatives, and manufacturing. In particular, he mentioned a manufacturing innovation institute in Youngstown, OH, halfway between the rustbelt stalwart cities of Cleveland and Pittsburgh, where workers are learning the […]
Whither the Apprenticeship?
News from Siemens this week revealed that the company has instituted an apprenticeship program in North Carolina, in partnership with both the University of North Carolina and Central Piedmont Community College, to train engineers for their gas turbine factory in Charlotte. According to the company, the move was necessary because of a “shortfall of adequately […]
Is Automation a Job Killer?
A recent report on CBS’ 60 Minutes news program spotlighting the increasing use of robotics in automation is causing quite a stir. The report includes the input of two MIT Professors, Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee, who claim that despite corporate profits having returned and business investment on the rise, the one thing that hasn’t […]
