Robotics Trends

LynuxWorks and Objective Interface Team to Deliver Real-Time Embedded Communications Solution LynuxWorks™ Inc. today announced that its LynxOS®-178 real-time operating system (RTOS) product now offers complete integration with Objective Interface Systems’ ORBexpress® RT, the most widely deployed commercial-off-the-shelf tools (COTS) Object Request Broker (ORB) for safety-critical military and aerospace systems. ORBexpress RT is a real-time Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) ORB that enables software developers to simplify the development of distributed software applications, build scalable, efficient and robust applications, and reduce overall development time, meeting time-to-market requirements. The combination of the LynxOS-178 RTOS with ORBexpress RT communications middleware delivers a well-engineered foundation, enabling developers to deliver hard real-time performance in…
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Innova & Mesa Robotics Team Up to Integrate Products For Military, Homeland Security and Law Enforce Innova Holdings Inc., (IVHG:OTCBB), a robotics and automation technology company providing software and hardware systems-based solutions to the service, personal, and industrial robotic markets, announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Mesa Robotics Inc., (Madison, Ala.) that will integrate both companies’ successful technologies and proven products to further the effectiveness of unmanned ground vehicles.

Mesa Robotics’ rugged, reliable robotic vehicles are deployed in the United States, Middle East and Japan, and also saw action in counter-explosives operations in Afghanistan. The companies plan to integrate the Innova Holdings patented robotic software solutions with Mesa’s full…
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iRobot PackBot Inducted into Space Technology Hall of Fame At the 22nd National Space Symposium, the iRobot PackBot(R) Tactical Mobile Robot will be inducted into the 2006 Space Technology Hall of Fame. iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ:IRBT), along with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will be recognized as the innovating organizations behind PackBot’s technology. The Space Technology Hall of Fame honors technologies and the innovators who transformed space technology into commercial products that improve life here on Earth.
“The iRobot PackBot is just one example of why what we do in space matters,” said Space Foundation President and Chief Executive Officer…
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SatCon Wins $1.1M US Navy Contract for Integrated Motor Propulsor - UUV Applications Cited SatCon Technology Corporation(R) (Nasdaq NM: SATC), a developer and manufacturer of power electronics and motors for the alternative energy markets, today announced that it has been awarded a Phase II SBIR ‘cost-plus’ contract for an integrated motor propulsor (IMP) with the Office of Naval Research (ONR). The total value of the contract is $1.1 Million and will be funded over the term of the project.

SatCon will design, fabricate, test, and deliver a complete integrated motor propulsor (IMP) system including motor, controller, and podded propulsor. An IMP enables propulsion for marine vehicles without any mechanical shaft couplings…
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SkyTote Demonstrates High-Speed Flight and Vertical Takeoff SkyTote’s primary mission is to deliver a payload to a specific point within a tactically relevant range and time. It is a Small Business Innovative Research Phase II effort orchestrated by AeroVironment Inc of Monrovia, Calif., for AFRL’s Air Vehicles Directorate.

According to AFRL’s Tom Cord, SkyTote program manager, the aircraft is a concept demonstrator and not a working system.

“We are not trying to reach a certain performance and capability; we are trying to show that a hovering UAV with a fast, forward speed is a likelihood. It’s something we can do in a simple…
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U.S. Unmanned Aerial Systems Market to Reach 17 Billion in Five Years According to Frost & Sullivan The U.S. unmanned aerial systems (UAS) market has had considerable momentum due to recent operational successes and increasing mission roles. In addition, UAS market penetration in all four military services and the commercial sectors in surveillance and weaponized capabilities are driving growth.

“On the operational side, UA systems have received praise and support across several services and ranks,” remarks Senior Industry Analyst Kathy Ellwood. “Testimonies have been documented from many levels regarding the benefits of UA systems in theaters. In fact, those accolades are usually followed by the desire for the delivery of more systems.”

Frost…
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UGOBE CEO and Founder Bob Christopher to Speak at RoboBusiness Conference and Exposition Robotics Trends, and IDG World Expo today announced that Bob Christopher, CEO, Chairman and Founder of UGOBE, Inc. will deliver a session in the Consumer Robotics track at the RoboBusiness Conference and Exposition, the international business development event for mobile robotics and intelligent systems. The conference and exposition will be held at the Sheraton Station Square in Pittsburgh, PA on June 20-21, 2006. The event website is http://www.robobusiness2006.com.

According to Dan Kara, conference chairman and President of Robotics Trends, “In the past, the majority of robots were used in a manufacturing capacity. While the industrial and service…
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Two Hybrid Electric “Crusher” Combat UGVs Powered by UQM Propulsion Systems/Generators Test Toda The 6.5 ton “Crusher” vehicles – as this new generation of the older “Spinner” vehicle is dubbed - is being developed and built by a team led by the National Robotics Engineering Center, a unit of Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute. The two additional Unmanned Ground Combat Vehicles (UGCV’s) are greatly upgraded versions of the original 8.5 ton “Spinner” which began field demonstrations over three years ago and was powered by an earlier generation of UQM® propulsion motors and a micro-turbine generator. The UGCV platform is an Advanced Technology Demonstrator (ATD) that complements the Army’s Future Combat System (FCS) networked…
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Geneva Aerospace Successfully Completes Unmanned Auto-Landing Test Flight with the Dakota UAV Geneva Aerospace, Inc., a leader in the development of unmanned vehicle technologies, successfully completed six consecutive auto landings of a Dakota UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) at the United States Army Yuma Proving Grounds in Yuma, Arizona. This flight test was the next phase under Geneva’s current contract with the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) and the United States Air Force Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Battlelab (UAVB). The test served as the precursor to flying the Berkut UAV which will utilize Geneva’s proven integrated avionics technologies, as well as the auto landing capability. The Berkut test flight is tentatively scheduled for early…
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Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center San Diego Receives CCAT(SM) Award The Center for Commercialization of Advanced Technology (CCAT) in San Diego, California today announced a $50,000 award to the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center San Diego (SSC San Diego) Technology Transfer Program. The money will be used for a number of improvements to SSC San Diego’s extensive line of robotic systems, yielding more intelligent robots that can function without need for a joystick or other hands-on human intervention. The improved systems could be used to better detect and help neutralize improvised explosive devices (IEDs), provide real-time visual and recorded surveillance, create maps of areas that are hazardous or inaccessible…
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