Robotics Engineering and Automation in Manufacturing

Robotics engineering and automation is changing the face of manufacturing across the globe. With its ability to increase efficiency while reducing costs, more and more we are turning to robots to do the job that people did only a few years ago. While the first industrial robot was put to work many years ago (1961), with the innovation of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) robotics are becoming more advanced than ever before. Engineers in this field are on the forefront of creating the technology of tomorrow.

What is Robotics Engineering?

Robotics is an interdisciplinary branch that brings together communications, computer science, and electronics all in a base of engineering. It involves the design and construction of robots and machine automations to improve society at large. Most often, these technologies are applied in manufacturing products at both simple and large scales.

Innovations in Robotics Engineering:

More and more, robots are migrating from the manufacturing warehouse to pharmacies, automobiles, and beyond. While they already contributed greatly to manufacturing by reducing risk, cost, and improving efficiency, artificial intelligence has introduced a whole new level of robot; one that more closely resembles something out of Star Wars.

Google’s Worker Robots

These robots are not the cyber bots of the past. Google has now patented the technology for their worker robots. Engineers will work with each robot to download several different personalities to access when interacting with humans over the internet.

ASIMO

Asimo is a humanoid robot developed by Honda. It is able to walk, run, hop and climb stairs as well as has hand dexterity. This robot is also capable of voice and facial recognition, even in a crowd, with the ability to predict a person’s next move based on his previous actions with astounding accuracy.

Spot

Boston Dynamics is best known for their development of a robotic dog named Spot. This robot can run, walk, trot and kick all while staying upright. Spot can be programmed to work day in and day out for you and is marketed to companies for security, safety, and site monitoring.

Kuratas

Resembling something out of the Transformers, this powerful robot was recently brought to life in Japan. It is rideable and user operated, billed as “the world’s first giant boarding robot.” (Wikipedia) It is over twelve feet tall, weighs five tons, and has on it a BB Gatling Cannon that can shoot six thousand bullets per minute.

Foldimate

It’s official: we have invented a robot for the most common of household chores. Developed in America and released in 2012, this machine has the one purpose: no more folding laundry. This machine lets you fold and iron an entire load of laundry in less time than it takes to make a cup of coffee.

Insect Robots

Small and light, these tiny robots can fly, jump, and stand on water. Developed by the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard, these machines are being used for surveillance, communication, environmental studies and emergency response. Some insect robots have the ability to lift up to twenty two times their own weight, while others are used to gather data from the environment to protect our land and farms.

What does the future hold?

The future potential of robotics engineering is great and vast. Each day, more innovation is making work safer and more efficient for companies while saving time and improving accuracy. We can expect that many manufacturing jobs that were previously done by humans will be taken over by robotics in the future. With the dawn of artificial intelligence and machine learning, the robots of tomorrow will most likely be in both the work and home environments, making our lives easier and leaving more time for leisure. While robotics will never replace the creativity of the human mind, these new engineering innovations will continue to improve automations and manufacturing.

Biomedical Engineering Innovations

Biomedical engineering is one of the fastest growing fields of engineering. With a 27% increase in recent years (according to the Bureau of Labor 2021), there have been new innovations in everything from vaccines, prosthetics, imaging technology and more. With so much growth, it’s not surprising that what was once science fiction is now becoming reality as engineers push the boundaries of science, medicine, and healthcare.

What is Biomedical Engineering?

Biomedical engineering (or medical engineering) is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and healthcare. It covers a wide variety of medical topics and often is involved in the newest breakthroughs in the healthcare field. Where other types of engineering deal with the environment, machinery, construction, etc. all of biomedical engineering will deal with the health and the human body.

Trends in Biomedical Engineering:

Biomedical engineering is a constantly evolving field and recent years are seeing trends that are changing the way we approach healthcare. Some of the most popular trends include:

Wearable Health Monitoring Devices

This type of technology has taken healthcare and wellness by storm. These types of devices are worn by an individual either externally or internally and can monitor things like heart rate, blood pressure, and temperature. The devices will either store the information or transfer it daily to the patient or healthcare professionals. This technology is proving incredibly useful for patients with chronic illnesses who need daily monitoring as well as the fitness enthusiast who wants to keep a check on calories burned during a workout.

Gene Editing Technology

This type of technology allows scientists to manipulate the genes that makeup an organism’s DNA, potentially allowing us to cure genetic diseases in the future. While the ethical debate continues around this type of technology, the fact remains that this may be revolutionary for patients suffering from incurable diseases in the future.

Bioprinting

This is a relatively new type of technology and has the potential to completely change the way we think about organ and tissue transplants. Bioprinting uses 3D printing to make tissues and organs using live cells and biomaterials. This technology could replace the need for organ donors in the future.

Nanorobots

Nanorobots are introducing robots to the human body at a micro level! These tiny robots are usually only a few nanometers long and are programmed to monitor and record all sorts of different things inside the human body. The uses for this could include drug delivery, cancer monitoring, drug distribution, blood cell count, etc. While this technology is in its infant stages it holds great potential for the future.

Artificial Intelligence

Also known as AI, artificial intelligence is changing the way we predict the future in medicine. Engineers are using machines to analyze vast amounts of data and put it all into an algorithm. This information could help us better diagnose patients and suggest medical treatment in the future as well as predict prognosis in the case of terminal illness.

Newest Biomedical Engineering Breakthroughs:

Some of the biomedical breakthroughs in recent years are bringing science fiction out of the movies and into real life. Many of these devices are already helping patients in real time while others are sure to change lives in the next five years.

The AbioCor Artificial Heart

In 2021, medical professionals in Louisville KY established a new generation of an artificial heart in a patient. While doctors have used artificial hearts before, this technology is revolutionary as it lives completely inside the human body and has no tubes or valves to the outside. The battery is kept separately that the patient can wear on a belt. This allows patients full autonomy, a new feature for this field.

Bio-Artificial Liver

Another organ replacement advancement, a new bio-artificial liver has been developed that is composed of both manufactured and biological parts. By doing this, it allows the patient’s own blood to circulate through the device, greatly reducing the chance of organ rejection. In 2001, Time Magazine named this the invention of the year and the technology has only continued to improve since then.

The Camera Pill

This technology is exactly what it sounds like; a tiny camera housed in what looks like a pill capsule. The camera pill is now used by professionals to detect the earliest stages of cancer and other diseases and was designed to take photos of the smallest spaces inside the human body.

Berkeley Bionics Exoskeleton

Also called eLEGS, this device was developed for patients suffering from paraplegia. It is easy to wear and is a complete set of bionic, artificial intelligent, legs. This technology allows users who were previously unable to move on their own the ability to stand, walk, and even climb stairs.

Bionic Contact Lens

Developed by the University of Washington in Seattle, this device brings the common contact lens together with an imprinted electronic circuit. This allows users to see images from all over the world by superimposing them over their own vision. This technology could be used by pilots in the future to show them everything from the weather to maps while operating a plane. It can also be used to monitor various health conditions in the body, such as cholesterol level or the presence of bacteria, and send the information to medical professionals.

What does the future hold?

With so much new innovation, the field of biomedical engineering will only continue to grow in the future. New technologies will change the way we live, the way we interact with disease, and how we monitor our health in the future. This advancement is critical for curing some of the world’s greatest epidemic diseases and finding answers to the most challenging medical questions.