Episode 12

MAKING INDUSTRIAL ROBOTS INTELLIGENT TO IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY


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Innovation Japan

MAKING INDUSTRIAL ROBOTS INTELLIGENT TO IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY

A controller developed by a Japanese company is rewriting the conventional norms about industrial robots and transforming distribution sites. Industrial robots have required a vast amount of programming and have cost a lot of time and money for system installation. Their installation has been particularly challenging in the distribution and logistics industry due to the difficulty in sorting a diverse and wide array of items efficiently. The new controller in this video has solved these problems. The companies introducing the controller at their distribution sites have boosted productivity, giving people greater opportunities to engage in more creative tasks.

00:17

Industrial robots are an important means to increase productivity within a limited labor force.

However, installing picking robots in the distribution and logistics industry has been considered impossible since the robots need to handle a diverse and wide array of items.

But one Japanese company is overturning the conventional norms about industrial robots.

00:40

Mujin, Inc.
CTO & Co-Founder
Dr. Rosen Diankov

So our main product is called the MUJIN Controller. Some of the core technologies in the MUJIN Controller are for example motion planning.

It's about simulating the type of motion that a robot can do and considering many millions of steps ahead into the future.

00:57

Conventional robots required programming, by which humans provide detailed instructions regarding the specific timing and the angles that each joint must move.

This task accounts for over 80% of the time and cost spent on installation.

However, the Intelligent Robot Controller allows robots to independently calculate the optimal trajectory from the start point to the final destination.

01:24

Mujin, Inc.
CTO & Co-Founder
Dr. Rosen Diankov

A year of taking into creating a system into just less than a month, even a week at sometimes.

01:32

Mujin, Inc.
CEO & Co-Founder
Issei Takino

This controller can automate picking processes for various items in a distribution network which has been considered impossible. This is a ground-breaking robotics solution.

01:44

To handle a diverse array of items, a conventional robot had to be taught an astronomical number of tasks for each different object.

A robot made intelligent with this controller can start picking immediately after recognizing the product’s shape, pattern and design by itself.

02:03

PALTAC CORPORATION
Research and Development Headquarters Engineer
Hiroaki Taniguchi

By installing four robots synced to our automated warehouse, we completely automated case-picking which involves handling various kinds of objects.

This change shifted demanding, strenuous labor from people to robots, streamlined processes and boosted productivity to make a people-friendly distribution warehouse.

02:29

Mujin, Inc.
CEO & Co-Founder
Issei Takino

This controller which is versatile and compatible allows almost all robots to be utilized at sites and business sectors that were formerly considered unrealistic.

The controller is dramatically changing manufacturing and distribution sites in Japan and overseas.

02:47

Mujin, Inc.
CTO & Co-Founder
Dr. Rosen Diankov

And what we want to do by automating manual picking, is to make that part more efficient, reduce the costs, increase the quality of services, at the same time allow people to do more creative tasks.

Which we believe is going to increase the quality of life.

This video was created in collaboration with Mujin, Inc.

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