Vending and Entertainment
Robots can be fun too
Vending
Increasingly robots are finding applications in the entertainment industry. Often that is coupled with vending functions, so the robot entertains you then sells you something.
ST can supply a complete system with end effector to manage the product being vended. At the same time robot activity can be programmed to simply impress and bring customers to the installation.
Exciting vending application with an R12 on a linear track.
The robot can run up and down the track to fetch the product chosen on a touch screen. This robot is fitted with vacuum pickup. Some products can be stacked in a pile. The robot searches down until a vacuum is obtained on reaching the topmost product, in this case packes of candy. The robot then picks up the candy pack and drops it into the customer access.The box on the side of the robot is the vacuum controls, positioned on the robot to keep tube lengths short which makes for faster acquisition of the product.
You can see the whole system in action on Youtube:
(jump to about 12:15 to see the robot)
Airbrush body art
ST Robotics has been collaborating with Itatu in providing R17 robot arms for airbrush body art aka tattoos. No, the robot is not wielding an actual tattoo pen!
See Itatu website
In the art world
Using an R17 robot arm to paint portraits, using AI and machine learning.
This system uses vision/AI to create a portrait from a photograph. Like a human it pulls back, takes a look and compares what it has done with what is required. It then goes back to the painting to add more.
The artist, Pindar van Arman, needed a robot that is able to perform multiple small moves and especially reliable.
Experimental system to mix and serve cocktails