Purpose – Aims to describe the application of robotics to the cleaning of the glass roof of the 21 m high pyramid that stands in front of the Louvre in Paris. Design/methodology/approach – Presents the design of the robot, its traction mechanism, cleaning system and operating mode....

Purpose – Aims to demonstrate how robot technology, machine vision, voice recognition and artificial intelligence can be applied to creating an automated surgeon's assistant that is functional and cost‐effective. Design/methodology/approach – Presents the development process that led to...

Purpose – Aims to summarise the programme of UV Europe, a conference on unmanned vehicles that took place in Paris in June 2005. Design/methodology/approach – Selects key conference presentations and summarises their contents, indicating the main themes. Findings – Finds very strong...

Purpose – Aims to review the Clawar 2005 conference on climbing and walking robots. Design/methodology/approach – Selects key papers from the conference and presents a brief outline of the research undertaken and the conclusions reached. Findings – Speakers told of the latest developments...

Purpose – To report on new robot technologies and applications exhibited at Automatica trade fair held in Munich. Design/methodology/approach – Visited exhibits of key manufacturers and reviewed their latest developments. Findings – Clear trend is emerging for safe robots that permit...

Outlines how Scania is planning to automate its truck axle production lines at its Falun plant in Sweden. The automation package includes 40 PCs, 26 robots and 15 AGVs. The PCs are linked up to an Ethernet LAN which connects to the factory management system. IBM’s Plantworks software...

Examines the use of robots in Israeli industry. Two thriving sectors are responsible for the majority of automation installation—carbide inserts and the electronics industry, with robots also being employed in a number of kibbutzes industries including lens manufacturing and furniture...

418 robots have been installed at Vauxhall Motors’ plant in Luton as part of a £136 million refurbishment project to prepare the factory for the launch of the new Vectra. The bulk of the robots are employed in the body‐in‐white area, with 50 per cent performing handling operations and the...

Describes the work undertaken by Oxford University’s robotics group, founded in 1985 by Professor Mike Brady. States that these university scientists have their feet firmly on the ground and illustrates this by giving details of a number of industrially‐sponsored projects with which they are...

Looks at the employment of robots at Triumph Motorcycles, detailing the areas in which they are used and how they are beneficial.