NexCOBOT Leverages Intel® Vision Accelerator Design Products to Deliver Robotics with AI for Industry 4.0

Advancing industrial optimization and automation via the integration of machine vision and AI

Executive summary

Robots play a major role in making manufacturing processes more efficient and less labor intensive. They can help control costs and improve quality, as well as increase productivity. The complexity of robotic system design, however, creates obstacles for many manufacturers, and this is made more difficult by the need to identify and integrate subsystems from multiple vendors.

NexCOBOT, a NEXCOM company, offers a flexible, modular robotics solution integrating artificial intelligence (AI) with machine vision and powered by the new Intel^® Vision Accelerator Design products. The solution brings together the insight of artificial intelligence, the mobility of robotics, and the capabilities of machine vision, providing a new level of precision and optimization for manufacturing and industrial implementations.

Challenges

Increasing automation is key for optimizing manufacturing operations across diverse industries. Traditional machine vision has its limitations, however— typically, it can only conduct defect detection and classification based on fixed rules and work in fixed environments. For example, variations in lighting or the presence of partial obstructions like dust or grease can negatively impact accuracy and quality. The introduction of AI-based approaches makes robotics more flexible, bringing better immunity to changing environmental conditions and the freedom to handle a wide range of inspection tasks. Robotic automation processes can be upgraded with vision systems to handle more complicated tasks. While the benefits of modern AI approaches are clear, integrating such capabilities into traditional machine vision processes can be complex.

As the need for industrial robots continues to rise, so do the demands for components to complete a robotic solution. These components, however, may vary between vendors and customers, making it difficult to standardize and deliver intelligent robotics solutions.

Solution

The future of robot and machine solutions is a production environment where devices, machines, robots, and sensors are interoperable. NexCOBOT integrates AI-driven vision capabilities into robotics to improve quality and accuracy over traditional machine vision-as well as deliver new levels of flexibility to industrial operations. In a recent pilot, NexCOBOT demonstrates two robots with AI vision conducting automotive assembly. This example of low-volume, high-mix manufacturing requires high levels of customization and flexibility. Patterns, colors, and the shape and arrangement of LED modules change frequently.

The solution brief was created by Intel^® Corporation. To read the full story, please download the PDF.