drive.tech | maxon's corporate blog about drive technology

From oil & gas installations to submarines, structures operating in deep sea conditions need regular inspection. Remote operated vehicles (ROVs) make this process much safer and less expensive, and they rely on scanning technology, which is crucial to data collection. Precise motion control is helping a new subsea inspection device achieve highly accurate inspection with the fastest-yet speeds of data collection.

How can we fully integrate robots into our daily lives in the near future? This challenge is currently being addressed by French startup Enchanted Tools. Founded by Jérôme Monceaux, who had already helped create the robots Pepper and Nao, Enchanted Tools recently unveiled Miroki, the prototype of a new generation of humanoid robots that are both wondrous and useful.

Hanging laundry, making breakfast, emptying a dishwasher, holding a pan handle, finding keys in a bag while being equipped with a prosthesis? Meet Nathanaël Jarrassé, CNRS research fellow at ISIR and manager of the Smart ArM project, which is based on maxon technologies, before the Cybathlon Challenges 2023.

With the use of the right motor, a miniature diaphragm vacuum pump keeps artificial legs in place—eliminating the need for straps and belts—making life simpler and less stressful for users.

As laboratories become increasingly automated, having the right robots able to select tools and perform precision operations becomes very important.

It takes a high-tech vision system, machine learning technology and the right motors to produce this weeding robotics system for commercial vegetable cultivating.

54% of children with cerebral palsy can walk unaided, 16% require special devices to walk, and 30% are not able to walk at the age of five. To address this situation, a team of research professors at Junia has been working for several years on the European research project MOTION, to create an exoskeleton for children with cerebral palsy who cannot walk.

Remote offshore installations, dusty mines, dirty sewers: environments made by people for people. Yet operating them is dangerous. The solution? The robotic dog from ANYbotics, which can carry out inspections autonomously. We went to Zurich to visit one of the biggest robotics teams in Europe.

The goal achieved was to provide an intelligent, data-driven treatment therapy for dealing with neurological and musculoskeletal movement impairments.

Wherever it goes, it is sure to attract attention. The red walking robot ANYmal provokes a reaction, which is why it also made it to the cover of the maxon magazine driven – representing the ever-increasing number of inspection robots worldwide.

As part of a focus project at ETH Zurich, eight Bachelor students built a flying manipulator that can hover in any orientation and grasp objects. The drone is even more maneuverable than a quadrocopter and has been designed with the aim of pushing aerial robotics to new heights.

Graduate students at the National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) have developed an improved exoskeleton design using maxon brushless DC motors and motor controllers.

Blueprint Lab designs and manufactures products that operate in the harsh environment of the ocean floor. Since time is a crucial factor in the design process, the engineers configure their motors and gears online.

CubeRover, engineered by Astrobotic’s Planetary Mobility department, was designed to offer an affordable service used to carry and operate diverse scientific instruments and payloads on the surface of the moon.

maxon has developed a new drive system for the AGV market. Our experts explain what's behind it.