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WiBotic in the present day unveiled a brand new 1kW wi-fi charging product for larger-capacity battery programs. The Seattle-based firm has made a reputation for itself within the cellular robotics market by offering contactless charging as an aftermarket various to OEM contact-based altering programs. The prior product hyperlink included 150-watt, 250-watt, and 300-watt wi-fi charging choices.
The brand new higher-power 1kW system can function from any 110V 15A circuit or better, stated WiBotic. A 15A circuit gives about 1.5kW, so its transmitter can ship sufficient power via the wi-fi system to the battery, it defined, however a 20A or 30A breaker could be wanted to plug a number of items into the identical outlet.
The WiBotic Commander software program will handle the charging present primarily based on supply energy circuit traits, in order to not journey a facility energy circuit.
WiBotic says contactless charging guarantees advantages
The benefit of shifting from contact charging to wi-fi charging is twofold, in accordance with WiBotic.
First, with contact charging, programs have to be manually linked and disconnected to the charger, it stated. Some automated guided automobile (AGV) and self-driving automobile producers present autonomous contact chargers, however these programs use proprietary connectors.
Finish customers that deploy cellular robots with contact chargers from a couple of OEM will in the end find yourself with a wall of devoted charging stations that may solely be utilized by particular robots. That is inefficient and takes up essential facility flooring area, the company famous.
“WiBotic’s new wi-fi 1kW charging platform enhances operations,” acknowledged Peter King, vp of Cypher Robotics Inc., an Ottowa-based supplier of warehouse AMRs and drones.
“We’ve efficiently deployed WiBotic chargers for patrons in a spread of functions and in some tough environmental circumstances — however traditionally solely in functions the place in a single day charging was potential,” he stated. “With the brand new 1kW system, robots will cost at 3 times the earlier pace, opening up an entire new set of functions the place quick and ultra-reliable charging is required.”
The second benefit of wi-fi charging is within the uniformity of the charging infrastructure, stated WiBotic. Any accessible wi-fi charger station in a facility can be utilized by any robotic within the fleet in want of a recharge.
Relying on the variety of cellular robots in an finish person’s fleet, this idea can vastly simplify the charging course of, claimed the corporate. Facility operators can place wi-fi charging stations at numerous websites to allow them to utilized by any autonomous cellular robots (AMRs).
Wi-fi communication for operational information
When retrofitting a cellular robotic with the WiBotic charging system, a sensible charger controller unit must be put in onto the AMR. This good charger autonomously manages the facility switch from the wi-fi charging pad to the cellular robotic unit.
WiBotic has an open API [application programming interface] that allows an AMR to simply talk with the onboard good charger.
The good charger then wirelessly communicates with the powered pad to manage the circulation of power wirelessly between the supply pad and the onboard energy receiver. With the brand new 1 kW energy system, it might switch extra power, extra shortly, to bigger cellular robots, stated WiBotic.
Utilizing a proprietary wi-fi communication channel, the onboard charger may also relay statistical info and different information, not solely in regards to the onboard battery, but additionally from the robotic controller. This information dump is separate from any Wi-Fi or 5G communication connection to the robotic and gives OEMs with another choice for information switch and communications.
Ben Waters, co-founder and CEO of WiBotic, described the good communication characteristic:
“This higher-power product permits us to get into markets that aren’t robotic, machines like carton handlers, pallet jacks, and floor-cleaning automobiles. There are numerous battery-powered automobiles on the market in the present day that aren’t but robotic or autonomous. They’re simply dumb units within the sense that they don’t seem to be linked units, and OEMs don’t have a option to remotely speak to them. By including wi-fi charging to their units, in addition they now can talk information from the units. It may be a easy diagnostic, like: ‘What number of hours does my flooring scrubber have on it?’”
The corporate has additionally developed its personal administration software program, WiBotic Commander. Prospects can simply monitor the charging standing and battery well being of total fleets of robots in actual time. Charging procedures can then be applied proactively to differ cost present and voltage to dramatically improve battery lifespan.
Whereas finish customers can buy and deploy the wi-fi chargers, WiBotic has targeted on constructing relationships with OEMs and serving to to combine their cellular robotic controllers to the WiBotic energy controller. The WiBotic controller may also work with contact chargers, offering cost administration choices for any cellular robotic energy want.
“We [primarily] work with two sorts of prospects,” stated Matt Carlson, vp of enterprise improvement at WiBotic. “We work with the OEMs providing the robots as a service, however they’re the corporate who builds the robotic, after which they supply it to the top buyer. So with these prospects, we work with their engineering groups very carefully.”
“In some instances, we work with the top buyer, the place they may function a number of robots or various kinds of carts,” he added. “And for one purpose or one other, charging is a large downside for them. It’s a giant price as a result of on the finish of every single day, some worker has to cost all of the batteries on all the robots, to arrange for the following day.”
Greater-frequency charging helps forestall inductive heating
One other key characteristic of WiBotic’s system, in accordance with Waters, is that it makes use of larger radio frequencies for power switch than a few of its rivals.
“A few of these inductive programs function at a decrease frequency, sometimes between 50 and 200 kilohertz,” he informed The Robot Report. “WiBotic makes use of 6.78 megahertz, which remains to be manner beneath all of your Wi-Fi [communication].”
WiBotic stated its platform reduces security dangers from electrical shorts and hearth threat from sparking throughout contacts, making it appropriate for environments the place grime, mud, water or corrosion can result in failed charging cycles.
“However there are some vital technical benefits, particularly on the larger energy ranges,” stated Waters. “One is that we don’t warmth overseas objects. Inductive heating programs are additionally on this vary, so if there’s some free steel round, it might warmth up [as a side effect]. Lots of [our competitors] have very strong overseas object detection, which is nice. It will forestall steel objects from heating up, however it’s going to cease charging.”
“So working on the larger frequency and including in among the issues that we do round our adaptive tuning [means] we don’t have this phenomenon of heating steel objects,” he stated.
WiBotic plans to exhibit its new 1kW system at Sales space 4087 close to the ARM Demo Space at Automate in Chicago subsequent week.
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