Automation

Concrete-printing robots have become an advanced technology in the construction industry that allows the creation of complex structures, while saving materials and shortening construction time compared to traditional methods. With the structure of a concrete 3D printing robot using a concrete extruder with a screw, this mechanism provides stable flow of concrete, and less pressure fluctuation. However, using a large mass extruder changes the inertia of the joint and the mass coefficient of the arm when the mass changes, leading to a position error. With the high demands for precision and stability in the operation of 3D concrete printing robots, advanced control methods have become essential to ensure trajectory tracking and robustness in complex real-world environments. This study provides a sliding mode controller with an error and integral, and derivatives are introduced into the sliding surface to improve the stability of the robot without chattering. The controller exhibits fast convergence times and small trajectory tracking errors, at less than 0.1 mm. Simulation results show that this controller is suitable for concrete 3D printing applications, and the controller exhibits fast and good responses to continuously changing extruder mass. This enables the robot to track the expected trajectory with high accuracy. Full article

The integration of 3D printing technologies in automated manufacturing systems marks a significant progression in the manufacturing industry, enabling elevated degrees of customization, efficiency, and sustainability. This paper explores the synergy between 3D printing and automation by conducting a critical literature review combined with case study analysis, focusing on their roles in enhancing production lines within the framework of Industry 4.0 and smart factories. Key opportunities presented by this integration include mass customization at scale, reduced material waste, and improved just-in-time manufacturing processes. However, challenges related to quality control, scalability, and workforce adaptation remain critical issues that require careful consideration. The study also examines the emerging role of hybrid manufacturing systems that combine additive and subtractive processes, alongside the growing need for standardized regulations and frameworks to ensure consistency and safety. Case studies are highlighted, showcasing real-world applications of automated 3D printing technologies and AI-driven print optimization techniques. In conclusion, this paper contributes to advancing the scholarly understanding of automated 3D printing by synthesizing technical, organizational, and regulatory insights and outlining future trajectories for sustainable and agile production ecosystems. Full article

Static Timing Analysis (STA) plays a crucial role in realizing timing convergence of integrated circuits. In recent years, there has been growing research on pre-routing timing prediction using Graph Neural Networks (GNNs). However, existing approaches struggle with scalability on large graphs and lack generalizability to new designs, limiting their applicability to large-scale, complex circuit problems. To address this issue, this paper proposes a timing engine based on Graph Attention Network (GAT) to predict the slack of timing endpoints. Firstly, our model computes net embeddings for each node prior to training using a gated self-attention module. Subsequently, inspired by the Nonlinear Delay Model (NLDM), the node embeddings are propagated through multiple levels by alternately applying net propagation layers and cell propagation layers. Evaluated on 21 real circuits, the framework achieved a 16.62% improvement in average $R^2$ score for slack prediction and a 15.55% reduction in runtime compared to the state-of-the-art (SOTA) method. Full article

The energy consumption of rotary-wing unmanned aerial vehicles has become an important factor restricting their long-term application. This article focuses on decoupling the motion channel and reducing control energy consumption, and proposes a decoupling controller based on dynamic inversion for the complete dynamics of quadcopter unmanned aerial vehicles. Firstly, we design a direct closed-loop feedback controller for the z-channel to exhibit second-order linear dynamic characteristics with adjustable parameters. Then, the specific functions of pitch angle and yaw angle are combined as virtual control variables for the comprehensive decoupling design of the x-direction and y-direction, so that the x-channel and y-channel also exhibit independent parameter-adjustable second-order linear dynamic characteristics. Next, by solving the actual control variables, a fast convergence system is dynamically formed by the deviation between the virtual control variables and their actual values, ensuring that the specific function combination of pitch angle and yaw angle quickly converges to the expected value. Finally, the effectiveness and low energy consumption control characteristics of the decoupling control scheme were demonstrated through simulation comparison with other control methods (such as classical PID) in terms of energy consumption. Full article

Given the growing need to enhance the accuracy of exploration robots, this study focuses on designing a teleoperated navigation system for a robot equipped with a continuous-track traction system. The goal was to improve navigation performance by developing mathematical models that describe the robot’s behavior, which were validated through experimental measurements. The system incorporates a digital twin based on ROS (Robot Operating System) to configure the nodes responsible for teleoperated navigation. A PID controller is implemented for each motor, with zero-pole cancellation to achieve first-order dynamics, and anti-windup to prevent integral error accumulation when the reference is not met. Finally, a physical implementation was carried out to validate the functionality of the proposed navigation system. The results demonstrated that the system ensured precise and stable navigation, highlighting the effectiveness of the proposed approach in dynamic environments. This work contributes to advancing robotic navigation in controlled environments and offers potential for improving teleoperation systems in more complex scenarios. Full article

Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) have emerged as key enablers of autonomous maritime operations, offering innovative solutions across multiple industries, including defense, oceanography, offshore energy, and logistics. This review examines the current state of operative USVs, analyzing their technological evolution, design characteristics, and applications. The study highlights trends in autonomy, propulsion, endurance, and communication technologies, providing insights based on market-ready platforms. While USVs present significant advantages in terms of efficiency and operational safety, challenges such as regulatory constraints, cybersecurity risks, and limitations in autonomous decision-making persist. This paper aims to update researchers, policymakers, and industry stakeholders on the technological advancements and emerging trends shaping the future of unmanned vehicles. Full article

This paper compares the performance of Deep Learning (DL) and multi-template matching (MTM) models for detecting small defects. DL models extract distinguishing features of objects but require a large dataset of images. In contrast, alternative computer vision techniques like MTM need a relatively small dataset. The lack of large datasets for small metal-surface defects has inhibited the adoption of automation in small-defect detection in remanufacturing settings. This motivated this preliminary study to compare template-based approaches, like MTM, with feature-based approaches, such as DL models, for small-defect detection on an initial laboratory and remanufacturing industry dataset. This study used You Only Look Once v5 (YOLOv5) as the DL model and compared its performance against the MTM model for small-crack detection. The findings of our preliminary investigation are as follows: (i) YOLOv5 demonstrated higher performance than MTM in detecting small cracks; (ii) an extra-large variant of YOLOv5 outperformed a small-size variant; (iii) the size and object variety of the data are crucial in achieving robust pre-trained weights for use in transfer learning; and (iv) enhanced image resolution contributes to precise object detection. Full article

A suspended cable-driven parallel robot is a type of lightweight large-span parallel robot. The stability and control of this multi-input multi-output robot are studied in this work to overcome its inherited vulnerability to disturbance. An adaptive fuzzy synergetic controller is proposed to overcome these issues, combining synergetic control theory with adaptive fuzzy logic to ensure robust trajectory tracking. The parameters of the controller are optimized using the Dragonfly Algorithm, a metaheuristic technique known for its simplicity and fast convergence. The adaptive fuzzy synergetic controller is tested on a suspended cable-driven parallel robot model under both disturbance-free and disturbed conditions, demonstrating global asymptotic stability and superior tracking accuracy compared to existing controllers. Simulation results show the proposed controller achieves minimal tracking error and improved robustness in the presence of dynamic uncertainties, validating its practical applicability in industrial scenarios. The findings highlight the effectiveness of integrating synergetic control, fuzzy logic adaptation, and optimization for enhancing the performance and reliability of suspended cable-driven parallel robots. Full article

Rotating machines predominantly operate under healthy conditions, leading to a limited availability of fault data and a significant class imbalance in diagnostic datasets. These challenges hinder the development and deployment of fault diagnosis methods based on deep learning in practice. Considering these issues, a novel hierarchical adaptive wavelet-guided adversarial network with physics-informed regularization (HAWAN-PIR) is proposed. First, a hierarchical wavelet-based imbalance severity score is used to quantify the data imbalance within the datasets. Second, HAWAN-PIR generates synthetic fault data in the time domain via multiscale wavelet decomposition and represents the first attempt to embed physics-informed regularization to incorporate relevant fault knowledge. The quality of the synthetic fault data is then evaluated via a comprehensive multiscale synthesis quality index. Furthermore, a scale-aware dynamic mixing algorithm is proposed to optimally integrate synthetic data with real data. Finally, a one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1-D CNN) is employed for extracting features and classifying faults. The effectiveness of the proposed method is validated through two case studies: motor bearings and planetary gearboxes. The results show that HAWAN-PIR can synthesize high-quality fake data and improve the diagnostic accuracy of the 1-D CNN by 17% for the bearing case and 15% for the gearbox case. Full article

This paper presents a novel Hybrid Artificial Protozoa Optimizer with Differential Evolution (HPDE), combining the biologically inspired principles of the Artificial Protozoa Optimizer (APO) with the powerful optimization strategies of Differential Evolution (DE) to address complex and engineering design challenges. The HPDE algorithm is designed to balance exploration and exploitation features, utilizing innovative features such as autotrophic and heterotrophic foraging behaviors, dormancy, and reproduction processes alongside the DE strategy. The performance of HPDE was evaluated on the CEC2014 benchmark functions, and it was compared against two sets of state-of-the-art optimizers comprising 23 different algorithms. The results demonstrate HPDE’s good performance, outperforming competitors in 24 functions out of 30 from the first set and 23 functions from the second set. Additionally, HPDE has been successfully applied to a range of complex engineering design problems, including robot gripper optimization, welded beam design optimization, pressure vessel design optimization, spring design optimization, speed reducer design optimization, cantilever beam design optimization, and three-bar truss design optimization. The results consistently showcase HPDE’s good performance in solving these engineering problems when compared with the competing algorithms. Full article

Autonomous navigation is essential for mobile robots to efficiently operate in complex environments. This study investigates Q-learning and Deep Q-learning to improve navigation performance. The research examines their effectiveness in complex maze configurations, focusing on how the epsilon-greedy strategy influences the agent’s ability to reach its goal in minimal time using Q-learning. A distinctive aspect of this work is the adaptive tuning of hyperparameters, where alpha and gamma values are dynamically adjusted throughout training. This eliminates the need for manually fixed parameters and enables the learning algorithm to automatically determine optimal values, ensuring adaptability to diverse environments rather than being constrained to specific cases. By integrating neural networks, Deep Q-learning enhances decision-making in complex navigation tasks. Simulations carried out in MATLAB environments validate the proposed approach, illustrating its effectiveness in resource-constrained systems while preserving robust and efficient decision-making. Experimental results demonstrate that adaptive hyperparameter tuning significantly improves learning efficiency, leading to faster convergence and reduced navigation time. Additionally, Deep Q-learning exhibits superior performance in complex environments, showcasing enhanced decision-making capabilities in high-dimensional state spaces. These findings highlight the advantages of reinforcement learning-based navigation and emphasize how adaptive exploration strategies and dynamic parameter adjustments enhance performance across diverse scenarios. Full article

The present paper proposes a new Maximum Torque Per Ampere (MTPA) algorithm applied to sensorless speed control for the Synchronous Reluctance Machine (SynRM). The SynRM mathematical model is suitably modified and expressed in the γδ estimated reference frame, which could be applied in sensorless implementations. In the controller–observer scheme, an MTPA controller is coupled with a sliding mode observer (SMO) of first order. The provided equivalent control inputs are directly utilized by a modified EMF observer to estimate the rotor speed and position. Also, the MTPA control, SMO, and modified EMF observer are accordingly expressed in the γδ reference frame. In the duration of the SynRM operation, the developed MTPA algorithm succeeds in adjusting both stator current components in the γ-axis and δ-axis to the maximum torque point, while the SMO converges rapidly, achieving the coincidence between the γδ and dq reference frames. In addition, a simple torque decoupling technique is used to determine the γ-axis and δ-axis reference currents connected with the Anti-Windup Controller (AWC) for stator current control. Despite conventional MTPA methods, the proposed MTPA control strategy is designed to be robust in a wide speed range, exhibiting a high dynamic performance, regardless of the presence of external torque disturbances, reference speed variation, and even current measurement noise. The performance of the overall observer–control system is examined and evaluated using MATLAB/Simulink and considering noisy current feedback. Simulation results demonstrate the robustness and effectiveness of the proposed MTPA-based control method. Full article

To be successful in a circular economy, it is important to keep the cost of operationalizing remanufacturing processes low in order to retain as much value of the product as possible. Optimizing operations for disassembly, as a key process step, is therefore an important prerequisite for economically viable circular manufacturing. The generation of fit-to-resource disassembly instructions is labor-intensive and challenging because (digital) product information is often lacking at End-of-Life. With upcoming EU regulations for Eco-design for Sustainable Products in mind, including the future use of Digital Product Passports, it is time to think about standardized methods to capture disassembly information for products. First requirements from small and medium-sized remanufacturing companies have been collected and compared with available frameworks for modeling product topology, parameters, and (dis)assembly process rationale. Based on this, the disassembly hypergraph is presented as a concept for recording ‘resource-agnostic disassembly guides’ in (machine-readable) product models to determine required disassembly actions and tools ‘smartly’. The concept builds upon existing models. Additionally, suitable methods for the collection of disassembly information are explored, resulting in preliminary insights from disassembly data collection workshops. Although the approach is promising, future work is needed to expand the concept of the disassembly hypergraph with both guidelines for setting up disassembly ontologies and further systematic disassembly knowledge extraction in order to apply this as a useful means for companies to rationalize their disassembly operations. Full article

Integrating futuristic humanoids like Tesla Optimus into supply chain operations represents groundbreaking automation and workforce efficiency innovation. This study investigates the potential of humanoids to address critical supply chain challenges, such as labor shortages, rising operational costs, and the demand for sustainable practices. Considering its ability to handle worker-intensive, hazardous, and repetitive duties, humanoids could offer an alternative to business challenges like inefficient operations, health and safety concerns, and worker shortages. Intelligent robotics plays an essential role in improving productivity, supporting sustainability, and transforming workforce dynamics as supply chains become increasingly complex. The study examines the effects of humanoids on workforce reallocation, manufacturing sustainability, and supply chain productivity. The current research reviews the usefulness, advantages, and downsides of integrating humanoids into supply chains. This study uses a mixed-method approach, incorporating case studies, qualitative productivity data, and expert interviews. According to Tesla, Optimus could significantly enhance supply chain efficiency by reducing error rates, streamlining workflows, and enabling 24/7 operations. It could also help meet sustainability goals by lowering waste and energy consumption. The study limits Tesla’s experience, modern technologies, and inadequate information from various industrial and geographical contexts. However, this study will be eye-opening for industries requiring such humanoid robots for their operations. Additional studies need to deal with factors like high implementation expenses, potential job displacement, and flexibility in changing supply chain demands. While focused on Tesla, this study provides insights that can inform broader applications of humanoid robotics in supply chains across industries. This study presents an in-depth review of humanoid involvement in developing future supply chain models. It also offers helpful knowledge that will assist industries in considering adopting comparable robotic integration as a strategic decision. Full article

This paper presents a method for position correction in collaborative robots, applied to a case study in an industrial environment. The case study is aligned with the GreenAuto project and aims to optimize industrial processes through the integration of various hardware elements. The case study focuses on tightening a specific number of nuts onto bolts located on a partition plate, referred to as “Cloison”, which is mounted on commercial vans produced by Stellantis, to secure the plate. The main challenge lies in deviations that may occur in the plate during its assembly process, leading to uncertainties in its fastening to the vehicles. To address this and optimize the process, a collaborative robot was integrated with a 3D vision system and a screwdriving system. By using the 3D vision system, it is possible to determine the bolts’ positions and adjust them within the robot’s frame of reference, enabling the screwdriving system to tighten the nuts accurately. Thus, the proposed method aims to integrate these different systems to tighten the nuts effectively, regardless of the deviations that may arise in the plate during assembly. Full article

Soft robots have shown great application potential in human–computer interaction, scientific exploration, and biomedical fields. However, they generally face issues like poor load capacity. Inspired by the propagation and movement mechanisms of ocean waves, this study proposes a novel type of pneumatically driven crawling soft robot. An automated pneumatic drive system was first constructed for driving and controlling the crawling soft robot, and then the soft robot body was made using additive manufacturing and silicone molding. Experimental testing of the robot’s performance revealed that it can move efficiently on surfaces with varying friction coefficients and has a strong load-bearing capacity. This work is expected to provide a reference for the design of other soft robots. Full article

The paper puts forth a methodology for the arrangement of calculation control at the outputs of combinational digital devices based on utilizing multiple diagnostic features. The first diagnostic feature is the belonging of the formed codewords to a pre-selected weight-based sum code. The second and third diagnostic features are the control of calculations by the belonging of calculated functions describing data and checking bits of sum codes to the class of self-dual and related functions. The arrangement of calculation control by multiple diagnostic features is founded upon the implementation of Boolean signal correction during the synthesis of the embedded control circuit. This is conducted in consideration of the established characteristics of weight-based sum codes, wherein the functions describing their checking bits exhibit identical values on pairs of data vectors inversed in all bits (these are the so-called self-quasidual functions). The utilization of Boolean signal correction on the orthogonal to all input variable combinations enables the additional determination of correction function values. This ensures the self-duality of functions describing data bits and, consequently, the self-quasiduality of functions describing checking bits. The paper proposes a structure for arranging the calculation control in accordance with the three specified diagnostic features. Furthermore, it develops the algorithm of correction function additional determination that underlies the synthesis of the embedded control circuit. It should be noted that the algorithm does not require the analysis of the values of functions calculated at the outputs of the object of diagnostics; instead, it automatically allows for the performance of additional determinations. This facilitates its utilization when integrated with computer-aided logic design systems. The paper presents a case study of the process of obtaining correction functions and simulates the operation of the synthesized self-checking device, thereby demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed method. Full article

Autonomous vehicles (AVs) have revolutionized the automotive industry by leveraging data to perceive and interact with their environment effectively. Data safety is essential for supporting AV decision-making and ensuring reliability in complex environments. AVs continuously collect data from multiple sources like LiDAR, RADAR, cameras, and ultrasonic sensors to monitor road conditions, traffic signals, and pedestrian movements. An effective data classification framework is crucial for managing vast amounts of information and securing AV systems against cyber threats. This paper proposes a comprehensive framework for AV data classification, categorizing data by sensitivity, usage, and source. By integrating a review of the literature, real-world cases, and practical insights, this study introduces a novel data classification model and explores sensitivity criteria. The findings aim to assist industry stakeholders in creating secure, efficient, and sustainable AV ecosystems. Full article

Manufacturers increasingly turn to robotic gripper designs to improve the efficiency of gripping and moving objects and provide greater flexibility to these objects. Neuro-fuzzy techniques are the most widespread in developing gripper designs. In this study, the traditional gripper design is modified by adding a suitable cam that makes it compatible with the basic design, and an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) is used in a MATLAB Simulink environment. The developed gripper investigates the follower path concerning the cam surface curve, and the gripper position is controlled using the developed ANFIS-PID. Three methods are examined in the developed ANFIS-PID controller: grid partitioning (genfis1), subtractive clustering (genfis2), and fuzzy C-means clustering (genfis3). The results show that the added cam can improve the gripping strength and that the ANFIS-PID model effectively handles the rise time and supported settling time. The developed ANFIS-PID controller demonstrates more efficient performance than Fuzzy-PID and traditional tuned-PID controllers. This proposed controller does not achieve any overshoot, and the rise time is improved by approximately 50–51%, and the steady-state error is improved by 75–95%, compared with Fuzzy-PID and tuned PID controllers. Moreover, the developed ANFIS-PID controller provides more stability for a wide range of set point displacements—0.05 cm, 0.5 cm, and 1.5 cm—during the testing period. The developed ANFIS-PID controller is not affected by disturbance, making it well suited for robotic gripper designs. Grip force control is also investigated using the proposed ANFIS-PID controller and compared with the Fuzzy-PID in three scenarios. The result from this force control proves objects’ higher actual gripping performance by using the proposed ANFIS-PID. Full article