PI names Markus Spanner CEO

After 42 years as managing director, Dr. Karl Spanner has handed over the management of Physik Instrumente (PI) to his son, Markus Spanner. Markus formerly served as PI’s managing director of finance and control. In his new role, he has established an extended management team to take a structured approach to achieving new targets. He will be assisted by Dr. Peter Schittenhelm (COO), Dr. Markus Czanta (CTO), Stéphane Bussa (CSO), and Heiko Brehm (CFO).

PI USA
https://www.pi-usa.us

North American robot orders up in 2019

The Robotic Industries Association (RIA), part of the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), announced 2019 North American robot unit orders up 1.6% compared to 2018, with 29,988 units ordered. In 2019, order revenue was down 1.3%, closing the year at $1.68 billion.

Q4 of 2019 was the weakest quarter of the year with 6,094 robotic units ordered, valued at $374 million. This represented a decrease of 10.4% in orders and 4.2% in revenue compared to Q4 in 2018.

“While 2019 was a challenging year, and the outlook for growth in 2020 is murky, we’re still seeing growing interest in automation technologies and solutions that will lead to continued future growth,” says Jeff Burnstein, A3 & RIA president.

Robotic Industries Association (RIA)
https://www.robotics.org

Robotic exoskeleton software

An upgraded version of the EksoPulse platform, a cloud-based information technology solution, measures and analyzes progress using the EksoNR robotic exoskeleton. The analytics system provides a dashboard to chart activity in rehabilitation sessions.

EksoPulse allows physicians to track and personalize patient care with EksoNR. During rehabilitation sessions, it measures patient progress including the number of steps, quality of steps, and how much assistance was given to a patient. The data are then synchronized wirelessly and transmitted to Ekso’s cloud-based system.

The EksoPulse portal allows clinicians to view a dashboard and produce reports to analyze and track progress. With this information, physical therapists and physicians can adjust care plans for recovery.

Healthcare administrators can also use the portal to measure overall use of the EksoNR device in their facility.

Eskobionics
https://eksobionics.com

Medical-grade robots

Stericlean ultra-hygienic robots meet stringent cleanroom standards, including compatibility with liquid or vaporized hydrogen peroxide decontamination. The robots are suitable for ISO Class 4 cleanroom environments.

The selective compliance assembly robot arm (SCARA) robots can use NSF H1 food-grade oil to safely lubricate each axis without comprising performance. These axes are put in motion by JCS drive technology on all models, facilitating high-speed motion and high repeatability for ultra-short cycle times. The seals and surface treatment, combined with the ability to pass all connections through the base and inside the arm, enable shorter decontamination cycles in controlled/aseptic environment and laboratory integration of all the 4- and 6-axis Stericlean models.

Stäubli North America
https://www.staubli.com