IoT News

Image from KUKA of a mobile harvesting robot in action

Mobile robots revolutionise apple harvesting for fruit farmers

KUKA, in collaboration with the Upper Bavarian company digital workbench, launched a cooperation at Agritechnica, a trade fair for the agricultural sector in Hanover, Germany. The primary objective of the collaboration is to boost assistance with the deployment of a mobile harvesting robot to support fruit farmers during the apple harvest.

“Both companies are contributing one of their most innovative new developments for automation in fruit growing to this cooperation,” Josef Schmidt, a founder and managing director of digital workbench gmbh, said. “With KUKA, we have an absolute specialist with many years of experience and sophisticated know-how in the field of robotics at our side. The result is a practice oriented collaboration that will provide us with many valuable insights for our next development steps with regard to automation in fruit growing.”

Schmidt added that “In the future, we want to test and further develop the interaction of our equipment and exploit synergies, especially with regard to apple cultivation. We are very much looking forward to this.”

Two KUKA small robots from the KR AGILUS series are mounted on the new Tipard 1800 multi-carrier platform from digital workbench.  In a pilot project that has been running since 2020, KUKA is already testing a customised version of the small robot specifically for apple harvesting. With a vacuum suction cup combined with artificial intelligence and vision technology, the extremely manoeuvrable precision artist has been used in harvesting test runs.

Compared to a conventional gripper, the vacuum suction cup can distribute the pressure more evenly over the surface of the apple and thus avoid unwanted pressure points. Cameras recognize important parameters such as ripeness, condition and size and, of course, the position of the apple. The carrier platform presented at the trade fair impresses above all with its high performance and almost endless multifunctionality. In addition, the Tipard 1800 takes digitization and automation to a whole new level.

Harvesting robots provide support where skilled workers are lacking 

In future, the robot arms will move autonomously across the fruit fields in specific practical projects. The mobile and smart automation solution of the two cooperation partners will then be used where previously harvesting machines with several harvesting assistants were used.

“We assume that harvesting robots will be used more and more in the future,” Alois Buchstab, a vice president at KUKA Business Development, said. “The technology still needs to mature for large-scale use and the plantations also need to be planted in such a way that the harvesting robot can work efficiently.”

The aim is to work with a digital workbench to develop a robot system that makes the most difficult tasks in agriculture easier. An automatic apple harvesting system that does not damage the crop is an important development in an industry that is dependent on seasonal labour. For KUKA and digital workbench, the key therefore lies in automation.

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November 23, 2023

Posted by: Anna Ribeiro

Cellhire expands team with channel development hires

Cellhire, has announced the expansion of its channel development team. The growing business has appointed Kevin Foley as channel development manager – mobile, and James Howard as channel development manager – IoT.

Foley joins Cellhire to support its mobile business in the channel while Howard will be focusing on supporting partners who are expanding into the IoT space.

“I’m pleased to welcome Kevin and James to our team,” said Matt Bennett, a managing director at Cellhire. “Their wealth of experience and industry knowledge will strengthen our channel development efforts. With their expertise, Cellhire is well-positioned to further enhance our offerings and provide exceptional services to our partners.”

Foley brings over two decades of telecoms expertise, including a decade as an account manager for Cable and Wireless and BT, where he drove sales of fixed line, data, Mitel and Avaya in the corporate business space.

Foley then migrated to the channel, spending the last 10 years working with partners including Vodafone, Daisy and Giacom (DWS). His deep understanding of the industry will play a vital role in expanding Cellhire’s partner base in the UK.

“I’m looking forward to helping both new and existing partners with our voice and data solutions, during what is a period of rapid growth at Cellhire,” said Foley.

Howard brings extensive experience to his new role, having worked in the channel since 1996. His background includes working with companies such as HPE, Apple and Adobe.

“The potential for adding IoT connectivity to the portfolio of indirect channel partners is immense,” he said. “It will be great to be working with a diverse range of businesses, such as IT VARs, system integrators and managed service providers, to showcase the possibilities of Cellhire’s IoT offerings.”

Howard’s skills for channel sales and innovation led him to work with various start-up companies, where he honed his abilities and understanding of the diverse marketplace. He will contribute to Cellhire’s strategic growth in IoT, using his expertise to drive change and innovation.

Over the last five years, Cellhire has become an important figure in the partner channel and IoT market. It has established itself as an MVNO on the Orange France network and as an ISP for Vodafone, EE and O2, and its white-labelled SIM management and ATLAS Billing systems are popular with partners in the channel.

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November 22, 2023

Posted by: Magda Dabrowska

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LocatorX names Laura Garrison as chief technology officer

LocatorX appoints Laura Garrison as its new chief technology officer. With a distinguished career of transformative success, Garrison will drive the company’s product strategy through its next phase of advancement and growth. (more…)

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November 15, 2023

Posted by: Magda Dabrowska

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Nokia and TATA Play Fiber to launch WiFi6-ready broadband in India

Nokia has announced that it has entered into an agreement with TATA Play Fiber to launch one of India’s first WiFi6-ready broadband network. With increasing broadband usage in both residential and enterprise areas, there is a demand for new, high-capacity broadband connections. To meet this demand, broadband networks need future proof fibre and in-home services that can scale in line with evolving end-customer needs. (more…)

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October 27, 2023

Posted by: Magda Dabrowska

global business internet network connection iot internet things business intelligence concept

Kerlink and Avnet partner to expand LoRaWAN technology reach in APAC

Kerlink has announced a master distributor agreement with Avnet in Asia-Pacific (APAC). Kerlink solutions portfolio will be offered to Avnet’s customer base in the region and integrated into Avnet’s IoT (Internet of Things) solution-accelerator software platform, IoTConnect. (more…)

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October 5, 2023

Posted by: Magda Dabrowska

a woman facing away from us, olding a phone, over this theres a network of white lines and dots.

Skylo Technologies and O² Telefónica partner to enable IoT roaming

Skylo Technologies has announced its partnership with O² Telefónica. Together, the companies will enable businesses to roam ‘seamlessly and transparently’ between terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks (NTN) on IoT devices. (more…)

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September 28, 2023

Posted by: Magda Dabrowska

Smart Street lamps to enhance UK cities with electric vehicle charging, wireless connectivity

Smart street lamps that can charge electric vehicles and boost wireless coverage will be rolled out in towns and cities across UK, as part of a £1.3 million (€1.49 million) pilot to test next-generation digital technologies. With rising demand for wireless services, companies are increasingly exploring opportunities to install infrastructure on lamp posts, traffic lights, CCTV (closed circuit television) columns, benches, bins and bus stops. (more…)

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September 27, 2023

Posted by: Janmesh Chintankar

ID Quantique’s Quantis QRNG Chip receives NIST ESV Certification on IID Track

ID Quantique (IDQ) announced that its Quantis QRNG chips have just received NIST ESV certification on Independent and Identically Distributed (IID) entropy estimation track. This certification offers high attainable security level for generation of random bits. It makes IDQ’s range of QRNG chips ideal for all security applications and integration into devices for automotive, computing, critical infrastructure, IoT (internet of things), mobile and space communications to meet stringent security requirements. (more…)

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Posted by: Janmesh Chintankar

Bluetooth SIG completes full-stack standard for Networked Lighting Control

Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has announced completion of Bluetooth Networked Lighting Control (NLC), the full-stack standard for wireless lighting control. By offering standardisation from radio through device layer, Bluetooth NLC enables true multi-vendor interoperability and mass adoption of wireless lighting control. (more…)

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Posted by: Janmesh Chintankar

Laird Connectivity unveils Vela IF820 series for Bluetooth transition

Laird Connectivity announces a new addition to its Bluetooth portfolio, the Vela IF820 series. This range of dual mode flexible modules, adapters and DVKs (data verification kits) allows a single module to cover legacy Classic Bluetooth and migration to Bluetooth LE with a single part. (more…)

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September 26, 2023

Posted by: Shriya Raban