Humanoid robots get to work at German BMW factory [video]

After successfully piloting humanoid robots at its Spartanburg, SC plant last year, BMW is putting AI-powered machines to work building EVs at its Leipzig iFACTORY.

While other companies trade on promises and plans, BMW has been quietly testing humanoid robots at its Spartanburg, SC plant – and the results have been overwhelmingly positive. The Figure 02 humanoid robots in that project have contributed to the production of over 30,000 BMW X3s, primarily by handling the precise positioning of sheet metal for welding. This second project hopes to build on that success using new machines develped by Zurich-based Hexagon Robotics.

Unveiled last June, the new Hexagon AEON robots are equipped with AI-based motion control and sensors that can evaluate their environment and make independent decisions based on what’s around, determining more or less on their own what they need to do to carry out their instructions while avoiding people and things that might otherwise be “in the way.”

Hexagon calls that kind of decision-making, self-determining software, “Physical AI,” and the company believes it will make all the difference when it comes to integrating AEON into existing factories.

“Our aim is to be a technology leader and to integrate new technologies into production at an early stage,” explains Michael Nikolaides, Senior Vice President Production Network, Supply Chain Management at BMW Group. “Pilot projects ([ike the one at Spartanburg and this one at iFACTORY] help us to test and further develop the use of Physical AI – that is, AI‑enabled robots capable of learning, under real-world industrial conditions.”

While designing robots to look like humans likely causes more problems than it solves, it does make planning their workflows more intuitive for the humans behind the controls who are translating their own actions into robotic commands. That kind of digitization is, at least, arguably beneficial.

“Digitalization improves the competitiveness of our production, here in Europe and worldwide,” says Milan Nedeljković, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Production. “The symbiosis of engineering expertise and artificial intelligence opens up entirely new possibilities in production.”

You can watch BMW’s newest mechanical Turk employee at work in the company’s official release video, below, then let us know what you think of AEON in the comments.

Electrek’s Take

Back in January, I wrote an article about a fresh order for more than forty new Freightliner eCascadia electric semi trucks being deployed in Texas. In the comments, Harry Tuttle wrote, “Hmmm. Not Teslas. How about that.”

I wonder what you guys are going to write on this one.

SOURCE | IMAGES: BMW Group, via New Atlas.

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