At some point during a philosophy 101 class, college students learn about Aristotle’s belief that the best way to understand something is to break it down to the smallest components. For an increasing number of manufacturers and integrators, however, the best way to assemble a product is to use a machine built with modular automation components that quickly and easily fit together.

Traditional solar panel installations require expensive and time-consuming assembly of custom mounting systems on a roof, which can ultimately slow adoption.

Today’s typical automobile features nearly 100 exterior and interior sensors, with the number likely to increase in the near future. Those located on the outside (axle load, steering angle, blind spots, air temperature, etc.) require special protection from the elements and unique production methods.

The advent of laboratory automation systems has made a significant impact on clinical diagnostics, drug discovery, food and agricultural research, and forensics.

All professors are teachers, but some are also entrepreneurs. Three of note are mechanical engineering professors Stephen L. Dickerson, Wayne Book and Nader Sadegh, who together founded CAMotion Inc. in 1997 while working at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Once found mostly in high-volume manufacturing environments, robots are now being used in smaller organizations, and in a wider variety of applications.  

When specifying a motion control system for, say, a pick-and-place application on an automated assembly line, engineers have two choices.