The article by General Electric entitled “The 5 Coolest Things On Earth This Week” features a local 3D-printing startup called AMBOTS.
”The idea is to mimic creatures like ants and bees, which work together in swarms or hives to achieve common tasks.
ge.com
That’s right, AMBOTS received a shout out from the General Electric! You know, the one founded 127 years ago which has evolved to become the world’s largest digital industrial company?! So, who is AMBOTS and why does it matter?
AMBOTS
Ambots is an advanced manufacturing startup that specializes in swarm 3D printing and assembly.
Why does it matter? (*according to GE )
“Ambots’ work occurs at the intersection of 3D printing and swarm robotics — a field that essentially springs from the notion that many robots are better than one, and that bots working in swarms can complete tasks faster and more efficiently. “When teams of 3D printing robots act as an organized unit they gain the ability to carry out tasks far too complicated for an individual machine,” according to a new article on the blog Future Proof, which says swarm technology could be especially well-suited not only to factories but to work like farming and waste removal.” – Source: ge.com
Check out AMBOTS in action!
And while the GE article takes first place as the most buzzworthy headline, the truth is, AMBOTS has been getting recognized all over the place lately.
What Others Are Saying:
“Imagine you hire a contractor to build a brick wall around your house. That contractor may, in turn, hire a single mason to do the job. But that will end up taking a very long time to complete. A smart contractor will instead hire a team of masons, and coordinate their work so that each individual is working on a section of the wall. That’s essentially what AMBOTS robots are doing with 3D printing, and that lets them print very large objects far more quickly than any individual “worker” could.” – Cameron Coward on hackster.io
“Putting a 3D printer on a mobile robotic platform is one thing, but two robots co-cooperatively printing a large object together is even more impressive.” – Donald Papp on HACKADAY
“The impressive element of AMBOTS’ system is really the coordination of each robot. SCARA printers and omniwheel robots aren’t new – the innovation here is the coordination of the system as a whole.” – All3DP
Representing Northwest Arkansas!
For the region, Fayetteville-based AMBOTS really exemplifies the type of story we hope to see unfold a thousand times. The startup emerged out of a research project at the University of Arkansas Department of Mechanical Engineering. From there AMBOTS has gone on to participate in both the Delta I-Fund accelerator and the inaugural Fuel accelerator. In addition, they received approval for a $50,000 Technology Development Program award through the Division of Science and Technology of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission. As they continue to develop and grow, they’ll need to hire more and more tech talent—becoming another reason for local tech talent to stay in the region and outside tech talent to consider the region.
Up Next: The Coolest Thing on Mars?
It is also worth mentioning that AMBOTS teamed up with Rogers-based Zopherus to win second place in the NASA’s 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge!
Eleven team entries were scored and awarded points based on architectural layout, programming, efficient use of interior space, and the 3D-printing scalability and constructability of the habitat. Teams also prepared short videos providing insight into their designs as well as miniature 3D-printed models that came apart to showcase the interior design. Points were also awarded for aesthetic representation and realism. After evaluation by a panel of judges, NASA and challenge partner Bradley University of Peoria, Illinois, awarded the team second place and $33,422.01.
Learn more at ambots.net
