At the opening of the virtual Hannover Messe, Dr. Kristina Wagner, Head of KUKA Group Research, Prof. Dominik Bösl and physicist and author Ranga Yogeshwar discussed the future of automation live in the KUKA Messe studio in Augsburg. In the coming years, more and more people will be working with robots and new technologies. Automation and artificial intelligence (AI) are making their way into more and more areas.
“AI will change an incredible amount and we in everyday life will hardly notice it,” said Ranga Yogeshwar, one of Germany’s leading science journalists. There is already plenty of AI in our daily life, he said, from online search engines to technology in cars to kitchen appliances full of software. “AI is diffusing into our everyday lives. And at some point, we will ask ourselves: how did we do it before?”
The experts’ prediction: Subsequent generations will deal with the new technologies as a matter of course. Dominik Bösl, professor at the Hochschule der Bayerischen Wirtschaft: “Our grandchildren will be the first generation to grow up as `robotic natives’. And that makes us the last `robotic immigrants,’ with very analog migration backgrounds.”
Mission 2030: Easy access to automation for all
Here, simple operation of robots and a low entry threshold can help make automation available to all. To this end, KUKA is developing an easy-to-use operating system and an entire ecosystem in the coming years. The operating system will be the basis of an entire ecosystem, provide access to programs, apps, services or accessories, and be easy to install, operate and expand. At the Hannover Messe, the Augsburg-based automation specialist presented the first elements of this “Mission 2030“.
iiQKA.OS enables simple operation and intuitive handling of automation solutions. In the long term, every KUKA product is to be equipped with the new operating system, making it easier for existing customers and newcomers to access it. This should make automation feasible even in industries and applications where there have been few robots to date.
“Currently, only five percent of all tasks that can be automated with robots are also automated with robots,” said Dr. Kristina Wagner, Vice President KUKA Corporate Research and Director of what is currently the largest development project at KUKA. “To tap this great potential, robotics must become easier.”
Electromobility, Internet of Things and more.
Visitors can learn about new products and current topics, including e-mobility, digital transformation or new technologies for new areas, on a specially created, interactive KUKA platform – even after Hannover Messe. KUKA experts talk about the most important trends, report on customer installations and present the latest KUKA products.
At HM Digital Edition, participants in the KUKA Innovation Award 2021 will present their applications to an international audience of experts and to the jury, which will select the winner of the prestigious competition at the virtual trade fair.
In addition, the five finalists of the KUKA Innovation Award presented their concepts around the megatrend of artificial intelligence. To find out which team convinced the international jury and won the €20,000 prize, visit our KUKA Innovation Award website.
