WHN Technologies wins Robotics Award at Hannover 2016

Apr. 29, 2016 – WHN Technologies GmbH has won the Robotics Award at Hannover Messe 2016. The award was presented on behalf of Hannover Messe in cooperation with the Robotation Academy and the trade journal Industrieanzeiger in recognition of the applied robotics solutions of international companies.

WHN’s X-Arm robotic hand came out on top against the other nominees: pi4 robotics GmbH and FARO Europe GmbH & Co. KG.

The award recognizes technological innovations that make a contribution towards robot-assisted solutions in the field of industrial automation or towards the development of mobile robots and autonomous systems. In order to qualify, entries for the Robotics Award must be on show to the public for the first time at Hannover Messe or otherwise constitute a significant further development of an already existing product or system.
 
“This year, many companies from various sectors once again submitted applications with robot-supported solutions. As economic minister, this topic is very important to me,” said Olaf Lies, economic minister of Lower Saxony, about the Robotic Awards. “Robotics is an integral part of Industrie 4.0 and is very important for the future of business and competitiveness. This is reflected in the amount of space this topic accounts for at this year’s Hannover Messe.”
 
The winning X-Arm robotic hand comprises a modular multi-axle module that is located at the end of a manually guided manipulator and can be adjusted and rotated in all three spatial directions, allowing tools or other loads fitted to the robotic hand to be maneuvered to a chosen position. The X-Arm’s main area of application is in the automotive industry, but there is also considerable demand in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. WHN Technologies’ robotic hand is already used in two locations in Bavaria: the BMW plant in Dingolfing and at Heidenhain in Traunreut.
 
Second place went to pi4 robotics GmbH, which entered a humanoid robot named workerbot3 used for manufacturing, handling and inspection tasks where a high level of flexibility is required.
 
FARO Europe GmbH & Co. KG was awarded third place for its FARO FRIM (Factory Robo Imager Mobil), a collaborative mobile robotic platform for 3D measurement in manufacturing and laboratory environments. According to the company, the FARO FRIM is the first mobile 3D measurement platform with a collaborative robot that integrates all the necessary components. Its target markets are the automotive industry, the aviation and aerospace sectors and mechanical engineering.