Mar 22, 2022Ed. Note: This article was previously posted at IoP Journal.
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated several technological advances, especially so that companies can meet the new demands of customers, and this has led to an accelerated expansion of e-commerce in the last two years. Because of this, Zebra Technologies is now launching several innovations it has developed over time. The automation solutions company made an announcement of its new products, including its Aurora platform, following the National Retail Federation (NRF) Big Show.
Denis Carvalho
Held in New York in January 2022, the Big Show is considered the world's largest retail event. IoP Journal was granted exclusive access to worldwide launches in Brazil, through an interview with Denis Carvalho, the sales director of Zebra's Brazilian subsidiary. Carvalho highlighted his company's robotics solutions and the Aurora software platform, created to allow simplified management of new machine-vision equipment. The presentation was aimed at beginners and experts alike. Click here to watch an interview with Carvalho, conducted in Portuguese.
Zebra's portfolio of fixed industrial scanners, including machine vision, now includes four products: those capable of visually checking the placement of labels and tags on packages, and those that verify parts have been correctly placed on products, such as bottlecaps. These devices can establish an interface between what is happening in the real world and what is being offered online, such as e-commerce, and assess how digital projects are doing in the physical realm.
"This phenomenon of connection between digital activities and the physical world," Carvalho said, "was baptized with the name of 'phygital'—that is, the union of the physical with the digital." Machine-vision processes can be integrated with other technologies to provide the recognition and location of certain products, he explained—i.e., those that require overhaul or repair before leaving the production line. Among such technologies, in addition to barcodes and QR codes, RFID tags come into play.
With its recent acquisition of Fetch Robotics, Zebra has now become a provider of robotic technologies. "The most important thing for us is to offer a solution that has the right return on investment for each client," Carvalho stated. "The pharmaceutical industry, for example, is perhaps a good example, because it has distribution centers with high added-value products." Watch the full interview here.
Exhibitors at RFID Journal LIVE! 2022 offer solutions related to robotics, machine vision and automation. To learn more, visit the event's website.
