Septmeber 8, 2011

Vecna Robotics announces new family of mobile hydraulic power units

CAMBRIDGE, MA — Vecna Technologies unveiled the PowerBox™ family of compact, mobile hydraulic power units for application in military, academic, and commercial robots.

In the past, only heavy–lift industrial equipment could harness the superior strength and high payload–to–mass ratio of hydraulics due to their ability to support the substantial size and weight of legacy hydraulic power systems. Traditional mobile robots, which are much smaller size, were developed around weak electric motors that limited their ability to perform useful work. Vecna's PowerBox is a disruptive technology which gives small robotic platforms the earth-moving power of traditional hydraulics.

Because conventional actuation fails to meet the needs of today's industrial applications, Vecna designed the first-generation PowerBox to fit the Bear™ robot, the strongest humanoid robot in the world. Having proven this compact hydraulic power unit, Vecna has developed the PowerBox family into a fully integrated hydraulic hardware and software solution available in models of varying size to fit specific requirements needs. The PowerBox may be mounted onboard a mobile robot and controlled by state–of–the–art software for high-fidelity motion that's both energy efficient and surprisingly quiet.

Vecna designed PowerBox with a plug–and–play, modular architecture for easy integration onto an existing platform or with Vecna's current line of dexterous hydraulic manipulators and grippers. Small robotic platforms powered by the PowerBox have the strength and speed necessary for real world military, academic and industrial applications.

About Vecna Robotics

Vecna Robotics is dedicated to the development of robotic systems that serve the needs of mankind in military, healthcare, and commercial applications. Vecna's flagship robot, the Bear, is the most powerful humanoid robot in the world. Other Vecna Robotics products include QC Bot™, a hospital delivery robot with autonomous navigation capability; Simpedia™, a high–fidelity model–based dynamic physics simulation environment; NRV™, a state–of–the–art autonomous robot control system; and Vecna's mobile, real–time NCBM biohazard detection system. Vecna Robotics is a division of Vecna Technologies, Inc.

Learn more at Vecna Robotics