Industries Disrupted by Automation

Heavy equipment moves dirt at a construction site.
Construction is seeing a significant increase in output due to automation.

Disruptive technology, as a term, has been with us for over two decades.  But disruptive technologies like automation have been with us for much longer.  Disruptive technology is some new product or innovation that creates a new market or disrupts an established one. Henry Ford’s Model T was a disruptive technology that revolutionized transportation over 110 years ago. 

Such innovations are found across markets.  When video streaming service Netflix first came on the scene it disrupted cable and video rental brick and mortar chains.   Now it’s disrupting Hollywood production models by creating its own content.  

Other disruptive technology examples include cheap, portable transistor radios. These were completely different from the large, expensive vacuum-tube radios that preceded them. The Internet is another example. It killed off print encyclopedias like Brittanica and World Book while changing the world in countless ways.  This shows how new technologies can change their associated industries by changing markets or by creating new ones.  

In the last few decades, disruptive technologies within automation have made a significant impact on many industries.  Here’s a list of some of the most important changes and the sectors affected by those changes.

Changes to the Automotive Industry

Car manufacturers were early adopters of industrial robotics. They now use robots for a wide variety of tasks including painting surfaces, welding, and assembly. Many plants use robots integrated with machine vision for inspection processes.

In the wake of the global pandemic, plants that relied on heavy automation saw significantly less impact on their outputs due to workforce stoppages than traditional factories. As countries like Germany use more robotics to offset labor shortages, this expansion in automation should continue.

Meanwhile, automated functions are slowly integrating into automobiles heading to consumers. Early automated functions like predictive emergency braking and cruise control are now standard in most cars. Top-of-the-line models now offer advanced features like lane departure warnings, blind-spot detection, and traffic jam assist. By 2025 many cars will offer fully automated safety options and highway autopilot features.

Automation in Healthcare

While much of the healthcare industry is impossible to automate due to the need for empathy and the power of human care, robotics and automation have still made a significant and impressive impact on the sector.

Medical automation may still include human guidance and interaction. For example, automated kiosks may offer patients their first instructions upon entering a doctor’s waiting room, automating steps like scanning new insurance cards, and updating patient information in the hospital database. But this is often followed by interaction with an on-site nurse or front office staff member who can then double-check this information. Additionally, such automated systems allow for healthcare staff to reduce wasted time by automating some aftercare interaction and can improve insights by providing better data insights to providers for performance improvement.

Automation has also spurred healthcare innovations like surgical robots for delicate surgeries like membrane removal for macular degeneration or laparoscopic surgical robots that help surgeons with keyhole procedures. Surgical robotics is expected to be a $20 billion industry by 2024.

In the wake of COVID-19 outbreaks, some hospitals added autonomous ultraviolet cleaning machines. These machines emit a strong UV light to slice apart the virus’s genetic material and can clean a room four times faster than human workers.

Older patients are also benefiting from automation. Automated pill dispensers can dole out months’ worth of medicine on a regulated schedule, and can even alert an offsite caregiver if medicine hasn’t been taken from the dispensing cup on time. This new technology will allow older patients the opportunity to live independently for a longer time.

Automation in Construction

Productivity in construction barely changed in the sixty years between 1950 and 2010. Over that same time, manufacturing increased its output by a factor of eight and agriculture by a factor of sixteen. But in the last decade, construction has begun to adopt more automated technologies, and the result has been an annual output increase of roughly 3.8%, the fastest real output growth of any goods-producing sector.

The technologies that are driving this growth are as varied as the construction industry itself. Robots are now being used for bricklaying, and large automated machines are paving roads. Some are combining both things, laying down brick roadways like a woven carpet.

Automation is also helping control traffic flow around construction sites. This minimizes accidents and the impact on surrounding communities. Automation and data analytics may even be used to schedule some projects to further limit the impact on traffic.

Additive manufacturing (3D printing) is also being used in construction for the creation of facades and components. Some architects have used additive manufacturing to 3D print entire structures. This technology reduces the window for human error, offers the potential for zero-waste construction, and opens up the window to creativity and innovation.

Finally, construction is using automation to improve on-site efficiencies through building information modeling. This allows for the planning, design, and management of a project to come together in a unified plan that identifies issues before work begins, allowing for improved scheduling of labor and materials and the elimination of costly mistakes and delays.

The Difference Between Rotary and Linear Encoders

According to a recently released MarketWatch analysis(1), the global Motion Control Encoders market is predicted to grow at an annual rate of 4.6%, exceeding $2.1 billion by 2026.   Industries like chemical manufacturing, industrial automation, aerospace, and consumer electronics will all be impacted by this growth.   Some of the key motion control manufacturers mentioned in this analysis include 

  • Renishaw
  • Dynapar
  • BEI Sensors
  • Baumer Group
  • Hengstler
  • Broadcom
  • Tokyo Sokuteikizai
Non Contact Linear Encoder
A non-contact absolute linear encoder.

Robotics, automation, sorting, imaging, and plotting applications use encoders. The sensing devices provide feedback to determine direction, position, count, or speed. Absolute and incremental encoders can both achieve these ends, but operate differently using different methods of implementation. 

In a nutshell, an absolute encoder provides unique position values based upon a digital value of an object’s angular position or motion.  These values occur between a stationary pickup device (a zero point) and a moving encoding device, for example, a slotted disc on the shaft of a rotary encoder. 

An image of an ElectroCraft BRU-500 series drive.
The BRU-500 brushless drive series works with both absolute and incremental encoders.

Incremental encoders, on the other hand, offer an output signal based upon two square waves  that each correspond to a unit of travel read by a photodiode as the load moves.  Because incremental encoders begin their count at zero at startup or during a power disruption, they offer no safeguards or reference point regarding position before these events.  

Rotary vs Linear Encoders

It’s important to realize the terms “absolute” and “incremental” refer to movement identification. The terms “rotary” and “linear” are more about geometries.  It is important to recognize rotary and linear encoders may be either absolute or incremental.

Linear

A linear encoder, as the name implies, measures motion along a line or path.   It is designed with a coded strip, or scale, and a sensing head.  Incremental linear encoders zero out after any kind of reset. For example, a loss of power or power-down will cause a reset. On the other hand, absolute linear encoders offer their exact position by creating a unique position signal.  This position signal is converted into a digital or analog signal for readout purposes.   But remember that linear encoders may be optical or magnetic. 

For a long time, optical linear encoders were the only option for resolutions below five microns. They offer high resolution and accuracy and can be used in areas with high magnetic fields.

However, optical encoders are mechanically fragile due to the glass optical disk. This can shatter due to impact or vibration.  Shock and vibration can also negatively affect internal positioning.  

Magnetic linear encoders are less affected by shock and vibration.  However, these units use magnetic reader heads combined with a magnetic scale to determine position. This feature creates a sensitivity to anything interfering with the magnetic field such as iron, steel, or nearby magnetic fields. 

Rotary

Rotary encoders are used to track rotational motion, including the shaft movement of a number of industrial and commercial devices.  Incremental rotary encoders tend to be less complex and more cost-effective than similar absolute encoders, and are adequate for simple pulse counting or for frequency monitoring applications where the resolution is no more than 50,000 PPR.  Absolute rotary encoders offer a higher resolution of up to 65,536 pulses per revolution.  These encoders also offer multiple interface options including parallel, serial, Ethernet, Fieldbus, and analog. 

(1) https://www.industryresearch.co/global-motion-control-encoders-market-15934813

PPE Manufacturers Busy in Q2

PPE manufacturers work to keep up with the demand for disposable face masks
PPE like Face masks remain in high demand.

Sourcing from PPE manufacturers for products related to the safety increased by almost 12,000%, according to recent data released by ThomasNet.com. (1) This included items like respirators, face masks, nitrile gloves, and hand sanitizer. Demand is expected to remain elevated as manufacturing tries to keep up with demand caused by the COVID-19 crisis.

Other areas of growth include in automation engineering services. This sector exceeded the anticipated growth of 6-9%. Actual sector growth was 16%. Robotic welding services also exceeded predictions, growing by 8%.

The benefits of automation have come to the fore in the wake of the pandemic and associated labor shortages, allowing manufacturers to optimize their plant efficiency and better utilize the human workforce available.

Thomas Index Q3 predictions include continued sustained sourcing activity for products related to PPE and other COVID-19 products. This includes plastic barriers, isopropyl alcohol, UV lamps, and cleaning products. Sourcing for farm equipment also increased as producers worked to keep up with food supply chain changes. Additionally, plastic injection molding services serving both the medical and food and beverage markets have increased.

(1) https://f.hubspotusercontent00.net/hubfs/242200/DG%20-%20eBook%20PDFs/Thomas%20-%202020%20Q2%20Sourcing%20Activity%20Snapshot.pdf?utm_campaign=2020%20Demand%20Generation&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=91093572&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9wkeXowZKAwkrq0IMy1iVMwq4vspOt5TZIxNyNiM0kj6pzg2KEf_nWkiagtYb0ayShJWQyk-l03fFXrnjcT8PwrAszbxwQpFBSncJtOFwN87t6-yk&utm_content=91093572&utm_source=hs_automation