Mitsubishi Electric Sheds Light on Latest Technological Developments

Mitsubishi Electric sheds light on latest advances in artificial intelligence and robot technologies at Istanbul Technical University Robot Olympiad. Mitsubishi Electric, an ambitious player in factory automation and advanced robot technologies in Turkey, gathered with university students—the decision-makers of the future—at the İTÜRO LITE "Robot Olympiad" event held online by Istanbul Technical University Control and Automation Club. Speaking at the event with a presentation titled "The Era of Digital Factories and Robots," Tolga Bizel, Department Manager of Factory Automation Systems Product Management and Marketing at Mitsubishi Electric Turkey, provided information about the brand's next-generation products and solutions featuring advanced technology. Addressing the future of artificial intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT) and robot technologies, Bizel emphasized that humans will always be needed for successful digital transformation. Organized by Istanbul Technical University Control and Automation Club under the name İTÜRO LITE, the "Robot Olympiad" brought together students, academics and industry representatives working in the field of robotics and took place online on 28–29 November 2020. Within the scope of the event, Tolga Bizel, Department Manager of Factory Automation Systems Product Management and Marketing at Mitsubishi Electric Turkey, met with students with a presentation titled "The Era of Digital Factories and Robots," providing information on the future of Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI) and robot technologies, while offering advice to the engineers of the future to prepare for the new industrial era.

Production one step ahead of the times with artificial intelligence

Noting that a new phase is being experienced in digital transformation, that robot use is rapidly becoming widespread today and that work carried out in factories is changing, Tolga Bizel stated, "The future will be shaped by artificial intelligence technologies. Because the place of artificial intelligence in our lives is growing by the day. The most popular manifestations of artificial intelligence appear to us as internet searches, PID loops, autopilot and vision recognition. Artificial intelligence, which is also part of production, has many skills such as adjusting parameters, diagnosing problems, preventive maintenance, voice and face recognition. If we want to carry out production one step ahead of the times, we should apply artificial intelligence technologies to robots as well. Based on our future vision that the role of robots in production will increase rapidly, we at Mitsubishi Electric develop next-generation products and solutions in the field of advanced robot technologies. With next-generation collaborative robots developed using artificial intelligence, we enable companies to set up robotic systems quickly, intuitively and at lower costs, and to respond flexibly to rapidly changing business environments and social needs. This makes it possible to prevent unexpected breakdowns and alert users in advance about parts that may cause failures. Our robots work faster with force sensors compared to conventional systems and without damaging the system; they learn and continuously improve their performance," he said.

Factory productivity to increase with Maisart technology

Noting that digital twin simulation shortens the design processes of a factory and further improves simulation accuracy, Bizel stated that Mitsubishi Electric uses the proprietary AI brand "Maisart" technology to enable companies to gain maximum benefit from artificial intelligence, and made the following comments: "With 'Maisart,' which is the abbreviation of the expression 'Mitsubishi Electric's AI creates the State-of-the-ART in technology,' artificial intelligence-based factories and facilities see reduced equipment downtime while productivity is increased. This technology, which uses machine learning algorithms, creates a model of production machine transitions between different operational states after analyzing sensor data. This enables the rapid and accurate detection of machine anomalies indicating unexpected conditions in machines to increase productivity in factories and facilities."

"People are our priority in digital transformation"

Stating that digitalization will not lead to unemployment and that people will shift from labor-intensive work to more mental work, Bizel said, "Setting up systems that work flawlessly in production processes, operating them without issues and making revisions when necessary will always require human involvement. At this point, the most important issue will be preparing for the digitalization process by building skilled human resources. As a brand that places great importance on the education of future generations, we are implementing an education support project to which we have contributed for a long time by establishing robot training centers in engineering faculties of universities. As Mitsubishi Electric, while developing new technologies to anticipate the needs of every era and meet the needs of the future, we continue to invest in people as well," he concluded.