Innorobo 2018, 15-17 May, Paris, France

Medical robotics: the solution for our demographic challenge of an aging population?

MEDICALScience fiction novels, television series and Hollywood films present butler robots, nearly human in appearance, that are sometimes wonderful assistants for Man. These companions do good deeds, like taking care of the elderly, but are sometimes also very frighteningly real, troubling or even downright scary because they are capable of controlling us. The very word “robot” conjures up visions that range from dreamy to nightmarish…

Which brings to us to an important question: is it better to be dependent on a human being or in control of a machine? Medical robotics is one possible solution for our demographic challenge of an aging population. It is also potentially capable or erasing the word “disability” from our vocabulary. This being said, there are some questions regarding ethics and values that do need to be asked: In light of the evolution of plastic surgery over the last 50 years – such operations were at first “reconstructive” in nature whereas today they are, in many cases, purely for “esthetic” reasons – we need to look at the question of the “augmented” human versus the “repaired” human. Alongside this, though household robots to assist senior citizens can help to improve prevention and enable many elderly people to continue living in their homes, thus reducing public health expenditure, the question of how to finance such systems and guarantee equal access to cutting-edge healthcare technologies also needs to be considered. Finally, like the Factory of the Future, or the Smart Home, or even technological progress in the broad sense, the medical and healthcare sector must probably be revamped in the medium term through a systemic approach and not simply by adding machines, whether robotic or not.

Today, technological progress enables us treat diseases that were often fatal in the last century. Surgical robots aside, there is a whole new breed of robots that can assist people who are disabled or have lost their autonomy, thus offering potential solutions for our demographic challenges. It will be impossible to have a nurse, nurse’s aid or other assistant to help each and every senior citizen in his or her daily life. The intelligence brought to machines – intelligence about its surrounding environment and the analysis of information from this environment – combined with a capacity for autonomous or semi-autonomous action in the physical world, enables us to develop robots that can help our senior citizens both at specialized institutions and at home.

The scope of the “healthcare robotics sector” is very broad, ranging from surgical robots to companion robots for dependent persons, from robots for rehabilitation and transport of medicines at hospitals to robots that assist healthcare professionals or even IoRT (Internet of Robotic Things) devices.

vieillissementThe IFR proposes a segmentation of healthcare robots as follows:

  • B-to-B robotic diagnostics systems
  • Robotic surgical and treatment systems for healthcare professionals
  • B-to-B robotic rehabilitation systems
  • Companion robots: personal assistance robots for elderly or dependent individuals

Whether we are talking about surgical operations, technical or psychological assistance for elderly or disabled persons, remote surgery or remote micromanipulation, everyone agrees that healthcare robotics will play an increasingly important role in coming years. The growth in medical robotics since the mid-1980s has been exponential, both in terms of research and innovation and in terms of new products and services. In 2013, medical robotics accounted for 27% of the service robotics market and US $ 1.5 billion in sales.

Medical robotics is clearly one of the success stories of service robotics. 

Robots and Disabilities

In France, the first robotics applications in the field of disabilities were developed by Jean Vertut, a CEA researcher who designed robotic systems for missions in hostile environments. In the 1980s, he imagined that his robots could help people whose daily environment proved challenging for them. His meeting with Bernard Lesigne, a CEA physicist who had become tetraplegic following a ski accident, was decisive. Combining their scientific minds, and Vertut’s knowledge of robotics with Lesigne’s experience as a disabled person, together they built the basis for robotics to assist those with motor impairments.

The applications range from robotic wheelchairs to personal rehabilitation robots to assistance in handling and “augmented” man with exoskeletons (see Japan’s Cyberdyne, for example). What’s more, motor handicaps are not the sole focus, as there are advanced-stage research programs on “social” robots for the treatment of autism, assistance robots for persons with Alzheimer’s disease, and household and medical surveillance robotics that enable dependent individuals to continue living in the comfort of their homes.

Deep dive into Medical Robotics with our speakers…

…and our exhibitors:

 

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Smart Homes – From digital technology to robotics: the continuum of change in our everyday lives

SMART HOMESWhatever acronyms we create or words we use – think “Internet of Things”, “Big Data”, “Internet of Robotic Things”, “AI”, etc. – we are in essence referring to the same underlying technologies, i.e. communication systems, software (artificial intelligence, voice or image recognition algorithms, HMI and interaction design, etc.), electronics, materials science and mechanical engineering, which are coming to transform our daily lives.

These words and acronyms may well testify to our desire to break down the major transformation ahead, splitting it into smaller, more manageable chunks of change that ease our fear of being overwhelmed. Perhaps, in order to take less risk, we prefer a 5-to-10-year vision instead of a 30-year foresight, even though this approach might limit our capacity to prepare for the upcoming “revolution” in our lifestyles. Whatever the case, one thing is for sure: Internet is becoming an active part of the physical world and at Innorobo, we call this robotics.

While we have been promised a future in which we are surrounded by over 200 connected objects at home, each controlled directly from our Smartphone or tablet, I wonder about our ability to individually manage each of these devices and its specific application. What happens when there are several friends or family members in the same house? Who is responsible for controlling which IoT device? The answer lies in the questions: the smart home is not the mere accumulation of many semi-inert objects. It is a seamless, integrated system that senses its environment and analyzes the data collected based on specific individual and collective life scenarios and personal profiles to communicate with actuators spread throughout our home (M2M communication), triggering a variety of autonomous and semi-autonomous actions to improve our comfort, assist us in our daily lives and help make our homes more energy efficient.

Two parallel trends are fueling the emergence of Smart Homes. On the one hand, there is the ever-wider range of smart devices designed by creative entrepreneurs that directly target the general public. On the other hand, the B-to-B market, with the Factory of the Future, capitalizes not only on technological advances in electronics and ICT, but also on experiences with innovative Human-Machine Interfaces to create new integrated processes in a collaborative environment. Let’s not forget that before transforming our everyday lives, computers were originally sold in B-to-B markets. Tomorrow’s Smart Home – whether in 5, 10 or 30 years – will probably be at the crossroads of this dual movement.

When talking about how robotics is transforming our daily lives, it is virtually impossible not to mention the vision of and fascination for the almighty “butler” humanoid robot, the highly versatile servant that can help us do anything and everything. The humanoid is, in the words of Bruno Maisonnier, the founder of Aldebaran Robotics, “…the ultimate Man-Machine Interface, as it is so natural for us to interact with something that resembles us.”

In reality, today’s domestic robotics is much more about the great success of “single-task” devices such as robotic vacuum cleaners and pool cleaners, autonomous lawnmowers or home automation systems (controlling lights, shutters, alarm systems, doors and much more). Hence, various robots that each do one specific thing, in effect relieving us entirely of certain chores.

This being said, a new type of companion robot is emerging as a middle way between the vision and the reality. Neither fully humanoid nor single-task, these “social robots” interact with human beings and are capable of “learning” new activities by downloading applications developed to suit their physical and sensory abilities. The social robot may well be the ideal robotics solution to help make our everyday lives easier. Indeed, it is not frightening and can potentially help us in many ways at an acceptable price for the general public. I am confident that investors and the robotics ecosystem at large will be keeping a close eye on this new type of robot.

Our Smart Homes Speakers

Our Smart Homes Exhibitors

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Field Robotics: a global market with a triple-digit growth over the next 10 years

Field robotics comprises all robotic systems designed for use in unstructured “natural” outdoor environments (i.e. ground, sea and air). These robots are used in agriculture, livestock farming, forestry and mining, as well as in environments that are hostile (e.g. fire fighting) and/ or inaccessible to man (e.g. space exploration).

Today, field robotics is the second largest service robotics market in terms of revenue, after medical and healthcare robotics, accounting for nearly US $900 million in 2013 according to IFR. With its vast array of applications, field robotics promises exponential growth in the next decade.

field-robotics

According to a study by Wintergreen Research, the agricultural robotics market was estimated at US$ 817 million in 2013 and is forecasted to reach US$ 16.3 billion by 2020, a 20-fold increase in less than 10 years. Agricultural robotics brings farmers not only precision, efficiency, endurance and speed, but also relieves them of difficult tasks and even performs operations previously impossible for human beings. The “robotics transformation” addresses two major challenges in modern society. First of all, food production must increase by 25% in order to feed the 2 billion additional inhabitants to be living on Earth by 2050 (see the work of Jonathan Foley, Director of the Environment Institute, Minnesota University). As well, agriculture, like any other economic field, must simultaneously increase productivity and promote a sustainable approach to development. Precision agriculture (selective pesticide and herbicide application, water management, 24-hour crop monitoring for maximum yield, etc.) is a major advance in the drive to save our planet.

Today’s rising star in field robotics is the drone or UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). With applications ranging from agriculture, energy and construction to logistics, safety/security and surveillance, the commercial and civil drones market is forecasted to reach US$12 billion in the next decade (BI Intelligence). Californian venture capital firm Accel Partners, which invested US$ 75 million in DJI, a market leader in drones, says of its experience:

We spent a year really looking at the UAV market, meeting over 100 companies. This gave us a strong conviction that there is new global mass market emerging in this field.

A new ecosystem is being created around the hardware companies that manufacture drones, with a number of start-ups capitalizing on the market opportunities to develop services to map, mine and analyse the data collected by UAVs, as well as other related activities.

Field robotics offers venture firms and international corporations a host of lucrative investment opportunities. Beyond the financial rewards, field robotics innovations help to save our planet and enable mankind to explore new horizons.

field-robotics-UAV-market

Discover our Field Robotics Speakers

Discover our Field Robotics Exhibitors

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FOND BANDEAU SITE FACTORIES

Factories of the future: transforming industry through robotics brings the hope of a more human relationship to work.

Recently published studies all agree on the big trends that are shaping smart factories or Industry 4.0:

  • Sustainable industry that minimizes energy consumption and waste production while incorporating recycling in the value chain.
  • The integration of digital technology. The emergence of 3D printers is taking part in this transformation, though we don’t yet know exactly what their impact will be.
  • Automation and “advanced” robotics are a given, with artificially intelligent systems, collaborative robots enabling the automation of new tasks and the use of robots at small and medium-sized companies. Digital transformation and robotics transformation converge in intelligent systems that are agile and flexible, with streamlined integration, improved programming and reduced implementation costs.

This inevitably leads us to the question of the role human beings will play in the factory of the future, a question sometimes oversimplified and asked strictly in terms of impact on employment. Indeed, as industry drives a large share of the value creation in the European economy, Europe clearly needs to “re-industrialize”. Yet, the share of industry in the Continent’s GDP has fallen from 20% to 15% over the past 15 years.

We are living in a fast-changing world full of uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. There is no simple answer to the question of “robotics and employment”. To be sure, we have to ready ourselves for a deep transformation of our society. In this case, why not adopt a more positive vision of how robotics can benefit industry, rather than simply echo the “doom-and-gloom” outlook of the future so often promoted? Whereas the futurist studies what tomorrow is going to look like, the visionary attempts to create a desirable future.

With this in mind, let us imagine a world where on factory assembly lines robots and humans work side-by-side, perfectly complementing one another. A world in which workers no longer have to carry heavy loads, and where difficult handling tasks are performed by intelligent vehicles. Originally a purely industrial solution, collaborative robots – “cobots” for short – are now becoming a solution for enhanced workstation ergonomics and for the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders.

Instead of measuring the solely economic impact, what if we measured improvement in workers’ quality of life, well-being and personal development thanks to the technological progress that Industry 4.0 offers? And what if more technological innovation, more investment in production machinery and more robots in factories enabled not only higher productivity and greater competitiveness, but also gave more meaning and humanity to our relationship to work?

Innorobo’s international cycle of conferences (from 1 to 3 July 2015 at Lyon’s Cité Internationale) addresses Factories of the Future with the contribution of researchers, entrepreneurs and visionaries from around the globe. Over 3 days, Innorobo unites a vast “business ecosystem” that interactively builds a shared vision of industry and of the economic spheres most heavily impacted by what robotics technologies can bring for a sustainable, desirable society.

Discover our speakers:

Discover our exhibitors:

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Smart Citizens driving the development of Smart Cities: the latest Smart City technologies on display at Innorobo 2015

Over 200 companies representing the full range of robotics applications (industrial robotics and personal & professional service robotics) will be showing off their know-how at this year’s edition of the Innorobo exhibition. Among these applications, technologies and innovations that meet the challenges faced by smart cities and underpin the projects headed by various institutions will be on display at the 3-day event.

 

Everyone is talking about the city of the future: in 2050, urban populations will account for 70% of the world’s overall population, up from 50% today. Frost & Sullivan predict that the Smart Cities market will be worth $ 3.3 trillion in 2025.

With this massive urbanization and the exponential progress of universal technologies, what will the smart city look like? The three “standard” pillars of the Smart City are environmental sustainability, economic viability and the well being of city dwellers. Such a vision incorporates the energy, transport, water, waste, safety, healthcare and education sectors, among others. Today, initiatives are being rolled out all over the world. Asia is home to large-scale projects like the Songdo district in South Korea and Singapore’s Smart Nation, which target leaders in the IT, energy and telecoms sectors to implement a broad range of new concepts. At the same time, Europe is planning to make its existing cities “smart” through new technologies and infrastructures.

“We believe in open innovation and a collaborative approach, and we staunchly defend entrepreneurship. This is why large-scale institutional projects and solutions offered by international groups have to be driven by the ideas and disruptive innovations that entrepreneurs bring,” says Catherine Simon, founder and CEO of Innorobo. “At Innorobo, innovation directors from major groups, institutional players and even citizens like you and me at the general public session can share their vision for the city of the future, as well as discover and explore the technologies that will make them possible.” At Innorobo 2015, both exhibitors and speakers will show us how to give meaning to a Smart City approach and make it something more than just a simple technological showcase or large-scale project. We must always remember that there can be no Smart Cities without Smart Citizens.”

The exhibitors at Innorobo 2015 and the conferences dealing with this topic are listed at the event site, in the Smart Cities tab.

The plenary conference dedicated to Smart Cities will be held Thursday 2 July from 2:00 to 4:00 pm with a panel of renowned speakers on the subject:

 

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Innorobo call for startups : the 5 finalists!

Two weeks after we revealed the 25 semi-finalists, our investor panel returned to us with their votes… and we finally have our 5 finalists! Applause for…:

  1. Reach Robotics
  2. Empire Robotics
  3. OptoForce
  4. MagnebotiX
  5. ex aequo : RobotBase and Flyability

Reach Robotics (UK)

Imagine a game where the real world is the playing field and you can control and evolve your personal gaming robot to compete against others.At Reach Robotics, we are combing gaming and robotics to make this a reality. The Mecha Monsters are controlled via smartphones and respond to their physical environment. The more they are played with, the stronger they become. Their appearance and performance can be customized with physical and virtual add-ons. This will be the play-able, code-able, evolving toy for the new generation.

We are a member of the Bristol SETsquared business incubator and operate out of the prestigious Bristol Robotics Laboratory incubation space. Our target market is the robotics edutainment market which is £2B globally, our initial addressable market is £200M in the US and Europe alone, growing at 17% each year. We have a core team of 2 mechanical and manufacturing engineers with more than 30 years of combined industry experience, a robotics PHD specialising in AI and machine vision and our 23 year old founder has a 1st class degree in robotics and 4 years of experience in working with our target market.

Empire Robotics (USA)

Empire Robotics is a Cornell University technology spinout. The company is commercializing a range of flexible robotic tools for the industrial automation market based on jamming granular gripping. The first product offering, the VERSABALL gripper, reliably and adaptively grips and manipulates inconsistent and randomly oriented objects, with applications in automotive, natural food handling, consumer goods, and bin picking. Some of the advantages of this technology include: Faster tool up when a product design changes; High error tolerance; Grip oddly shaped objects and inconsistent objects such as molded parts and natural foods; and Eliminate the need for custom tooling – especially for short runs. Empire Robotics has the potential to exceed $50 million in sales within the $2 Billion+ industrial handling components market. Backed by a Seed angel investment and research contracts from NSF, NIH, and NASA, the company is leading the evolution from fixed custom robotic grippers to highly agile, safe, and flexible plug and play robot grippers.

OptoForce (Hungary)

The traditional approach in multi-axis force sensing has been to use a number of strain-gauges carefully glued to as metallic structure. Due to the construction, these sensors are expensive to manufacture and so cost several thousand euros. They are also very heavy and can be easily broken, if they are hit. In our sensors we are measuring the deformation of a silicone structure with light inside the structure. As the sensing elements are not deforming themselves, only the silicone above, the sensors are very robust. Since we are using inexpensive manufacturing techniques (SMT, silicone moulding), we have the possibility to create sensors for service robots and customer products as well – which would had been impossible with the incumbent technologies.

MagnebotiX (Switzerland)

While the Human Genome Project declared success in 2003, mapping the human genome represented only the end of the beginning for applying this knowledge to a number of fields ranging from molecular medicine to human evolution. The next step is to understand the precise molecular architecture of the proteins that DNA encodes. Knowledge of the detailed structure of proteins, enzymes and chromatin allows scientists to understand concepts such as bimolecular interactions, mechanisms of enzymatic catalysis, and the therapeutic action of drug molecules. As the most important method for studying the 3D structure of these complex biological macromolecules, crystallography is widely used in academic research. It is also a key technique in the field of nanomedicine, and is currently used by companies throughout the world including large pharmaceuticals such as Roche and Novartis. Success in this process generally involves large screening trials to find appropriate crystallization conditions and optimal forms and concentrations of interacting species such as drugs and inhibitors. Very large numbers of crystals thus have to be characterized. A major bottleneck of high-throughput industrial-level crystallography is harvesting these crystals from their liquid environment and mounting them in preparation for exposure to an X-ray beam. Due to the fragility and small size of macromolecular crystals this step has yet to be successfully automated and is currently performed manually by trained experts. The success rate is only around 50%, significantly adding to both the cost and length of a typical project and severely limiting the throughput of the whole process. We have developed a gentle harvesting procedure to assist the operator and increase the success rate for crystal harvesting. Furthermore, based on our products the goal of automation in this field becomes feasible, releasing the full potential of the crystallographic process for the advancement of science and the good of mankind.

Robotbase (USA)

Robotbase is building a software + hardware platform powering the next generation of machines and apps. personal computer technology is outdated. how you’re using computer today is not much different from that 10 years ago. it’s true that machines are cheaper and faster now, but they are not smarter. with our software + hardware platform, we’ll be able to create the next generation machines, that are much more autonomous and intelligent. it also creates new and exciting opportunities for apps. we’ve launched the first product created on our platform this month and achieved some great success on kickstarter.

Flyability (Switzerland)

Mobile robots are offering an amazing cost and time saving opportunity for routine work and may spare human lives in dangerous tasks. However, current solutions are not robust enough to be reliably and safely used indoors or in environments cluttered with obstacles: ground robots tend to get stuck by the clutter and flying robots crash easily upon contact and are dangerous to operate close to humans. Our vision is to mimic the behavior of insects, like flies, which easily recover after encountering an obstacle by bouncing and continuing flying undisturbed. Flyability thus developed Gimball, a collision-proof miniature flying robot capable of remaining stable after collisions and safe to fly in contact with humans. The innovation of Gimball lies in the patented rotating mechanical design and flight control algorithms developed during 5 years of doctoral research at EPFL. This technology based on robustness and simplicity allows a safe access to places out of reach of current technologies, without the need for complex obstacle sensing and avoidance techniques, while delivering higher resolution images as it can fly in contact with structures. The company’s main target market is industrial inspection where, in collaboration with leading energy and infrastructure companies, it successfully proved the reliability of its product in challenging indoor environments such as boiler rooms, pipes or chimneys, as well as complex outdoor structures such as below the deck of bridges. Beyond industrial inspection, this game-changing innovation truly unleashes the power of drones and opens a world of new applications in security, search & rescue and entertainment.

This year, 6 high-profile international robotics industry investors will be on hand to judge the 5 finalists on Thursday July 2:

  • Malgosia Iwankowska – Co-Founder & Board Member of KB Medical SA
  • Anastasia Emmanuel – UK Hardware, Technology & Design at Indiegogo
  • Baybars Altuntas – Entrepreneur & Angel Investor, VP of Eban-Belgium
  • Jean-Philippe Olier – VP Business Development, Safran
  • Alexandre Ichai – Founder, Robotcapital & Director, Robotlab
  • Oussama Ammar – Co-Founder and Partner, Thefamily

For more information on the panel and Call for Startups, visit http://innorobo.com/call-for-startups/

The 34 other challengers to our Call for startups

These startups didn’t make it to the semi-finals, but they deserve some visibility as well :-) Meet the 34 challengers !

  • Rational Robotics : Robots that paint parts automatically! Uses vision No programming needed.
  • InMoov : InMoov is the First 3DPrinted Humanoid Life Size Robot for Scientists, Universities, Schools, Makers, Artists to 3d print and program.
  • Perspective Robotics : Fotokite is an interactive personal flying camera that may be used virtually anywhere with minimal preparation or training.
  • The Construct : The Spotify of robotics simulation has arrived! Any simulator, on any device from anywhere in the world!
  • ootsidebox : @ootsidebox Touchless 3D Gesture User Interface “Touchless and Gesture Control will be everywhere”
  • MIP robotics : Industrial Robot Democratization We develop cheap and easy to use robots.
  • Prizm : Prizm is a learning device that intuitively plays the perfect music on your speakers, based on people in the room and the context.
  • Wandercraft : Wandercraft develops an exoskeleton enabling disabled people to walk again in full autonomy.
  • Behaviour Labs : Behaviour Labs, develops robotic software solution for an experimental autism therapy.
  • epawn : ePawn’s unique technology brings never-seen-before intelligence in connected toys.
  • TOI ThingsOnInternet : Tired of wasting time wiring and coding? Viper is the smart objects development suite that brings cloud and IoT to your projects in a click.
  • Smart Me Up : Smart Me Up is a leader in real-time face analysis technology : it can estimate age, gender, position of head or emotions.
  • Robological PTY LTD : A Delightfully Simple Way to Build and Connect Robots and Things – Ro-buddy Connect your world.
  • Creative Bits : Snowball enables non-technical people invent technologies to make smart homes and smart cities applications in few minutes.
  • Transist Video LLC : The system of video-based navigation for unmanned aerial vehicles. Its application for navigation and airborne terrestrial robots control.
  • Salvius Robotics : Salvius is an open source humanoid designed to inspire students to learn about STEM principles through advanced robotics.
  • Lockea : Lockea is a connected + motorised lock that automatically unlocks by touching your door whilst keeping your phone in your pocket.
  • CDD : Our product, OPRA is a robot development platform which allows hobbyists and startups to commercialize their idea for a robot application.
  • Padbot : PadBot is a telepresence robot. You can use PadBot to represent remotely by showing video, voice and movements in real-time.
  • Que Innovations : Technology/robotics company that develops innovative products for early child development and autism therapy.
  • SK Teknoloji : We want to be part of tomorrow technology. We aim to build modular robots that make use of different applications; like appstore/googleplay
  • Perceptual Robots : Bringing the spark of life to robots! Using the revolutionary secret of behaviour our robots are not just dynamic and intelligent but alive!
  • Immersive Robotics : Cross the screen: transfer into Waldo in 3D, be anywhere! Walk Waldo once through some house chore. Next time tap or voice command will do !
  • Under the Pole : An open-source ROV for underwater polar exploration #Science #Education #Documentary.
  • Solaris Cybernetics of New Jersey : We build robots that are plant-machine hybrids for sustainable agriculture.
  • BookScanner SA : We will digitize all short of books -no matter size, weight, cover, age- with robotics technology.
  • XTIM : the new drone inspired by biomimicry
  • CLIP&BIKE : Fauteuils électriques pour handicapés modifiés en robot d’aide à la personne facilitant le déplacement dans les parkings et lieux publics.
  • MACCO Robotics : Robotica para marketing y hoteles
  • xavier’s robotik : I have hacked a vtech keybord !
  • Symbiontronic Technologies Corp. : N/A
  • Forgium : Forgium is a company that provides industrial solutions related to 3D printers not only to other companies but also to individuals.
  • Desolenator : We’ve patented and developed the most affordable and environmentally friendly method to purify water – a real solution to the water crisis!
  • M-Tecks ROBOTICS : 12 ways to improve your inspection efficiency and your added-value to the client

Discover the 25 semi-finalist of our Call for startups!

The choice was hard and heart-breaking – but here we are, the 25 semi-finalists! In just two weeks, we will know the name of the 5 finalists you will meet at Innorobo. Remember : these 5 finalists will be provided a booth in the exhibition hall, free of charge, in order to demonstrate their robotics solutions. Their travel expenses will also be covered, and they will pitch in front of our investor panel!

  • airboxlab: Foobot is a smart device monitoring your indoor air pollution and guiding you towards healthier living spaces
  • Marques Aviation Ltd: The lightweight, solar-powered MA THOR SolarLight can loiter above regions under surveillance for several days
  • Stanley Robotics: Stanley Robotics is designing robots that are able to move any cars in order to provide a robotic valet parking everywhere anytime
  • Reach Robotics: We are creating the Mecha Monsters; the world’s first gaming robots to make robotics more fun and engaging.
  • Ainova Robotics Inc.: J.A.E.S.A – your personal next-generation AI for a price of a coffee!
  • Space Leap: B2B delivery of urgent goods with drones.
  • Mektron AS: Ultrasound- and Shower #healthCoBot http://vimeo.com/114127983 http://vimeo.com/103729463 The Future Of Health Care!
  • OptoForce: We make robots feel – just as you do with your fingers. Just more precisely. Our optical force sensors are robust, compliant and affordable.
  • Wulka Drones: Wulka Drones : p. n. [vyːlka dʁon] Start-Up specialized in data analysis on Cloud and aerial imagery by drone for precision agriculture.
  • Enova Robotics: Enova Robotics, first company in Africa that manufactures its own-brand robots and develops solutions for various purposes and customers.
  • HOLONIX S.R.L.: Holonix is an Italian company specialized in providing integrated solutions for Technological Innovation and Product Lifecycle Knowledge.
  • Still Human: Gaia is a design concept, which turns your plants into a companion and gives them independent living skills.
  • CNC Design Limited: CNC Design Ltd to accelerate prototyping of two new machines and get them to market.
  • Drawn: Galatea was born from a dream : locally produce modern, designed and fully customized pieces of furniture and deco obects.
  • Replica Labs: Replica Labs is applying advanced 3D computer vision technology to bring custom fitting directly to consumers using only a smartphone.
  • QEYE: QEYE is a smart vision systems integrator for industrial applications and quality control.
  • robotbase: World’s First Personal Robot
  • Flyability SA: Flyability is developing Gimball, the world’s first collision-tolerant flying robot, easy to pilot and safe to fly close to humans.
  • Empire Robotics: Makers of the first commercial jamming gripper for highly agile industrial automation, #VERSABALL.
  • VECTEO: The plugin replaces human teaching and optimizes the measuring process cycle time. OCTA works with different robotic cell configurations.
  • Haapie S.A.S.: Introducing Haapie-One: man’s best non-human friend! An interactive, social & smart robot helping & entertaining you!
  • MagnebotiX: Delicate objects – gentle methods: MagnebotiX microrobotic systems for next generation crystallography with automated crystal harvesting
  • ArticaCC: Artica makes creative robotics with and for the open community, fusioning Art and Science.
  • rovenso: ROVENSO makes agile robots that preserve human life from hazardous operations such as in nuclear decommissioning and emergency response.
  • Maverick Robotics Pvt. Ltd.: BUD-E (Butler Uniquely Designed for the Elderly): a robot designed to help improve the mobility of the elderly by fetching objects for them

If you were a member of our panel – which one would you see on stage and pitching? Tell us in the comments!

Robotics startups from around the world take center stage at Innoecho’s Call for Startups

55 up-and-coming robotics firms from 21 countries worldwide are taking part in Innoecho’s Call for Startups 2015. Judged by a panel of 6 investors from around the globe, the 5 selected companies, each in business for less than 5 years, will be given a free booth at Innorobo 2015.

Innoecho, the company behind Innorobo, Europe’s leading event in robotics technologies, markets and innovations, has just closed the application process for its Call for Startups 2015. Held every year since the first edition of Innorobo in 2011, the Call for Startups gives budding robotics companies from around the world a helping hand and a chance to shine. A prestigious panel of international investors will select the 5 entrepreneurial ventures that will present their robotics projects at a plenary conference during the 3-day Innorobo 2015 event in Lyon, France.

Some 59 applications were sent in to Innoecho this year, with 55 selected to take part in the project screening process. Participating startup companies must be less than 5 years old, receive less than €2 million in funding and not be affiliated with a large group.

Startups from 21 countries have applied to take part in the 2015 edition, whose 5 finalists will be awarded a booth at Innorobo 2015, from 1 to 3 July in Lyon, where they will pitch their project in front of a panel of international investors on 2 July.

A panel of renowned international investors

This year, 6 high-profile international robotics industry investors will be on hand to judge the 5 finalists:

  • Malgosia Iwankowska – Co-Founder & Board Member of KB Medical SA
  • Anastasia Emmanuel – UK Hardware, Technology & Design at Indiegogo
  • Baybars Altuntas – Entrepreneur & Angel Investor, VP of Eban-Belgium
  • Jean-Philippe Olier – VP Business Development, Safran
  • Alexandre Ichai – Founder, Robotcapital & Director, Robotlab
  • Oussama Ammar – Co-Founder and Partner, Thefamily

For more information on the panel and Call for Startups, visit http://innorobo.com/call-for-startups/

Everyone at Innoecho wishes all of the participants the best of luck. The names of the 5 finalists will be revealed in March 2015.

“We are delighted to have startups from 21 countries taking part in our Call for Startups 2015, which also brought in the highest number of applications since Innorobo was started, as well as a panel of renowned investors,” said Catherine Simon, Founder and CEO of Innoecho. “This shows that the growth of the robotics industry is worldwide and knows no borders. I congratulate today’s entrepreneurs who have understood that they can longer limit themselves to their regional ecosystem, but have to get out and find their market, partners and investors where they are, all over the world… and namely at Innorobo.”

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