Adept Technology's Lynx Robot Vehicle Racking Up Sales

By Jay Hipps, Hacienda Network Staff Writer

While it might be some time before we see self-driving cars on area streets and highways, autonomous vehicles are already in use in many business settings. Hacienda's Adept Technology has recently received orders in excess of $1 million from Techmetics Solutions for its Lynx autonomous intelligent vehicles (AIVs), self-navigating robots intended for warehousing and manufacturing applications.

Adept Lynx AIVs are capable of providing rapid, traceable material movement in highly dynamic environments. Lynx vehicles intelligently self-navigate, which means that they can both avoid obstacles and select the best path to complete a task. These qualities allow the Lynx to work safely alongside people as well. Fleet deployments can accommodate large operations, and the Lynx can be run in conjunction with a user's existing enterprise management system.

Adept recently demonstrated a Lynx AIV model capable of moving carts that can handle payloads as heavy as 230 pounds. The company states that this new generation of Lynx is "designed to unlock a new range of materials transport applications, and further increase customers' efficiencies in warehousing, logistics and manufacturing." Return on investment for a Lynx mobile robot can be as low as one year, depending on the application.

Techmetics, which placed their order in May, provides automation solutions to the hospitality, food, and beverage industry in Southeast Asia. Deliveries of the Lynx AIVs began in June and are scheduled to continue for the next year.

"This order is a testament to the advantages Lynx mobile robots provide to customers, boosting transport efficiency, process traceability and lowering operating costs," said Rob Cain, Adept president and CEO. "We are excited to be working with Techmetics as we expand our mobile products into new markets."

Mathan Muthupillai, Techmetics chairman, echoed Cain's enthusiasm for the autonomous vehicles. "We are excited to partner with Adept and deploy Lynx-based solutions into the hospitality, food and beverage market, where the robots' onboard intelligence, exceptional navigation, and safety features make them ideal for a host of transportation tasks," he said.

Adept also recently released the Lynx Enterprise Manager 1100, a new fleet management system for the units. Lynx Enterprise Manager 1100 controls all aspects of operating a fleet of Lynx mobile robots, coordinating as many as 100 vehicles simultaneously to enable large-scale deployments for warehousing/logistics, manufacturing, and semiconductor applications.

"Lynx Enterprise Manager 1100 is a powerful, easy-to-deploy platform that can manage every aspect of a substantial Lynx mobile robot workforce," says Michael Oitzman, senior product line manager of Mobile Robots at Adept.

The new platform also coordinates vehicle configuration, task allocation, and traffic control, and interfaces with a user's existing enterprise management system.

For addition information on Lynx, Lynx Enterprise Manager 1100, or any of Adept's other intelligent robot solutions for fields including medical, electronics, food, semiconductors, or traditional industrial markets like machine tool automation and automotive components, access www.adept.com.

Photo: Lynx autonomous intelligent vehicles are Adept's self-navigating robots (images courtesy of Adept Technology)

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