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Shane Farritor, David B. and Nancy K. Lederer Professor of Engineering, addresses conference attendees during an afternoon breakout session on Wednesday, Oct. 25 at Nebraska Innovation Campus. -
The Heartland Robotics Cluster Conference featured a “happy hour” bartender robot. -
HRC Conference attendees were given tours of Innovation Campus, including a visit to the “virtual” Welding Booths inside Innovation Studio.
Precision agriculture, space robots with the capability of taking lunar soil samples, UAV vision-based tracking systems, and building practical robots for today were just some of the many topics featured at the first Heartland Robotics and Automation Conference at Nebraska Innovation Campus in October.
As part of a $25 million investment from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration’s American Rescue Plan Regional Challenge, the Heartland Robotics Cluster is an Invest Nebraska initiative that features six project leads, including the College of Engineering, Northeast Community College, Metro Community College, Nebraska Innovation Studio, the Nebraska Manufacturing Extension Partnership, and The Combine. October’s conference featured guest lecturers and researchers from across the U.S. and brought together industry experts, entrepreneurs, investors, and robotics enthusiasts to explore trends and advancements in robotics and automation.
“Over 200 individuals registered for the conference,” stated Dan Hoffman, CEO of Invest Nebraska and “For the inaugural conference, that was a very noteworthy number. It demonstrates that Nebraskans and others around the Midwest want to learn more about robotics and automation.”
Keynote speakers included Carsten Horn, applications engineering manager with Maxon Group; Dave Rollison, CTO and co-founder of HEBI Robotics; and Erik Mumm, a graduate of the UNL College of Engineering and vice president at Honeybee Robotics. All three provided insight into the current state of robotics and automation as well as predictions for an industrious future for college graduates and researchers seeking career opportunities.
“Attendees appreciated the mix of content with keynote speakers from outside Nebraska, demonstration projects, breakout sessions, and celebrating student robotic teams,” added Hoffman, who put the Heartland Robotics Cluster together to address potential labor challenges for Nebraska’s manufacturing workforce.
In addition to various breakout sessions and keynote speeches, conference attendees were treated to tours and Marble Technologies and Nebraska Innovation Studio on the Nebraska Innovation Campus. Shane Farritor, David and Nancy Lederer Professor of Mechanical Engineering and CTO of Virtual Incision; Carrick Detweiler, Susan J. Rosowski Professor in the School of Computing; and Eric Markvicka, assistant professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering were also notable participants at the conference, with Farritor demonstrating Virtual Incision’s state-of-the-art surgical equipment, Detweiler showcasing IGNIS software used in drone firefighting technology; and Markvicka presenting his stretchable electronics and “self-healing” liquid metals technology.
“I was very surprised by the interest from UNL engineering students wanting to learn more about robotics,” noted Hoffman. “Building relationships with these students today can reap significant benefits for Nebraska in the future.”