Japanese IT equipment and services company, Fujitsu, has announced the launch of an IoT solution, FUJITSU Manufacturing Industry Solution VisuaLine, that visualizes the operational status of the manufacturing process based on log data of operating results collected from a factory’s equipment.

This solution collects log data from the manufacturing equipment, and visualizes the operational status for each individual product in a variety of formats, such as graphs. The users can see the portions of the process that are taking more time than usual by comparing these graphs on a daily basis, and enable them to quickly discover anomalies. This helps users in discerning the problems based on the log data, such as allowing the failing equipment to discover new places and improve the manufacturing facilities or to establish policies.

Features of VisuaLine

• Provides visualizations in which anyone can determine anomalies at a glance This system uses log data for all of the manufacturing equipment involved in the production process for an individual product, from beginning to end, and visualizes this data in a graph that displays process time as a waveform. This makes it possible to grasp the operational status at a glance.
• Field trial-proven video links, estimated vs. actual visualization and equipment visualizationBy linking information from graphs to cameras installed in a manufacturing facility, and then clicking on points in the graph the user would like to see, such as anomalies, it is possible to check video of that point in time, such as what happened at that location or what countermeasures were taken. In addition, this system enables users to search for places to improve based on where they fell short of goals, through a comparative visualization function that compares scheduled process goals and actual results. It also enables users to study the most efficient processes through an equipment visualization function that can check the production line path for each product.
• Easy to implement IoT initiatives in manufacturing facilitiesThis solution utilizes performance data from existing equipment as is, so IoT-based improvement of manufacturing facilities can be started immediately. With the ability to have small starts that keep initial investments in check, deployment from a single line can be rolled out and expanded to other factories.

Pilz Australia launched its new website which incorporates a new E-Shop for its customers in Australasia.

E-Shop will allow customers to not only browse the company’s vast portfolio of products, it enables them to access the latest technical information, view product images, and download the most up-to- date technical data sheets.

The new E-Shop covers the full portfolio of products that is Pilz, with all the technologies and application areas along with a quick and easy way to view associated accessories or add on features for its products.

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Technology that mimics nature is the focus of Associate Professor Iain Anderson from the University of Auckland, who was awarded the Pickering Medal from the Royal Society of New Zealand this week.

The annual award was made to Associate Professor Anderson “for developing and commercialising electroactive polymer technology”.

The Royal Society’s Pickering Medal is made annually “for excellence and innovation in the practical application of technology leading to significant recognition and influence both in New Zealand and overseas”.

His award citation reads: “To Iain Alexander Anderson for the development and commercialisation of applications for electroactive polymer technology.”

Associate Professor Anderson leads the Biomimetics Lab at the University’s Auckland Bioengineering Institute (ABI), and the laboratory’s research programme for creating new technology that mimics nature to solve problems.

“I was thrilled when I heard that I was to receive the medal,” says Associate Professor Anderson. “For about 10 years my students and I have been plugging away, advancing our electroactive polymer work, in the hope that it would all come to something substantial. Well it has! This medal from the Royal Society is an endorsement of the lab’s and StretchSense’s work and our creation of an electroactive polymer ecosystem down here in New Zealand”

The research programme combines electric charge with soft polymer materials to mimic muscle action that includes force, movement and sensing of stretch.

The technology can also be used for energy harvesting from wind, wave human and animal motion.

Researchers at the lab succeeded in developing wearable strain-sensing technology that has potential applications in healthcare, rehabilitation, sports training, animation and gaming industries.

To commercialise the technology, Associate Professor Anderson launched the spin-out company StretchSense Ltd in 2012 with two of his former students, Todd Gisby and Ben O’Brien (who won the Prime Minister’s Emerging Scientist Award in 2013). Anderson is a Director and the Chief Scientist of StretchSense.

The company has seen rapid growth with more than 200 business customers, including Fortune 100 companies and research organisations worldwide.

Their technology also featured in 2016 New York Fashion Week with fashion designer Becca McCharen (Chromat) using it to create dresses that physically responded to wearers’ hand movements to create different tones and moods.

The company now employs 35 staff, including five former post-graduate students of Associate Professor Anderson. Following receiving major funding from a company that owns Japan’s largest retailer of apparel and accessories, StretchSense will expand its New Zealand manufacturing plant and its research and development facility. It also plans to set up sales and customer support offices in the US, Europe and Asia.

A further goal of StretchSense is to produce sensors that are self-powered. StretchSense has recently licensed the electroactive polymer energy harvesting intellectual property developed by the Biomimetics Lab.

The Biomimetics Lab is also patenting new stretchy electronic switches for use in soft robotic applications for agriculture, aquaculture and health. This technology holds great potential for new high-value industries for New Zealand.

The medal selection committee commended Associate Professor Anderson for being able to foster a strong spirit of entrepreneurship in his students alongside a high standard of scientific inquiry.

Iain Anderson is Associate Professor in the Department of Engineering Science at University of Auckland. He was one of the finalists in the 2014 KiwiNet Research Commerialisation Awards and in May 2016 he was presented with a Vice-Chancellor’s Commercialisation Medal from the University of Auckland.

Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce has today announced that the Centre for Space Science Technology (CSST) has been selected to become New Zealand’s second Regional Research Institute.

“The Centre for Space Science Technology, which will be based in Alexandra, Central Otago, will undertake research to explore the use of space-based measurements and satellite imagery unique to New Zealand to meet the specific needs of our regional industries,” Mr Joyce says.

“It will establish an international satellite data exchange and collaborate with leading researchers and businesses, both here and abroad, to design, build and launch New Zealand’s first fleet of cube satellites.”

The Government will provide funding of up to $14.7 million over four years for the new institute with additional funding from industry, and it will operate as a private, independently governed organisation.

“In its proposal to establish a Regional Research Institute, CSST presented a strong business case that will support the development and growth of New Zealand’s space economy by filling critical gaps in the collection and processing of New Zealand’s satellite data,” says Mr Joyce.

“A standout aspect of the proposal was that CSST will also have research hubs in Dunedin, Canterbury and Taranaki, further encouraging R&D and innovation in regional New Zealand – a key objective of the Regional Research Institute initiative.”

CSST is the second successful proposal under the initiative following the launch of the New Zealand Research Institute of Viticulture and Oenology (NZRIVO), based in Marlborough, in October.

A third shortlisted proposal by Earth+Vantage, based in Southland, which proposed undertaking research using real time satellite and ground-based data to lift primary industry productivity was unsuccessful in its application but will have the option to put forward a proposal for the second round of funding. An additional sum of $2.3 million has also been set aside for technical collaboration between CSST and Earth+Vantage if this proves possible.

Minister Joyce today also opened a second round of funding for the Regional Research Institutes initiative.

Regional Research Institutes were announced in Budget 2015. In Budget 2016, the Government set aside $40 million of additional funds to support the initiative, bringing the total funding in contingency to $65 million over four years.

Proposals are invited from groups of businesses, researchers and private investors who are seeking to collaborate to establish regional institutes that will deliver commercially focused and industry-relevant research to their region and New Zealand as a whole.

“During the initial funding round, a number of credible and exciting proposals were received from all across New Zealand on a wide range of research and development interests,” says Mr Joyce.

“Our regional economies have different resources and strengths. These institutes will focus on scientific research relevant to a particular region, with a strong emphasis on the effective transfer of research into new technologies, new firms, and new products and services.”

It is expected that two or three additional institutes will be established over the next four to five years in areas outside Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.

Proposals are due to MBIE by 27 January 2017. Shortlisted proposals will be invited to present to a panel of experts and, if selected, will develop business cases for consideration.

More information on the Regional Research Institutes initiative is available at http://www.mbie.govt.nz/info-services/sectors-industries/regions-cities/...

Palmerston North, Massey University, Wednesday 18 May 2016 - A scientific collaboration aimed at protecting and enhancing New Zealand's $50 billion-plus food sector was officially launched today.

The New Zealand Food Safety Science and Research Centre joins seven science research partners to form a virtual research centre, which will be jointly funded by the Government and industry over the next five years.

Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce and Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew launched the centre at the Manawatū campus of Massey University, alongside the funding partners, the Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand, the Meat Industry Association and Zespri.

The centre’s role is to promote, co-ordinate, and deliver food safety science and research for all of New Zealand, where, according to the Investors Guide to the New Zealand Food and Beverage Industry report issued in November, the top 100 food and beverage firms collectively generate annual revenue of $51 billion.

The science research collaborators are crown research institutes AgResearch, Environmental Science and Research, Plant and Food Research, as well as the private scientific research organisation the Cawthron Institute, and three universities –­ the University of Auckland, the University of Otago and Massey, the host institution.

The centre's board will be independently chaired by biotechnologist and chemical engineer Dr Kevin Marshall, who also chairs the Riddet Institute, a national centre of research excellence based around food science.

"The centre is an important collaboration between Government, industry and researchers right across the value chain," Dr Marshall says. "It will help to protect and enhance the reputation of food produced by New Zealand, maintain and enhance its exports, increase collective market access and protect public health.”

Funding for the centre will total $4.1 million per annum, with the Government committing $2.05 million per annum and industry matching that.

Dairy Companies Association chairman Malcolm Bailey says the investment shows a clear commitment to maintaining New Zealand’s global reputation for the best food safety outcomes. “Our investment is aimed at future-proofing New Zealand’s reputation for safe food through greater co-ordination, and a stronger linkage to the world’s leading science and research.”

Meat Industry Association chief executive Tim Ritchie says, “New Zealand’s global reputation for strong food safety outcomes is critically important to the success of the red meat sector. The meat industry already invests in science and research to support and protect this reputation and this collaboration is another example of the industry’s absolute commitment to food safety.”

Zespri general manager for innovation Carol Ward says, “this is an important and vital research partnership that will support businesses like Zespri where the focus is on providing the highest quality kiwifruit to consumers around the world. Our success is underpinned by trust in the safety of our produce and high quality research will help New Zealand food producers to continue to lead the way in food safety.”

Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment chief executive David Smol says the partnership will bring the best minds and institutions together. “New Zealand’s food exports are dependent on an internationally credible food safety system, which must be underpinned by the best available science," Mr Smol says. "The work to be done at the centre will be a huge help in meeting our export growth targets."

Ministry for Primary Industries director-general Martyn Dunne says the research centre will contribute to ensuring the food safety of consumers in New Zealand and around the world. “The research from the centre will focus on minimising risks of foodborne illnesses by looking at short-term issues as well as pre-empting future food safety risks across all sectors to ensure that consumers can continue to have confidence that their food is safe.”

Centre establishment director Professor Nigel French, from Massey, says the centre will help to continue to build New Zealand's reputation as a global leader in the supply of safe food "by delivering world-class strategic scientific research driven by the needs of government, consumers and industry”.