AIMEN Centro Tecnológico

AIMEN is a Non-Profit private association constituted by 83 companies, which supplies technological support to more than 500 companies dedicated to industrial or commercial activity related to metallurgy, automotive, aeronautics, construction, environment, metal-mechanics, shipbuilding, railway, energy, machinery, food, wood and its derivates, plastics, engineering, assembly, and others. AIMEN has participated in 690 R&D&I Projects in the last 10 years, has 265 employees and 17.6 M€ annual income in 2021. AIMEN is a highly professionalised organisation specialised in the field of Materials Engineering, Manufacturing Processes, Laser Technologies and Environmental Technologies. Its mission is to improve competitiveness and technology know-how of Manufacturing Industry through the following activities: (i) R&D&i projects, (ii) Monitoring technology evolution, (iii) Acquisition and development of emergent technologies, (iv) Promotion of technology innovation in the companies.

General
Registered office: AIMEN Centro Tecnológico
Entity type: Research and/or Technological Centre
Size: > 200
Innovation group:
  • Industrial Robotics
  • Logistics and Transport
  • Construction
Contact data
City: O Porriño
State: Galicia
Country: Spain
Contact: Diego Pérez (diego.perez@aimen.es)
Web: https://www.aimen.es/
Technological Aspects

Type of tecnology base of the institution activities

General domain:
  • Industrial robotics
  • Logistics and transport
  • Construction
Cross domain:
  • Wearable Robotics
  • Safety
Technology:
  • AI and Cognition
  • Autonomous Navigation
  • Mechatronics
  • Software Engineering, Systems Integration and Systems Engineering
  • Perception
Others (Non-Technical):
  • Education and training

Types of activities developed by the institution

  • Robot programming (software development)
  • Integral customised projects for end users
  • Integration/installation of robotic equipment and technologies
  • Research and development projects
  • Training
Specific Tehcnological Aspects
Collaborative robotics, Multi-layered control systems, advanced guided motion, visual servoing, dynamic task execution, multi-level perception systems.
R+D Projects

Project 1

Name: MERGING: Manipulation enhancement through robotic guidance and intelligent novel grippers
Web: http://www.merging-project.eu/
Summary:

The ambition of the MERGING project is to build a versatile, easy-to-use and low-cost robotic solution and provide manufacturers with an end-to-end solution for the automation of tasks involving the handling of flexible or fragile objects. It will consist of an optimized dexterous gripper equipped with an adaptive electro-adhesive skin. AIMEN is in charge of the development of the perception system, both for process and safety, and the control of the whole system.

Project type: International
Funding source: Yes
Funded externally: Yes
Developed in consortium: Yes

Project 2

Name: MARI_4YARD: User-centric solutions for a flexible and modular manufacturing in small and medium-sized shipyards
Web: https://www.mari4yard.eu/
Summary:

Mari4_YARD aims the implementation of a portfolio of worker-centric solutions, by relying on novel collaborative robotics and ubiquitous portable solutions, enabling modular, reconfigurable and usable solutions targeting the execution of labour-intensive tasks by preserving industry-specific workers’ knowledge and skills. AIMEN leads the initiative and will focus on the development of novel robotics technologies to be deployed in shared space with operators.

Project type: Internal
Funding source: Yes
Funded externally: Yes
Developed in consortium: Yes

Project 3

Name: CONVERGING: Social industrial collaborative environments integrating AI, Big Data and Robotics for smart manufacturing
Summary:

CONVERGING aims to develop, deploy, validate and promote smart and reconfigurable production systems including multiple autonomous agents (collaborative robots, AGVs, humans) that are able to act in diverse production environments. The diversifying factors will be a multi-level AI based cognition (line, station, resource levels) which will exploit the collective perception (Digital Pipeline) of these resources, allowing them to interact with each other and seamlessly coexist with humans under a "social industrial environment" that ensures trustful, safe and inclusive user experience. CONVERGING will demonstrate its results in the Automotive, Aircraft Production, White Goods and Additive Manufacturing products processing sectors.

Project type: Internal
Funding source: Yes
Funded externally: Yes
Developed in consortium: Yes

Project 4

Name: CARLOS: CooperAtive Robot for Large Spaces manufacturing
Web: http://carlosproject.aimen.es/
Summary:

The CARLoS project aims to apply recent advances in cooperative mobile robotics to a representative industrial scenario in shipyards. CARLoS robot will be built using off-the-shelf technology under a modular approach. The prototype will be demonstrated as a robot co-worker for fit-out operations inside blocks of ship superstructures. Most of technology for developing such a robot exists, but there is not yet a solution on the market with capabilities that meet the special requirements of shipyards.

Project type: International
Funding source: Yes
Funded externally: Yes
Developed in consortium: Yes

Project 5

Name: COLROBOT: Collaborative Robotics for Assembly and Kitting in Smart Manufacturing
Web: https://colrobot.eu/
Summary:

ColRobot combines cutting-edge European robot technology and end-user requirements for assembly processes to create an integrated system for collaborative robotics in which a mobile manipulator acts as a “third hand” by delivering kits, tools, parts, and holding work pieces while the operator works on it. Humans will cognitively and physically interact with ColRobot robots using gestures, touch commands and demonstrations. The robot will be able to navigate autonomously in the factory floor to pick up the required parts and tools, and prepare kits for assembly. A safety system that pushes the limits of standardization in collaborative robotics supervises the process.

Project type: Internal
Funding source: Yes
Funded externally: Yes
Developed in consortium: Yes

Project 6

Name: PROFETA: Product range flexible manufacturing by plant dynamic reconfiguration
Summary:

The main objective of the PROFETA project is to make progress in the development of flexible manufacturing systems, focusing on the demonstration of a new production concept based on product ranges by plant dynamic reconfiguration. The product range manufacturing - small batch sizes or wide product variation - requires the development of new solutions that allows a highly flexible manufacturing capability. This capacity is essential in order to respond to the manufacturing of products that are becoming more complex and to fast changes in market demand.

Project type: National
Funding source: Yes
Funded externally: Yes
Developed in consortium: Yes

Project 7

Name: ROBERTO: Industrial automated system without safety fencing in collaborative working environments
Summary:

ROBERTO has as main objective the development of an integrated system that allows every industrial robot to be transformed into a collaborative robot (cobot). Cobots are able to share their working environtment with workers and they are provided with human-robot interaction, detection and recognition capabilities. Therefore, the aim of ROBERTO is to provide industrial robots, which can reach high velocities and a great load capacity, with features that are characteristic of cobots, with the purpose of increasing their flexibility and autonomy. In this context, AIMEN is in charge of designing and integrating the control architecture, focusing efforts on perception system implementation that is necessary for people detection and tracking in working environment.

Project type: National
Funding source: Yes
Funded externally: Yes
Developed in consortium: Yes

Project 8

Name: ROBLE: Multi-robot architecture for flexible and scalable applications in logistics
Summary:

ROBLE aims for the development of high flexible and scalable robotized systems for logistics. It proposes the use of commercial mobile platforms combined with a multi-robot and multi-user control architecture, localisation based on natural landmarks, dynamic path planning and tasks scheduling systems, 3D vision and robot-robot cooperation. These new robotized systems are needed to complement the actual automation solutions in order to support the new flexible production systems.

Project type: National
Funding source: Yes
Funded externally: Yes
Developed in consortium: Yes