Having attended European shows in the broader factory automation environment since I joined a B-2-B publishing company in the summer of 2006, this week has opened a new chapter in my career. I travelled to Guangzhou, China to attend the 137th Canton Fair as editor of IEN Europe. With its 55 exhibition sections and 172 product zones, this is the most horizontal event I have attended in my professional life; even the Hannover Messe, one of Europe's major spring events each year, has a fairly vertical selection of industries compared to this. Certainly one of the first things you notice is the high level of internationalisation, with buyers from more than 210 countries and regions.
China's industrial innovations in batteries, photovoltaics, digital technologies and intelligent manufacturing are represented with a focus on advanced technologies and green solutions.
One of the new highlights of the show is the Service Robots Zone, which showcases the latest developments and innovations. From manufacturers of joints and grippers that work like a human hand, to cobots and mobile robot units for the agricultural industry, harvesting fruit or vegetables such as tomatoes, they are all there. And that is not all. You can also find innovative designs for surveillance and detection, used for monitoring tasks in hazardous industrial areas, or for finding and rescuing people in a fire zone or after a natural disaster.
Another trend you can see, as at the European events, is that robots are becoming humanoid. When it comes to service and human-machine interaction, these design features clearly make sense, as they allow people to interact with a friendlier-looking machine. The benefits in industrial and manufacturing environments remain to be proven. However, a few years ago, nobody would have thought that a 20-inch multi-touch interface would be the way to go for machine operation, and you know what customers are demanding in terms of HMIs today.
With the growing investment in China's robotics sector over the next 10 years, the size and versatility of the Service Robot Zone at the show will certainly grow to the next level. I really hope to come back in the coming years to see this transformation and innovative ideas live and in action.
