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AUTONOMOUS SYSTEMS...
AUTONOMOUS SYSTEMS...

The autonomous revolution

From the invention of the cotton gin and the steam engine during the first industrial
revolution to the development of the assembly line during the second revolution, the
world has taken great leaps forward thanks to the rapid adoption of new technology.
Here, Andreas Parr, Bob Scannell and Sarven Ipek of Analog Devices look at how
autonomous technlology is drive the next industrial revolution

any analysts agree: the next industrial navigate its environment. It can accomplish these
revolution is already upon us, driven goals with the help of sensing modalities whose
by growth in Industry 4.0 and auto- outputs are fused and interpreted by traditional, AI,
Mnomous systems. The push to more or machine learning-based algorithms. Reliability
efficient use of materials and labor in this next age and availability are the biggest associated
of industrial discovery requires that the underlying challenges requiring the implementation of multiple
technology continue to evolve at a rapid pace. sensor technologies in parallel, with the end goal of
Automated and autonomously acting robots, improving safety, efficiency, cost, and flexibility.
vehicles, and drones, which are tightly integrated Autonomous systems rely heavily on high fidelity
into manufacturing, mining, farming, and logistics data collected by fused sensing modalities to inform
processes, are critical pillars of the ongoing AI and algorithms. Among the most commonly
industrial revolution. To achieve the required levels accepted sensors in the industry are radar, LIDAR,
of system performance expected from autonomous vision, ultrasound, and inertial sensors. The table
applications, equipment needs to both perceive and here highlights the benefits and limitations to each

September 2020 • INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY EXTRA • p6