Page 476 - Sensors and Control Systems in Manufacturing

Sensors in Flexible Manufacturing Systems

FIGURE 8.42 Automated guided vehicle carrying various medical supplies and 429
records.

in 2006, investment slowed down. Robot sales to the fabricated metal
products industry, the chemical industry, and the food industry
increased substantially.
In 2006, more than 61,700 robots were supplied to Asian countries
(including Australia and New Zealand), about 19 percent fewer than
in 2005. The electrical/electronics industry in Asia, which invested
very heavily in 2005, cut robot purchases by half. Supplies to the
automotive industry also decreased slightly.
Supplies to all other industries—in particular the metal products
and machinery industry, the chemical industry, and the food industry—
surged.
In Japan, supplies fell by 26 percent, to about 37,400 units. After the
substantial investments within the automotive and electrical/electronics
industry in 2007, purchases in both sectors were down in 2008.
The sharp fall was compensated by increased sales to the machin-
ery and metal industry as well as to the chemical industry.