Toyota has partnered with Ready Robotics to enhance industrial robotics through simulation and programming on Nvidia’s Omniverse platform.
This collaboration focuses on a “sim-to-real” robotic programming approach, utilizing Ready Robotics’ ForgeOS alongside Nvidia Isaac Sim within the Omniverse environment. The technology is set to be implemented in Toyota’s aluminum hot forging production lines.
The initiative leverages digital twins, enabling Toyota to create a virtual model of its factory. This model is refined through continuous data feedback from sensors in the actual factory, leading to optimized designs. Nvidia’s Omniverse serves as a robust platform for developing these digital twins, resembling a metaverse tailored for engineers.
Designed to improve safety and efficiency, this integration addresses traditional challenges in robotic forging, where dealing with hot metal parts poses risks. By utilizing ForgeOS and Nvidia Isaac Sim, Toyota can program robotic systems in a safe, simulated environment, eliminating hazards associated with high-temperature materials.
Ready Robotics enhances the programming of robotic systems with ForgeOS, streamlining automation processes and saving time. The combination of ForgeOS with Nvidia Isaac Sim offers exceptional visual and physics simulation fidelity, enabling Toyota to effectively program and refine complex hot forging routines in realistic scenarios.
A significant advantage is the “sim-to-real” workflow, where successful simulations can be seamlessly transitioned into real production settings, minimizing the risks tied to physical installations. With ForgeOS managing both simulation and live work cells, quick program transfers and updates are facilitated, reducing downtime and easing maintenance.
Notably, ForgeOS can relay real-time data from live cells back to the Nvidia Isaac Sim simulation, creating a digital twin of the live environment. This enhances monitoring and oversight through current state visualizations.
Kel Guerin, Chief Innovation Officer at Ready Robotics, stated, “Nvidia provides the tools needed to help our programs reflect real-world scenarios, and ForgeOS establishes the connection between this simulation and the real cell.”
Ready Robotics is also collaborating with SCSK, a top Japanese IT services company and Nvidia Omniverse partner, to implement this solution for Toyota.
Kazuhiro Suzuki, Group Manager of Toyota’s Raw Materials Development Division, emphasized, “The unique architecture of ForgeOS supports the sim-to-real workflow, linking Nvidia Isaac Sim’s simulation capabilities with our physical systems. We can program in simulation, transfer that program, and use ForgeOS to capture live production data for ongoing process improvement.”
This collaboration marks a pivotal advancement in robotic automation programming for Toyota, enhancing efficiency, usability, and safety. It also paves the way for leveraging production data from automation systems for process monitoring and improvement, with potential applications in artificial intelligence.
Deepu Talla, Vice President of Embedded and Edge Computing at Nvidia, noted, “Simulating industrial processes in high fidelity before real-world deployment can significantly enhance productivity and safety while lowering costs.”
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