News

- Cemagref Carnot Institute becomes Irstea !

On the occasion of the Forum organised for its 30th anniversary and in order to reinforce its mission statement, Cemagref Carnot Insitute has adopted a new identity: it has become Irstea, the National Institute for Environmental and Agricultural Science and Research.

- 1500 images per second! World record for an ultra sensitive IR camera made at Carnot Institute CEA LETI.

1500 images per second is the record established by an IR prototype camera made at CEA-Leti in collaboration with its industrial partner Sofradir . The retina of the camera is made of a 320x256 array of HgCdTe avalanche photodiodes. It works in the 0.4 to 3µm wavelength range and has been linked to an ultra fast and sensitive readout circuit to get a noise below 4 electrons per pixel.
That camera is designed to correct optical wave front and follow up the interference fringes of astrophysical observations in the frame of the « Rapid » project. The exceptional performances of that camera should be a breakthrough for other applications such as the hyper spectral imaging.
 

- Force amplifier: the cobot lends you a hand !

Cetim and CEA-List Carnot Institutes have pooled their skills in mechatronics to design a collaborative robot or “cobot”. Manufactured with the RB3D company, the cobot amplifies human force and helps with arduous and repetitive industrial tasks.
Developed and produced by the RB3D company using its own technology and the technology of the two Carnot institutes : Cetim and CEA-List , the cobot is a mechatronic arm designed for arduous and repetitive industrial tasks such as brushing, chipping or handling. The operator handles the tool with the instrumented arm which amplifies the human force.
"Where a brushing operation requires a force of 20kg, the cobot requires a force of no more than a kilo", explains Serge Grygorowicz, president and founder of the RB3D company.
This success results from the specific skills of the three project partners. CEA-List has provided its expertise in force feedback tele-operation, initially developed for the nuclear industry. An intuitive control method, integrated into the cobot, amplifies the force of the operator by a sliding factor of 1 to 50 by using a single force sensor. The operator thus retains quantitative information about the progress of the task through feedback on the configurable force. The apparent inertia and other imperfections that might be felt by the operator (friction, for example) are reduced by introducing the amplification factor.
For its part, Cetim has structured its approach around mechatronic design and has ensured that the end product complies with European directives in terms of methodology, technical support and the certification process.
Finally, the cobot benefits from the vital experience and mechatronic know-how offered by RB3D, a young business where the entire workforce has a mechatronic training.
Serge Grygorowicz explains: "Integrating mechatronics, which is a natural step, means that we can develop intelligent tools that are adapted to industry. Their main purpose is to lend humans extra power and endurance in their movements whilst limiting the risk of MSDs (musculoskeletal disorders) at work".