As part of an ongoing series, we are featuring SPRINT Robotics member companies on SR Community. This month: HEBI Robotics, a Pittsburgh-based startup focusing on robotic actuation technologies and engineering solutions, working to make robots simple, useful, and safe.
Tell us about your company in 1- 2 sentences.
HEBI Robotics produces a hardware & software platform for robot development. HEBI’s world class roboticists, armed with our platform, solve tough automation challenges for industrial customers.
Where is your company based and how many employees does your company have?
Based in Pittsburgh, PA, HEBI Robotics is a spin-off from the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University. We have 14 employees in our Pittsburgh headquarters as well as a satellite office in Salzburg, Austria.
What have you appreciated most about being a member of the SPRINT Robotics Collaborative?
The SPRINT Robotics Collaborative has offered excellent opportunities to meet with industrial partners that are looking for solutions to difficult automation challenges. Through these interactions, HEBI has gained invaluable insight to the types of problems that need to be solved and has made contacts with the people that can help drive development collaborations.
How would you describe your company culture in just 3 words?
Solve real problems.
What makes your company stand out?
HEBI’s robot development platform stands on its own as a unique and powerful tool. The platform is used by over 100 research groups around the world to create robots for research and prototypes. The HEBI team is composed of world class roboticists. The team, armed with the platform, is uniquely qualified to create innovative solutions for challenges that cannot be solved with existing robotics.
Which developments in I&M robotics are you most excited about?
HEBI is excited about the diversity of challenges in I&M robotics as well as advances in sensor technology and a growing appreciation for the value of data. These factors combine to make I&M applications an important part of our growth strategy. Our system can be used to create highly customizable robots that can get sensors too difficult to reach places and offer manipulation capabilities.
What is the greatest challenge that your company has faced in I&M robotics?
Aside from some interesting technical challenges, the most noteworthy challenges are related to gaining traction and credibility in an industry that rightly favors reliability over innovation. Overcoming inertia is and will continue to be a challenge for I&M innovators. We’ll advance by showing incremental progress that makes a big difference and build toward comprehensive solutions.
Has your company won any awards or are there any other achievements you’d like to share?
Achievements we’re most proud of are related to work that our customers have done with our system (https://www.hebirobotics.com/robotics-research- applications ) and collaborations we’ve worked on with industrial partners. These awards include Rice Alliance’s 2020 Ten Most Promising Technology Companies.
Look into the future. What developments do you see happening in your company?
HEBI will continue to collaborate with industry partners on solutions for challenging inspections and maintenance applications. Details of new solutions and projects will be released soon. Furthermore, each project results in expanded capabilities for our platform, so expect to see new tools and capabilities soon - such as new mobile platforms and more powerful actuation hardware.
Is there a video link of your solution you would like to share?
Please visit https://www.hebirobotics.com/webinars for details on upcoming events and visit our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/hebirobotics for a variety of fun and informative videos.
