Emerging technologies offer new prospects for motion controls
23 December 2024 
Emerging technologies such as smart conveyors and machine-integrated robots could open up new markets for suppliers of motion control equipment. Samantha Mou, a China-based research analyst with Interact Analysis, examines the possibilities.
Due to high interest rates, excessive inventories and sluggish demand, the global machinery industry has been facing tough times in past year. This, in turn, has affected sales of automation components such as motion control systems.
Despite this, innovative technologies are continuing to create new opportunities for motion controls, attracting new entrants to the market. In our research and conversations with manufacturers, we have identified two emerging growth areas: smart conveyors; and robots with machine-integrated control.
Smart conveyance technologies (SCTs) are multi-carrier transport technologies that come in two main formats: linear or planar. The market for linear systems has surged in recent years, with revenues expanding from $237m in 2020 to $488m by 2023. By 2029, we expect sales of linear systems to exceed $1.1bn – nearly five times the size of the market in 2020. Planar technology is still in its trial period, generating sales worth nearly $20m in 2023.
Interact Analysis started to track the smart conveyance market in 2020. In the following couple of years, the food, pharmaceuticals and general packaging industries were the main application markets for these systems. However, since then, the landscape has changed with the rapid penetration of smart conveyor products into the Asian market, and a sharp increase in sales to the battery and electronics industries.
Encouraged by this growth, new contenders are entering the market. In 2023, the number of suppliers almost doubled compared to the previous year. And by October of 2024, 12 more companies had launched new linear smart conveyance products.
Most recently, the German rotary indexer and conveyor manufacturer Taktomat presented a new linear smart conveyor system, powered by SEW Eurodrive components. Taktomat’s key clients are primarily from the automotive sector, so the new range is expected to have applications in this sector.
Although the new entrants to the SCT market have yet to acquire meaningful market shares, we expect they will increase their presence, especially in their local markets of China, Japan and Europe.
There has been rapid expansion of the supplier base for linear smart conveyance systems, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. Research by Interact Analysis has uncovered companies planning to launch new SCT products within the next few years. Most are currently suppliers of motion control components such as linear motors and servo products, or conveyor manufacturers.
After the cyclical downturn in the machinery industry comes to an end, we expect the revenue and supplier base of smart conveyance systems to see promising growth in Europe and North America, driven largely by developments in battery manufacturing and warehouse automation.
Rising demand for smart conveyance technologies represents a growing market for motion control products, including servo and direct-drive technologies. Rather than offering smart conveyance systems in their own portfolios, some vendors are supplying key components to system vendors. For example, automation suppliers including Rockwell and Siemens have partnerships with the Canadian company (PMI), which makes planar smart conveyor products. They are supplying PMI with servodrives and controllers.
Machine-integrated robots
The term “machine-integrated robots” refers to robots that are fully integrated into machine control platforms, either by eliminating robot-specific controllers or by retaining robot controllers but integrating the programming platform into the machine systems. The first approach is more common for machine-integrated robots currently being deployed, which include customised robots made by machine-builders.
In 2023, global shipments of machine-integrated robot reached nearly 20,000, with 41% of them going to customers in the EMEA region, 31% to the Americas, and 28% to the Asia-Pacific region. From 2023 to 2029, the market is projected to grow with a CAGR of 14.6%. Compared with the standard industrial robot market (with annual shipments of more than 520,000 machines), the machine-integrated robot market is currently much smaller, but is expected to expand at a faster rate.
The shortage of experienced engineers is one of the major drivers of machine-integrated robots. By combining robot and machine controllers, engineers can control machines and robots in a unified development environment, without needing to use robot programming languages. This helps reduce challenges both for machine-builders and for end-users in finding or training engineers and operators for robotic machines.
The desire by OEMs to build robotic systems in-house is also fuelling the adoption of machine-integrated robots. Machine-builders and integrators increasingly have the capability to build mechanical parts for robots, with some OEMs choosing to make robots by themselves to cut costs. In customised scenarios, OEMs build special robot kinematics in-house, with general automation controllers enabling the practical integration of OEM-made robots into machines.
New entrants and partnerships are increasing the number of machine-integrated robots available. Robot manufacturers, machine-builders and motion control system suppliers are all actively introducing new products and systems.
For example, in 2023, Rockwell Automation partnered with autonox Robotics, having previously entered a partnership with Atom Robot in late 2022. Now, robot arms from three robot vendors can be equipped with Rockwell PLCs.
Recently, Siemens confirmed new cooperation agreements with the cobot (collaborative robot) manufacturers Universal Robots and Jaka, expanding the range of robots that can be programmed directly on its platform.
Motion control suppliers are also working closely with machine-builders to provide systems for OEM-made robots. For example, SEW Eurodrive offers a parallel arm kinematics kit to OEMs wanting to make their own delta robots. In China, many packaging machinery manufacturers now have machines with picking robots developed in-house.
The surging smart conveyance market and the emergence of machine-integrated robots offers new opportunities to motion control suppliers. Driven by the trends of digitalisation, flexibility, and ease-of-use in manufacturing, both of these technologies are expected to increase their penetration into the machinery industry.
Despite current challenges, many suppliers are preparing strategies for the next growth cycle. Companies with competitive products and systems will benefit when demand inevitably picks up.
