Machine diagnostic tool that runs on any Android device

Keeping a machine running can be a challenge. An expensive challenge. At Fabtech, Olis Robotics, specialists in remote control and error recovery systems for industrial robots, partnered with Mid-Atlantic Machinery to show how a robot-tended press brake can be remotely monitored for under $1,000. 

Using a new App from Olis running on an over-the-counter Android smartphone, a Mid-Atlantic application engineer monitored the data to ensure the robot and press brake were operating efficiently. 

"We have a small team, so to help us help our customers as efficiently as possible, we've started using an app called Olis," said Jimmy Eberle, an application engineer at Mid-Atlantic Machinery, a company that distributes, integrates and supports equipment. The company now supplies Olis on all of the machines it sells.

"This is Olis right here on this tablet, which we set this up onsite at Fabtech, and it has a video of the cell," said Eberle. "In this case, we have a press-brake tending robot. We can also see a lot of different diagnostic data of the robot. So, for example, if a customer called me and said, 'Hey, the robot just ran into a protective stop, I can click under the events right here, and I can click on protective stop. I can see every instance for the timestamp of all the protective stops they've gotten on the robot."

So, instead of trying to guess what the problem is, or having to travel to the site, an engineer can run diagnostics remotely.

"The news here from Olis today is actually this app that is running on this Android tablet," said CEO of Olis Robotics, Fredrik Ryden. "It's basically a $500 App on top of two hundred dollars of hardware. For less than a thousand dollars, you can basically make your regular automation fully remote, support enabled. The technicians from Mid-Atlantic Machinery can just go in here and on this App they can share this QR code. Now they can get help from whatever expert they want, anywhere in the world."

The Olis app synchronizes real-time video with system logs, providing a complete picture of what went wrong. With remote access to the automation cell, engineers can resolve problems faster and keep production running smoothly without unnecessary guesswork and travel,” said CEO of Olis Robotics, Fredrik Ryden.

Full set-up takes less than five minutes - including a simple online purchase - making it an efficient retrofit for legacy automation systems. Users simply download the Olis app onto an Android tablet or phone and connect an Ethernet connection to the controller. From there, they can configure IP addresses and start collecting diagnostic data.

In addition to receiving synchronized telemetry and video in parallel, engineers can set up alerts regarding irregular activity before it escalates into a costly hard stop. The Olis app also supports screen-sharing functionality, enabling troubleshooting teams to collaborate in real-time.