Several companies have expressed interest in Techman Robot Inc’s (達明機器人) new humanoid robot, TM Xplore I, which would be first tested at the company’s plants before being offered to customers, the robotic arm partner of Nvidia Corp said yesterday.
Techman, a subsidiary of Quanta Computer Inc (廣達電腦), mainly produces artificial intelligence (AI) collaborative robots (cobots), featuring user-friendly systems with integrated vision capabilities.
The company began the TM Xplore I project last year, and is developing a prototype of the machine and testing applications with partners, vice president William Wang (王偉霖) said on the sidelines of the Taiwan Automation Intelligence and Robot Show in Taipei.
Photo: Chiang Ying-ying, AP
The company plans to launch the robot in the second half of next year if mass production proceeds smoothly, Wang said.
TM Xplore I is equipped with Nvidia’s Jetson Orin platform, which enables advanced AI inference and edge computing, Techman said.
Mounted on wheels and fitted with 22 switches, it can perform more complex actions that resemble human movements, it said.
Techman produces cobots and robots at the company’s plant in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), where the utilization rate is about 50 to 60 percent, Wang said.
In the first half of the year, shipments of cobots integrated with autonomous mobile robots for medical device maker Advantech Technologies Japan accounted for about 30 percent of the company’s sales, while cobot shipments to chipmakers made up about 25 percent, Techman said.
The company reported revenue of NT$891.33 million (US$29.22 million) in the first half of this year, up 16.35 percent year-on-year.
The US accounted for less than 5 percent of total sales in the first half, while China contributed about 30 percent and Europe about 20 percent, Wang said.
However, the company posted a net loss of NT$29.48 million in the first half of the year due to the sharp appreciation of the New Taiwan dollar against the US dollar.
In the US, the company operates a hub that stores finished products and spare parts, mainly providing after-sales services, and is considering establishing a similar facility in Mexico, Wang said.
The company would consider establishing a production center in the US or Mexico if needed, given manageable US tariffs and setup costs, he added.
Techman chairman Ho Shih-chih (何世池) said that several customers delayed plans for new plants and capital expenditure increases last quarter due to tariffs, which have indirectly affected Techman’s shipments.
However, demand has begun to recover as related policies have begun to stabilize and customers finalize plans to set up plants in the US, Mexico, Vietnam and Thailand, boding well for Techman’s business outlook, he said.
Revenue in the second half of this year is expected to surpass last year’s NT$715 million as growth momentum continues, Ho said.
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