EverestLabs sees bright future for sorting robot

Fremont, California-based EverestLabs says its “high recovery” robot cell configurations for material recovery facilities (MRFs) can deliver 208 picks per minute, which it calls “a 49 percent increase in object picks compared to legacy delta robot installations.”

The company says “extensive research and development” has gone into its smaller “2.0” robot footprint cells for MRFs.

“MRF executives have been limited in their use of robotics in various locations because they just don't have room for a large delta arm nor need one, as one size does not fit all,” states Don Gambelin, head of sales and business development at EverestLabs.

“We innovated over the course of the past four years to build and test the smallest robot cell configurations that can deliver the highest return,” adds Gambelin. “MRF operators can customize their robot cell configurations based on the data from the conveyor and make quick use of our easy to install vision systems and robot equipment.”

A spokesperson for the company says an EverestLabs robot cell model was installed in one MRF on a Saturday, had calibration tests on a Sunday “and started sorting on Monday,” which she calls “very impressive versus the typical two-to-four-week turnaround time for robots in the industry.”

EverestLabs says its robot cells are achieving an 85 percent or greater pick success rate, which the company calls “the highest to date for robots in production in MRFs.” The company credits its “revolutionary end-of-arm-tools, software, and suction strength.”

In comparison with other models it has encountered on the market, EverestLabs says its robots deliver the highest number of picks per foot in the MRF industry.

Increased productivity is helpful in tightly configured MRF environments, where one EverestLabs unit can perform the work of two older and larger robots, according to the company.

“EverestLabs’ patent pending software has the lowest inference time, comparable to self-driving cars,” states the company. “As a result, our robot solutions are delivering the highest number of picks,”

Potential customers can demo the new robot cells at EverestLabs’ headquarters facility in Fremont, with customer site tours and references available on request.

EverestLabs describes itself as a provider of enterprise software and automation solutions for increasing recovery at MRFs and enabling reuse in manufacturing. The firm says it is funded by “leading American, Canadian and Japanese venture funds.”