During Innovate Canada, guests will have the opportunity to explore the advanced manufacturing ecosystem in Canada through hands-on tours at several innovative companies throughout the region. Please see below for descriptions of the tours.
University of Waterloo - RoboHub
The Waterloo RoboHub is the home of robotics at the University of Waterloo, bringing together all of the related technical, educational, research, and other services and experience into one central group and is Canada’s largest robotics and automation research group
- 15 different types of robots comprise the fleet of 100+ robotic devices
- Humanoid, robotic arm, aerial, land (wheeled) and maglev (magnetic levitation) robots
University of Waterloo - AVRIL - Autonomous Vehicle and Research Intelligence Lab
AVRIL is a 10 bay R&D workspace for a wide variety of mobility applications Including:
Autonomoose, Canada’s first autonomous vehicle licensed for on-road driving
Watonobus, Waterloo’s all-weather autonomous shuttle bus
3rd row occupant detection sensor that sends an alert if a child or pet is left behind
msam - multi-scale additive manufacturing
MSAM (Multi-Scale Additive Manufacturing)
One of the world’s largest R&D additive manufacturing facilities
• Broad base of materials used to produce additive manufacturing products:
- Metal Alloys (Aluminum, Copper, Iron, Nickel, Titanium)
- Composites (Graphene-Silver Nanoparticles, Tungsten Carbide)
- Silicone
- Ceramics
• Extensive research in optimization of additive manufacturing for commercial applications
• Use of optical scanning for complex part digitization and reverse engineering
OTTO Motors
- Delivers materials to and from automation equipment
- Delivers materials to and from people
- Delivers materials to and from racks near the floor.
The OTTO Material Movement Platform is comprised of three integrated solutions: OTTO Autonomous Mobile Robots, OTTO Fleet Manager and OTTO Care.
The OTTO Lifter is the only autonomous forklift in Canada and is used at the Toyota plant in Cambridge
ATS Automation
ATS is an industry-leading automation solutions provider to many of the world’s most successful companies. ATS uses its extensive knowledge base and global capabilities in custom automation, repeat automation, automation products and value-added services, including pre-automation and after-sales services, to address the sophisticated manufacturing automation systems and service needs of multinational customers in markets such as life sciences, food & beverage, transportation, consumer products, and energy.
EV Battery: For the electrification of vehicles, battery assembly is critical. Battery technology is evolving at a breakneck pace, with design changes happening weeks before launch. ATS will have innovative automotive assembly system(s) in various states of machine assembly and integration.
Nuclear: For nuclear, there is an Advanced Automation Testing Facility which contains a Major Component Replacement (MCR) Integration testing facility for nuclear reactor refurbishment on the ATS Cambridge campus.
Life Sciences: ATS expertise is transforming manufacturing operations through innovative and high-quality technology and automation solutions. ATS has solutions for customized, standardized and contract (repetitive equipment) manufacturing for small, medium and large enterprises. Equipment is used in Inhalers, Medical Wearables , Contact Lenses , Needle Sets, Autoinjectors, Catheters, Iv Sets, Prefilled Syringes, Tube Sets, Sutures, Diagnostic Cassettes, Automated Pharmacy, Glucose Test Strips, Lab Automation, Glucose Meters, Stents, Point Of Care Test Cartridges and more
SMART - Smart Manufacturing and Advanced Recycling Technologies
The SMART Manufacturing & Advanced Recycling Technologies (SMART) Centre was established in 2020 to support applied research, consulting and training in the areas of advanced manufacturing, advanced recycling technologies, and cybersecurity.
