On May 8th, 2024, the China Small and Micro Robot Competition and Small and Micro Robot Innovation and Development Conference were grandly held in Wuxi. This conference focuses on the theme of "AI accelerating new quality productivity and IoT building a new industrial highland", aiming to promote the aggregation and integration of innovation chain, industry chain, talent chain, and capital chain, accelerate the cultivation of small and micro robot industry clusters, and promote the industry to move towards the high-end of the global value chain. Important guests such as Tan Jianrong, academician of the CAE Member, Su Jie, vice president of the National Institute of Safety Science and Engineering of the Emergency Management Department, Du Xiaogang, secretary of the CPC Wuxi Municipal Committee, Li Jian, second level inspector of the Department of Industry and Information Technology of Jiangsu Province, Zhou Wendong, deputy mayor of the People's Government of Wuxi City, Cui Rongguo, secretary of the Party Working Committee of Wuxi Hi tech Zone and secretary of Xinwu District Committee, Chang Wei, deputy director of the Ministry of Industry of China Electronics Technology, Chen Zongnian, chairman of CEC Haikang Group, and Liu Yongyu, general manager of CEC Haikang, attended the conference. Cui Rongguo, Secretary of the Party Working Committee of Wuxi High tech Zone and Secretary of the Xinwu District Committee, Su Jie, Vice President of the National Safety Research Institute of the Ministry of Emergency Response, and Liu Yongyu, General Manager of Zhongdian Haikang, delivered speeches respectively.
At the meeting, the policy on small and micro robots in Wuxi High tech Zone was officially released, and Gu Guodong, Deputy Secretary of the Party Working Committee and Deputy Director of the Management Committee of Wuxi High tech Zone, and Secretary of the Party Working Committee of Taikoyuan, gave a deep interpretation of the policy. This new policy consists of 12 articles, focusing on four core aspects: accelerating industrial agglomeration, strengthening enterprise entities, promoting technological breakthroughs, and strengthening ecological construction, to promote the sustainable and healthy development of the small, micro, and special robot industry. Among them, corresponding financial support will be provided to domestic small and micro robot industry enterprises that plan to go public, as well as recognized provincial and above artificial intelligence and robot public innovation (research and development) platforms. At the same time, a number of innovative application scenarios for small and micro robots will be opened up in the fields of smart security, emergency firefighting, water conservancy and environmental protection, smart logistics, smart cities, etc. For demonstration projects that selectively introduce artificial intelligence and robot collaboration in various typical scenarios, funding subsidies will also be provided.
At this conference, the unveiling ceremony of Wuxi Small and Micro Robot Industry Park, the signing ceremony of industrial ecosystem strategic cooperation, the signing ceremony of industrial project entry, and the establishment ceremony of the Collaborative Network Small and Micro Robot Professional Committee were also held. During the conference, Tan Jianrong, an academician of the CAE Member, made a keynote speech on the frontier trend of the development of the small, micro and special robot industry, describing the future development space of the small, micro and special robot industry for the audience. At the same time, Liu Qiang, a specially appointed expert from the National Institute of Work Safety of the Ministry of Emergency Response, and Wang Fangrui, the director of the China Electronics Haikang Innovation Research Institute, respectively gave relevant thematic presentations.
At the same time, the water, land, and air series of small and micro robot solutions were also released at this conference, including lightweight walking water quality monitoring ships, powered life jackets for water exploration, firefighting drones, and mobile charging inspection robots. In the newly unveiled industrial park, some related products were exhibited, such as the newly developed mobile charging inspection robot, which showcased its skills during this year's Spring Festival travel. Its flexible, efficient, safe and convenient smart charging method provided energy replenishment services for a large number of electric vehicles stuck in high-speed and parking lots, effectively solving problems such as long waiting times, slow charging, and insufficient charging piles. The robot is equipped with a 70 degree energy storage battery, which can charge 2-3 new energy vehicles at a time, with a range of up to 100 kilometers after about 10 minutes of charging. It also has a patrol function, relying on an external infrared thermal imaging device, it can conduct real-time temperature measurement and inspection of the on-site environment, and provide abnormal warnings. The data shows that this robot has been in operation for about 6 months, with an average of 10 hours of operation per day. It has provided over 600 new energy vehicles with charging services and a total charging capacity of 40000 kWh. The newly launched firefighting drone has a more powerful integrated monitoring and precise firefighting function; The water exploration suit is equipped with a positioning recorder, audio and video recorder, and power device, which has high endurance and thrust assistance; The water quality monitoring vessel is both lightweight and long-lasting, with multi-sensor fusion, autonomous navigation, and precise detection capabilities. The underwater robot series (used for underwater inspection, dredging, education and scientific research) has also made a collective debut in the industrial park. The technology combination of "unmanned ships+underwater robots+treatment balls" is also expected to efficiently solve the problems of difficult pollution positioning, inspection, and treatment.
The 2024 China Small and Micro Robot Competition was also officially launched at this conference. The competition was jointly initiated by the National Institute of Safety Research of the Ministry of Emergency Response, the Management Committee of Wuxi High tech Zone, and Zhongdian Haikang, aiming to stimulate innovation, pay attention to safety emergency direction, and promote the progress of small and micro robot technology and scene application construction. Eight excellent projects in the energy industry, including inspection robots, mobile energy storage and charging robots, folding drones, and high mobility adaptive robots, competed fiercely on site. The advanced projects will take the stage of the finals and have the opportunity to receive a package of reward schemes such as competition bonuses, fund investment, industry empowerment, landing services, and demonstration projects. During the event, a project docking meeting and the first meeting of the Small and Micro Technical Managers Committee will be held simultaneously. Next, the special committee will focus on the development of the small and micro special robot industry, plan and organize special activities to promote exchanges and cooperation among industry, academia, and research, and promote the construction of a highland for the small and micro special robot industry.
The successful holding of this innovation and development conference, competition, and series of activities will effectively promote the development of the small and micro robot industry, promote the application and transformation of scientific and technological innovation achievements, and inject new impetus into industrial upgrading and economic development.