World's first robotic brickie is set to transform the construction industry

Built by Perth-based technology company, Fastbrick Robotics, the world's first robotic brickie is set to transform the construction industry by ensuring that “no human hands need to touch a brick during the loading, cutting and laying process.”   [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5bW1vuCgEaA[/embed]

The one-armed bricklayer

Capable of laying 1,000 standard house-size bricks an hour, the Hadron X machine creates a 3D computer-aided design (CAD) laying programme of a house, then automatically calculates the position of each brick from a single, fixed location. Using its 30-foot-long retractable arm, which can be attached to a truck or excavator, it sends the bricks down a conveyor belt where, at the end of the line, each one is spread with mortar before being flipped, gripped and strategically placed into position. How many bricks does it lay in an hour? According to the website:

• Bricks are measured in SBE or Standard Brick Equivalents
• A standard brick equivalent is the size of a standard house brick
• The Hadrian X machine will lay 1000+ SBE per hour
• The machine is capable of laying 1 x 15 SBE block every 20-30 seconds
• Although the machines can lay nearly every type of brick manufactured around the world, its target is 150+ Super Bricks per hour
• These are equal to 15+ Standard Brick Equivalents (SBE's) in size
• The Hadrian X can also work 24/7 in the right situations, and due to the high level of accuracy, following trades can now pre-manufacture other components from the 3D CAD design

  [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YcrO8ONcfY[/embed]

End-to-end bricklaying system

Fastbrick Robotics, which is currently developing the Hadrian X commercial prototype, say the machine can build "a standard sized home every two days. In the right environment and working 24/7, this number could be between 100 and 300 homes per year per machine." Awarded the 2016 Mitsubishi Corporation Innovator of the Year, the revolutionary concept has attracted attention from construction giant Caterpillar.