This patent describes a new type of decorative cladding, consisting of an assembly whose main element is a translucent natural stone sheet (LR), interposed by polarized films (PP) which, when subjected to a light source (FL), show optical phenomena in the minerals contained in the sheet, providing the observer with unusual colors, effects and textures. It includes a thinning device (DDD) which is equipped with conveyor belts (EST); equipped with a plurality of horizontal skids (PAH), preferably with a flap, fixed below the belt (EST), helping to support the support grid (PS); and is equipped with a plurality of thinning modules (MD), responsible for producing the aforementioned sheets of translucent natural stone.

A system for performing interactions within a physical environment including a robot base that undergoes movement relative to the environment, a robot arm mounted to the robot base, the robot arm including an end effector mounted thereon and a tracking system that measures a robot base position indicative of a position of the robot base relative to the environment. A control system acquires an indication of an end effector destination, determines a reference robot base position, calculates an end effector path extending to the end effector destination and repeatedly determines a current robot base position using signals from the tracking system, calculates a correction based on the current robot base position, the correction being indicative of a path modification, and controls the robot arm in accordance with the correction to move the end effector towards the end effector destination.

The present invention generally relates to one or more methods for shaping or machining a rigid carrier sheet which in particular can include one or methods for forming cavities on one side of a rigid carrier sheet in a predetermined pattern for mounting electronic units.

A system for performing interactions within a physical environment including a robot base, a robot base actuator that moves the robot base relative to the environment, a robot arm mounted to the robot base, the robot arm including an end effector mounted thereon and a tracking system that measures a tracking target position indicative of a position of a target mounted on the robot base. A control system acquires an indication of an end effector destination, determines a tracking target position at least in part using signals from the tracking system, determines a virtual robot base position offset from the robot base and calculates a robot base path extending from the virtual robot base position to the end effector destination, using this to control the robot base actuator to cause the robot base to be moved along the robot base path.

A system for performing interactions within a physical environment including a robot base that undergoes movement relative to the environment, a robot arm mounted to the robot base, the robot arm including an end effector mounted thereon and a tracking system that measures a robot base position indicative of a position of the robot base relative to the environment. A control system acquires an indication of an end effector destination, determines a reference robot base position, calculates an end effector path extending to the end effector destination and repeatedly determines a current robot base position using signals from the tracking system, calculates robot arm kinematics using the current robot base position and the end effector path and controls the robot arm to cause the end effector to be moved towards the end effector destination.

There is provided a method of mining rock using a disc cutter comprising a cutter body with a diameter, d, and a thickness, t, a plurality of tool holders mounted about a peripheral surface of the cutter body and a plurality of cutting elements attached to the tool holders, the method comprising the steps: cutting a first slot in the rock at a first cutting position of the disc cutter, moving the disc cutter to a second cutting position which is to the left or right of the first cutting position, and cutting a second slot in the rock, such that the second slot is spaced apart from the first slot by distance S, at least one of the first and second slots having a depth of slot D, and wherein a ratio of depth of slot D, to distance S, is in the range of 2 to 16.

A machine processes a slab that is positioned with the finished face down on vacuum pods on a work table. The side edges of the slab are cut with the slab upside by following a mirror imaged slab cut layout to form a slab corresponding substantially to the shape of a countertop. Without removing the cut slab from the vacuum pods and maintaining the finished face down, the machine routes a sink hole using a finger bit that had been switched onto the spindle, the routing path based upon the mirror imaged slab cut layout. The slab is finished by forming an edge profile on the inside of any sink holes and edging and polishing the sides of the finished slab.

A decontamination apparatus for decontaminating an external surface is provided. The decontamination apparatus has a moveable platform and a containment structure mounted on the moveable platform. The containment structure has at least one aperture and a respective contact surface arranged around the perimeter of the aperture. The contact surface is arranged to make contact with the external surface to define a working volume, when the containment structure is positioned proximal to the external surface. The decontamination apparatus includes a decontamination device arranged to decontaminate the external surface. The decontamination device is arranged within the working volume and arranged to access the external surface through the at least one aperture. There is also a vacuum system for generating a partial vacuum in the containment structure to apply a suction force to the external surface.