News & Analysis
Real world robots star in Terminator Salvation
Steve Bitton
5/27/2009 10:30 PM EDT
Eighteen ABB
industrial robots star in the final climactic scene of the new movie
Terminator Salvation, in which Christian Bale faces an army of
Terminators. Filmed in a converted power plant in
Alburquerque in the summer of 2008, twelve ABB IRB 6620s and
six ABB IRB 1600s are arranged to look like an endless manufacturing
line (with some help from special effects) that comprise the setting
for the final scene.
ABB Field Service Engineer Erik Ryskamp, with periodic support from additional ABB technicians, spent 10 weeks during that summer on set, installing, programming and operating the robots. An ABB IRC5 controller was provided with every robot to facilitate the precise programming required for the various scenes
IRB 6620 robots, co-developed with automotive manufacturers, are one of the biggest and strongest of ABB's product line, capable of handling a payload of 150 kg with an arm reach of 2.2 m. IRB 1600 robots, smaller than the 6620, can handle a payload up to 8.5 kg with an arm reach of 1.45 m.
Jaffe Entertainment, a product placement firm, had initially contacted ABB and other robotic manufacturers to investigate the possibility of using their robots and to review their individual product lines. According to ABB, Academy Award winning set director Victor Zolfo and production designer Martin Laing were most intrigued by ABB's product offering, and began working with ABB Robotics Vice President of Marketing Ted Wodoslawsky to work out the details and select the robot models that would best fit the role.
It seems robots have make-up artists as well--many of the robots were covered with black soot to appear as if they had been rigorously used in dingy conditions. According to ABB, all the robots have been returned and have been prepared for future (less glamorous) roles in real-life industrial manufacturing.
ABB Field Service Engineer Erik Ryskamp, with periodic support from additional ABB technicians, spent 10 weeks during that summer on set, installing, programming and operating the robots. An ABB IRC5 controller was provided with every robot to facilitate the precise programming required for the various scenes
IRB 6620 robots, co-developed with automotive manufacturers, are one of the biggest and strongest of ABB's product line, capable of handling a payload of 150 kg with an arm reach of 2.2 m. IRB 1600 robots, smaller than the 6620, can handle a payload up to 8.5 kg with an arm reach of 1.45 m.
Jaffe Entertainment, a product placement firm, had initially contacted ABB and other robotic manufacturers to investigate the possibility of using their robots and to review their individual product lines. According to ABB, Academy Award winning set director Victor Zolfo and production designer Martin Laing were most intrigued by ABB's product offering, and began working with ABB Robotics Vice President of Marketing Ted Wodoslawsky to work out the details and select the robot models that would best fit the role.
It seems robots have make-up artists as well--many of the robots were covered with black soot to appear as if they had been rigorously used in dingy conditions. According to ABB, all the robots have been returned and have been prepared for future (less glamorous) roles in real-life industrial manufacturing.
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