In recent years, whether it is the shift of artificial intelligence (AI) from discriminative to generative applications, or the gradual development of traditional industrial robots towards human-machine collaboration and humanoid robots, the common ground is more humanized and intuitive operation. At this year's TIMTOS, we can see that machine tool manufacturers such as QUASER and JAINNHER, along with key component CNC control system giant SYNTEC, are building ecosystems for AI and robotics respectively, to accelerate implementation across various industries.

Precision Grinding Technology Combined with AI Algorithms to Improve Machining Efficiency and Quality

Grinding, as the final process in metalworking, involves complex precision techniques and long processing times, resulting in extremely high costs. In addition, traditional grinding operations rely heavily on manual experience, making them prone to crashes due to incorrect settings or improper operation. JAINNHER believes that although the industry has now reduced the accident rate to below 5%, each accident can still cause an average of approximately NT$50,000 in repair costs and lead to an average of 2-3 days of downtime.

JAINNHER Machine, one of Taiwan's leading precision grinding machine manufacturers, incorporates mechatronics analysis during the design process to integrate mechanical structure, control circuits and intelligent functions for overall design optimization to ensure the dynamic performance and stability of the machines. Furthermore, it combines high-sensitivity acoustic emission (AE) sensors and ammeter sensors, installed in key positions such as the spindle, grinding wheel and worktable. Compared to traditional triaxial sensors, these can more accurately capture changes in cutting conditions and subtle, high-frequency vibrations, avoiding any negative impact on machining quality.

By incorporating information provided by the controller, including the coordinate position of the machining axis and the workpiece rotation speed, the dynamic operation of the grinding machine spindle and the grinding wheel gap are monitored in real-time. This is particularly suitable for ultra-precision machining, ultra-high-speed cutting machine tools and micro-machining, enabling preventive maintenance or real-time adjustment of machining parameters and effectively improving machining accuracy and stability.

Compared to existing grinding machines on the market, JAINNHER is also the first to introduce AI technology into grinding vibration analysis to achieve more accurate early warning and diagnosis. This enhances the safety, efficiency and machining quality of grinding machines as well as filling a gap in the market. It also transforms the experience of veteran operators into quantifiable data models, not only reducing reliance on manual experience but also passing on valuable skills to ensure the stability of machining quality. This addresses the industry's growing labor shortage and technology transfer challenges.

To reduce accident risk and improve machining efficiency, JAINNER has also developed an innovative intelligent platform that utilizes a unique Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) algorithm. By integrating the grinding experience of veteran operators, it has developed a unique predictive model for analyzing vibration data. This not only allows for rapid diagnosis of machine anomalies and provides maintenance recommendations, reducing downtime and 30% maintenance time, but also provides early warnings before crashes and automatically stops feeding, ensuring equipment and personnel safety and the reduction of the accident rate to below 1%.

By predicting the optimal infeed parameters based on machining conditions such as feed rate, workpiece rotation speed, size and accuracy requirements, machining efficiency can be increased by up to 15% in safe conditions. It also optimizes grinding parameters to improve machining efficiency, accuracy and surface quality thereby extending tool life and increasing product yield by 5%, enhancing the added value of grinding.

Five-Axis Machining Centers Expand Applications: Breaking Through LLM Modeling Bottlenecks in AI Controllers

As for QUASER, a major manufacturer of five-axis machine tools in generative AI applications, it plans to showcase a new version of its Mr.Q function at this year's TIMTOS, expanding its application to CNC controllers of different brands to assist single-machine users in operation, production and troubleshooting. By directly connecting to the backend AI via an iPad, it can continuously monitor equipment utilization and processing status through Line or external links. It can even monitor motor current changes during machine processing to detect anomalies early and also incorporates AOI (Automated Optical Inspection) after processing to improve product yield.

This avoids limitations caused by the fact that many mainstream CNC controllers in machine tools still have closed information, resulting in AI application functions not being as powerful as NVIDIA training platforms. Winbro, QUASER's UK subsidiary, have EDM/laser processing machines which use PC-based controllers, allowing them to control the source code and making it easier to integrate with AI.

Furthermore, in collaboration with Tunghai University, QUASER has developed AI Twin technology which has been successfully applied to machine tools. This is based on innovative applications of generative AI and Large Language Models (LLMs) to break through bottlenecks in the LLM construction process, becoming the second brain of machine tools.

This provides users with more conversational, interactive dialogues for operation guidance, setting adjustments and troubleshooting. Machine tools can quickly respond, providing accurate answers and suggestions. Combined with machine tool usage experience and safety essentials, this not only enhances the user experience but also effectively reduces operating errors and maintenance time thereby improving production efficiency.

QUASER is currently in the stage of establishing a full range of machine model databases. After constructing the API and obtaining process data uploads through I/O ports, users can choose keyboard or voice interface operation for self-training. Mr.Q actively determines and intelligently analyzes data to judge whether the execution procedure is correct or whether to shorten the cycle time. In the future, it will start with Taiwanese manufacturers and then gradually open up to overseas distributors for testing through partial backend databases.

CNC Control Systems Provide One-Stop Services to Achieve Robotic AI for Low-Carbon Intelligent Manufacturing

SYNTEC Technology, a major domestic manufacturer of CNC machine tool and robot PC-based controllers, will also embark on a green manufacturing journey with customers through static and dynamic displays at this year's TIMTOS. Compared to European and Japanese CNC controller brands which have been providing Digital Twin virtual simulation cutting functions for major machine tool manufacturers in recent years, SYNTEC has dedicated teams for collecting processing parameters and motion characteristics to optimize surface quality. This assists customers in completing pre-processing simulation operations.

The turning/milling/grinding CNC control systems exhibited this year will cover four products that have passed ISO international energy-saving standards:

1.Energy Consumption Monitoring Solution: Utilizing function modules such as Sensorhub energy management and Synfactory intelligent equipment management, customers can monitor all new and old equipment and carbon inventories in the factory through smart meters, investigate each work order and compare individual energy consumption. Subsequently its subsidiary, LEANTEC, will assist in optimization analysis, empowering customers to establish autonomous monitoring and management of energy consumption, helping companies and factories achieve precise energy saving and improve production efficiency.

2.Energy-Saving Servo: The "Power Regeneration Multi-in-One Drive" developed by SYNTEC for machine tool high-speed spindles reduces the kinetic energy wasted by braking during acceleration and deceleration, thereby achieving effective energy reuse and utilizing more efficient and environmentally friendly power in industrial production.

3.Lathe Controller: Introducing automatic chip breaking and energy-saving technology to replace traditional high-pressure water pumps and center-through coolant cutting tools. This reduces the energy consumption caused by high-pressure water pumps and improves automatic loading and unloading efficiency while ensuring machining quality, achieving cost savings and environmental goals for enterprises.

4.Grinding Machine Controller: Through innovative "smart dressing" for energy saving, automatic spindle dynamic balancing and optimized path, it manages grinding wheel consumption during processing while improving processing efficiency, bringing dual benefits to enterprises.

SYNTEC's advantage in the automatic chip breaking function for turning is its ease of use. By simply setting the tool feed conditions, it automatically calculates low-frequency chip breaking parameters and guides users step-by-step through the process. In the future, it will also consider adding AI functions, even allowing users to execute without setting.

In addition, the launched "smart dressing" function, unlike traditional external audio sensors that have poor accuracy in detecting grinding wheel wear and cause waste, can now use AI to assist in determining the dressing timing. Coupled with the grinding machine spindle automatic dynamic balancing function module, which directly calibrates dressing on the equipment, it further enhances efficiency and quality.

LEANTEC Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd., based on SYNTEC's many years of control technology, is committed to providing complete solutions for "unit intelligent" manufacturing. Its core business covers machine tool networking, industrial/collaborative robot and other automation unit systems (Robot Cell) virtual-real integration, as well as various electromechanical modules and intelligent manufacturing peripheral accessories and central control solutions. This helps customers build smart factories to overcome the current challenges of declining birth rates and labor shortages. With highly innovative technology, value-added and integrated applications and comprehensive after-sales service, it has gained customer trust and loyalty.

Industrial robots can be used in the "pre-installation" stage to design and construct one-machine-one-hand, single-machine automation units according to different customer needs. The new high-end machine controller has a built-in AI chip (NPU) with a high degree of computing power. If higher computing power is required, it can also be performed on the Edge PC, providing offline simulation software to prevent interference and calculate beat production time, allowing customers to use it with machining tools for plug-and-play and automatic loading and unloading, reducing labor shortage concerns.

In the "post-installation" stage, one-to-many robot cell solutions are provided for end-users. This is based on the experience of the SYNTEC team in discriminative AI machine learning and AOI deep learning for defect identification and more.

SYNTEC is now also working on LLM models required for generative AI. In the initial stage, it is more inclined to use this internally to assist customers with semantic services, quality control, tracking and judgment and to establish Digital Twin path/parameter optimization algorithms. Both SYNTEC and LEANTEC provide corresponding platforms, tools and other products to lower the barrier to customization.

To cater to the current trend of single machine → automation → cloud applications, SYNTEC has also launched a production intelligence cloud solution. Starting from the top-level cloud "functional applications," it has developed fog computing solutions or Edge Servers and machine networking at the collection/platform level. Down to the bottom-level equipment side, SYNTEC's controller IoT technology is used to digitize equipment and production information for further analysis of factory potential, enabling manufacturers to better manage automated production and improve efficiency.

LEANTEC will also exhibit a cloud management solution at this year's TIMTOS, which can be used to connect CNC machine tool controllers and lightweight collaborative robots to form cell unit modules and introduce AI, AOI, and other related hardware and software to achieve intelligent and multi-machine networked collaboration for data collection to improve quality and performance. This helps customers get started very easily and quickly achieve whole-factory digital transformation, without having to spend a lot of time deploying and integrating many complex automated production lines and wasting costs like in the 3.0 era.

News link: TIMTOS 2025: Machine Tools and Controllers Unite to Build an AI and Robotics Ecosystem

About Syntec

Syntec Technology, a leading provider of CNC controllers in Asia, boasts a global presence across Europe, the Americas, and Asia. Devoted to continual advancements in software and hardware technology for machine tool controllers, Syntec offers key products including CNC systems, servo drives, and servo motors. Collaborating with its subsidiary, Leantec, the company focuses on industrial robotics, machine tool networking, and automation systems. The Syntec Group provides an Industry 4.0 solution that integrates applications like IIoT, big data, and cloud computing. For more information, visithttps://www.syntecclub.com/default.aspx

About Leantec

Born from the demands of Industry 4.0 and high-mix low-volume production, Leantec, a subsidiary of Syntec Technology, leverages robotic arm and cloud technologies as its core competencies. Leantec develops and delivers multi-functional intelligent products and application services that adapt to the evolving global industrial landscape. Through these complete solutions, Leantec empowers the vision of intelligent manufacturing and smart factories. For more information, visit https: https://en.leantec.com.tw/en