BÉKÉSCSABA, Hungary, Nov. 03, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Collaboration with Vulcan Shield Global’s Hungarian subsidiary combines workstation simulation and first-person production data to support task-specific robot training and future deployment.
OpenRoboto, a network for collecting robotics training data and improving open robot models, has launched its first commercial robotics data pilot with Vulcan Shield Hungary, the Hungarian subsidiary of advanced materials manufacturer Vulcan Shield Global. The collaboration begins at a selected production workstation in Békéscsaba and is designed to capture human operating expertise for the development of task-specific robot capabilities.
Vulcan Shield Global develops advanced alumina fiber and high-temperature insulation materials for demanding industrial environments. Its products are rated for temperatures up to 1,600°C, with applications across aerospace, automotive, energy and other industries. Its Hungarian operation provides OpenRoboto with a production setting in which to study how experienced operators handle materials and prepare them for manufacturing.
The initial focus is material preparation, a process that remains largely manual at the selected workstation and depends on the practical experience of skilled operators. The pilot aims to document that work and reproduce the workstation in simulation, providing a foundation for evaluating how robot learning could be applied to the task.
“Useful robot skills have to start with an understanding of the work itself,” said Riccardo Pagano, COO of OpenRoboto. “With Vulcan Shield Hungary, we’re beginning with a specific workstation and the people who know the task best. By combining their demonstrations with simulation, we aim to build a foundation for robot models that address a practical production need.”
A Three-Stage Approach to Industrial Robot Learning
The collaboration follows three stages. First, OpenRoboto builds a simulation environment of the selected workstation, representing its layout, objects, tools and task constraints. This provides a digital setting in which robot models can be developed and evaluated against the requirements of the production task.
Second, VSH operators wear OpenRoboto’s OR-S1 egocentric headsets while carrying out their work. The devices record first-person demonstrations of how the task is performed, capturing interactions between the operators’ hands, the materials and the workstation.
Third, the collaboration is intended to use those demonstrations together with simulation to support the training of task-specific robot models and their eventual deployment at the workstation. The pilot currently focuses on simulation and data capture. Model training, validation and on-site robotic testing are subsequent stages, with deployment dependent on the results of that work.
VSH contributes the production process, the workstation and the expertise of its operators and engineers. OpenRoboto contributes the data capture and simulation work, alongside its planned support for robot model training and deployment. The objective is to establish which task offers a practical opportunity for automation, what value it could create and what would be required to test a robotic solution.
“Improving efficiency on the shop floor is an important objective for our plant and the wider group,” said Zoltán Hegedüs, financial director of Vulcan Shield Hungary. “This pilot gives us a way to explore robot learning around an actual production task, drawing on the knowledge of our operators and engineers. We want to understand where the technology could be useful and what it would take to apply it in our manufacturing environment.”
A Commercial Step for OpenRoboto
For OpenRoboto, the pilot marks entry into commercial industrial work and a step toward revenue-generating robotics applications. It connects the company’s work on training data and model improvement with the requirements of a manufacturing customer: a defined task, a production environment and an operational reason to improve performance.
OpenRoboto operates on Bittensor as Subnet 80. Its activities span first-person data collection through OpenRoboto Shift and an open competition in which engineers improve robot models. The VSH collaboration extends this work into a focused industrial engagement, beginning with the data and simulation needed to assess a specific production task.
The longer-term aim is to develop robot skills that translate human expertise into measurable value on the factory floor. The pilot provides a starting point for that work; production deployment and operational performance will be assessed in later stages.
About OpenRoboto
OpenRoboto is building an open network for robotics training data and model improvement. Operating as Bittensor Subnet 80, it coordinates contributions from data collection operators and engineers working to improve open robot models. Its OpenRoboto Shift platform focuses on first-person recordings of people performing real work, helping connect human experience with the development of useful robot capabilities.
For more information, visit https://www.openroboto.ai/.
About Vulcan Shield Global and Vulcan Shield Hungary
Vulcan Shield Global is a Singapore-based manufacturer of advanced alumina fiber products and high-temperature insulation materials. Its solutions serve industries including aerospace, automotive, energy, petrochemicals and glass manufacturing. Vulcan Shield Hungary is the group’s Hungarian subsidiary, with production operations in Békéscsaba.
For more information, visit https://www.vulcanshield.com/.
Website: https://www.openroboto.ai/
Contact
COO
Riccardo Pagano
OpenRoboto
support@openroboto.ai
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