MAX CO. Uses MATLAB and Simulink for Model-Based Design of an Autonomous Rebar-Tying Robot
Team Achieved Rapid Development and Award-Winning Performance
“We adopted Model-Based Design for our autonomous mobile rebar-tying robot project using MATLAB and Simulink for rapid prototyping, digital twin simulation, and automatic code generation. The robot achieved near human-level rebar-tying speed and performed flawlessly during a major exhibition.”
Key Outcomes
- Model-Based Design with Simulink enabled rapid prototyping and algorithm-focused development, allowing the team to quickly iterate and validate concepts, minimizing manual coding.
- Digital twins helped validate design concepts in parallel with testing using actual hardware and identify potential issues early in the process.
- Automatic code generation eliminated manual coding errors and enabled the generation of optimized code tailored for each target platform.
MAX CO., LTD. is a global producer and distributor of industrial, office, and home environment equipment. Its construction tools division initially developed commercialized machines to improve rebar-tying efficiency, which is the process of fastening intersecting rebars with iron wire to form a grid in concrete slab surfaces.
Manually tying numerous rebar intersections while bent forward is considered one of the most demanding tasks performed by construction workers. To address this challenge, MAX CO. exhibited a rebar-tying machine mounted to an autonomous mobile robot that it is developing. The specialized robot is highly adaptable to slab construction sites—generating the most efficient route, precisely tying rebar, and adapting its route when encountering obstacles to ensure uninterrupted progress.
Simulink® enabled a Model-Based Design approach focused on algorithms without requiring manual coding. Simscape Multibody™ was used to model the robot’s wheel rotation and lateral sliding mechanisms, ensuring smooth and uninterrupted operation. The robot uses onboard cameras for rebar detection, obstacle avoidance, and localization, with simulation environments built using Unreal Engine® and Simulink 3D Animation™. The development team utilized digital twins to validate feasibility, including image processing, forward and backward movement, lateral sliding, and tether performance. Additionally, ROS Toolbox helped the team integrate high-level perception and planning algorithms into the ROS ecosystem as ROS nodes, while Embedded Coder® was used for deploying low-level control algorithms to RTOS on MCUs.
The developed robot was exhibited at World of Concrete 2025 and operated stably over three days, while meeting the key indicator of a tying speed close to that of humans. As a result, in “The 2025 Innovative Product Awards: Automated Construction Equipment” hosted by World of Concrete, it won “The Experts’ Choice,” selected by a panel of judges composed of industry experts.
