How Seiko Epson leveraged Unity to enhance efficiency in product development
Seiko Epson Corp., known for offering a wide range of industrial machinery, first released its integrated software, Epson RC+(hereafter referred to as RC+), more than 20 years ago. The software was built to support the deployment and maintenance of its in-house robots. Since then, it has undergone numerous version upgrades, and in September 2024, the latest version, RC+ 8.0, was released. Unity was adopted in the development of the RC+ 8.0 simulator, a software tool designed to verify the movements of robots.
While retaining the features provided by the previous version of the simulator, the decision to undertake a redevelopment using Unity was driven by two main objectives: adapting to the significantly restructured core of RC+ through the development of version 8.0 and addressing the challenge of individual dependency in development.
Since this was the first time Unity was used by the Manufacturing Solutions Operations Division, which is responsible for the development of RC+, the team utilized Unity's paid support services to ensure both product quality and a sense of speed in development.
This case study highlights how the team at Seiko Epson leveraged Unity to successfully establish a path to address the challenges of individual dependency in development, enhance the software quality and overall experience, and tackle issues related to expanding the team structure within the division.
Streamlined development: The adoption of a modern technology stack not only facilitated the expansion of the development team but also improved the individual dependency in the development process. This resulted in a development environment that made updates, such as feature additions and maintenance, significantly easier.
- 3D technology: The adoption of Unity, with its advanced 3D rendering capabilities, brought several benefits, including faster rendering speeds compared to the previous version.
- Enhanced experience: Additionally, developers were able to debug while visually inspecting 3D objects during development, enhancing the overall experience.
- Expert support: Unity’s paid support service, Integrated Success, provided access to project reviews and consulting from Unity engineers. By utilizing this service, the team was able to significantly enhance the software's quality.
Overcoming complexity and dependency in a legacy software
Epson RC+ has undergone continuous upgrades since it launched, evolving into a product that has garnered widespread support from numerous customers. The seventh generation — RC+ 7.0 — was released in December 2012. While minor updates were implemented over time to enhance its features, the passage of time revealed shortcomings in the user interface (UI). This created the need for a fundamental model overhaul rather than minor updates, leading to the development of RC+ 8.0.
However, by the time RC+ 7.0 was developed, two major challenges had emerged. The first was an overreliance on specific team members for feature development and the second was the high complexity of the software.
As RC+ serves as an integrated software to support everything from the deployment to the maintenance of various robots provided by Seiko Epson, it offers a wide range of features. This resulted in an architecture where these features became intricately intertwined, making it difficult to understand where and how new features might impact the system when additional functionalities were introduced.
To address these challenges, the development of RC+ 8.0 began in 2017 and focused on creating a common platform for the components shared across various features and on reorganizing the architecture. These efforts aimed to improve both development speed and software quality.
Rebuilding the RC+ Simulator: Addressing technical and structural hurdles
RC+ includes a simulator for verifying robot movements, but this too faced challenges. Mr. Masanobu Nishitani, the development leader for the simulator in the MS Planning and Design Department explained, “At the beginning of RC+ 8.0’s development, Seiko Epson Corp. initially considered reusing the simulator used in version 7.0 but problems soon arose.”
While RC+ 7.0 had been programmed in C++, version 8.0 switched to C#. Additionally, the UI framework transitioned from the previously used Windows Forms to WPF. Due to these structural changes in the main RC+ system, certain functions of the simulator ceased to work.
Furthermore, the simulator development was handled by a separate team, independent of the team developing the main RC+ application. However, since the simulator's platform was based on OpenGL, the availability of qualified personnel, both within and outside the company, was limited, making it challenging to scale the development team.
To complicate matters, the same division also released several pieces of software incorporating 3D representations apart from RC+. Yet, each of these software products had been developed in different environments and maintained individually. This often led to what Nishitani explained as "reinventing the wheel," resulting in inefficiencies.
Revolutionizing the RC+ simulator: Why Unity was the clear choice
To align with the modern environment built with C# and WPF, a decision was made to introduce a 3D engine and redevelop the simulator while also establishing a unified 3D development environment across the division. In March 2021, evaluation of potential 3D engines began.
Nishitani and the development team carefully considered various game engines and open-source 3D engines, testing them extensively. Ultimately, they decided to adopt Unity. He highlighted the key reasons for this decision, “The ability to replicate the features of the existing simulator, suitability for mobile development, the abundance of information available in Japanese, and the active developer community made all the difference.”
Upgrading the RC+ Simulator: The benefits of Unity
In October 2021, Nishitani and his team decided to adopt Unity and began the transformation of the RC+ simulator. Jun Toda, who was responsible for the actual development, highlighted the benefits of using Unity, “It became much easier to proceed with development, such as being able to visually inspect 3D objects while debugging.”
Although the development was new, it started by tracing the functionalities of the RC+ 7.0 simulator. Nishitani, who had implemented previous versions, explained, “Compared to when I was developing the simulator with OpenGL, even though the same 3D data is being used, I felt the visuals were significantly enhanced.”
He also expressed optimism about more efficient development when adding new features in the future, thanks to the changes brought by Unity.
Accelerating innovation with expert support
The division initially signed up for the paid support program, Essential Success, alongside the adoption of Unity.
"Since it was the first time our division was using Unity, we were concerned that resolving issues on our own could take a lot of time. We felt that paid support was necessary to quickly address various problems and produce high-quality products with a sense of urgency" - Masanobu Nishitani
In November 2023, Seiko Epson Corp. upgraded the support plan to Integrated Success. The objective of this upgrade was to conduct project reviews where they could receive direct technical guidance from Unity's senior engineers. In April 2024, Unity engineers visited the headquarters of Seiko Epson Corp. in Suwa City, Nagano Prefecture.
"When rendering complex and large-scale CAD models, it took an extremely long time, so we had the Unity team focus on that aspect," said Toda reflecting on the project review. "Not only did they identify the bottleneck, but the process of solving the issue through direct communication also provided valuable insights, such as how to use profiling tools during debugging. It turned out to be a very meaningful experience for future development."
A Shift in mindset: Embracing innovation with confidence
Until now, Unity’s role in the development of RC+8.0 wasn’t publicized, but Nishitani and the sales department at Seiko Epson Corp. want to actively promote it going forward with an aim towards further expanding the reach of RC+8.0.
The development environment has also undergone various changes.
Mr. Nishitani explains, "In the days when we were using OpenGL, it was difficult to venture into developing new features…there was skepticism among the development team about what could realistically be achieved, and concerns about how to handle any problems that might arise."
Post the implementation of Unity, the team found that the knowledge and solutions to resolve challenges are readily available through online searches. This shift has created a new atmosphere within the team, where they feel confident to tackle any roadblocks that may emerge during the development process.
Team resiliency: Overcoming dependency challenges
The RC+ simulator was originally developed by a team of about four members, which expanded to six at its peak. Nishitani highlighted how the adoption of Unity paved the way for further expanding the development team and helped address the longstanding issue of individual dependency in development.
"Although they weren't specifically hired as simulator developers, some team members already had experience with Unity when they joined the company, and several others began learning Unity after its introduction. By involving these members, we've seen the potential to strengthen the development framework. This represents a significant change compared to the development of previous versions."
What the future holds
Currently the simulator development team are working on plans for the next update. The goal of the upcoming update is to expand the scope of simulation.
At this stage, RC+ is limited to simulating the movements of robots. However, Nishatani shared Seiko Epson Corp.’s plans for the future, "We aim to evolve it into a software that can also be used to simulate the various peripheral devices our company offers."
"We look forward to leveraging the diverse functionalities that Unity provides as we move forward with this vision," he added.
By embracing new technologies and fostering a culture of innovation, Seiko Epson Corp. has not only strengthened its development framework but also laid the foundation for a more scalable, efficient, and future-ready approach to industrial automation.
