IMSystems and the EIC Accelerator: A Drive Without Gear Teeth

IMSystems, based in Rijswijk near Delft, makes the Archimedes Drive, a speed reducer for robot joints that transmits torque through the rolling contact of cylinders instead of gear teeth. Its EIC project said existing gear-based reducers lack performance, are expensive to make and depend on "Japanese suppliers", and named ABB as the "likely launching customer" and Linamar as the manufacturer, both investors in the company, according to CORDIS. The goal was to lead the global market for robot speed reducers by 2035.

The European Innovation Council granted €2,461,556 towards a €3.52 million project from December 2022 to May 2025. The final report says three drive variants reached TRL 8, passed more than 20 million fatigue cycles, ran below 50 dB, and achieved ±5 µm repeatability in pick-and-place robots from Codian and Autonox; an integrated actuator was tested in Össur's prosthetic leg programme; and design work with Linamar cut component cost by about 80%. It also says "the company's original focus was the industrial-robotics market", but that demand pointed first to pick-and-place, humanoid robots and prosthetics. ABB is not named in the final report, and no volume customer has been announced.

Where IMSystems Stands Now

IMSystems' website now writes about arm-joint actuators for wheeled humanoid robots and balance strategies for humanoids alongside industrial robots. The investor Finindus was recorded as a shareholder in May 2026, and IMSystems filed balance sheets for 2023 and 2024, according to North Data. No funding round since the EIC award has been announced with an amount.

The Technology: Rolling Instead of Meshing

Gear-based reducers suffer from backlash, the play between teeth, and friction losses. The Archimedes Drive uses a planetary arrangement of rolling cylinders, which the report says removes backlash and runs quietly: it claims a more than 30-fold noise reduction against comparable harmonic drives. The report also cites a 200% torque density gain over the previous generation and new simulation tools for lifetime and friction.

What the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows

The engineering target, a production-ready drive, was met. The commercial plan was built around European industrial robot makers such as ABB and Comau. The report instead describes validation with smaller pick-and-place makers and a prosthetics company, and a pilot manufacturing plan rather than volume production. CORDIS still lists the project as signed.

1. Production-ready driveDeliveredThree variants at TRL 8.
2. Cost-down for manufactureDeliveredAbout 80% cheaper parts.
3. ABB as launch customerNot shownAbsent from final report.
4. Volume productionPilot planNo order announced.

The Money

IMSystems' published accounts since 2022 are balance sheets, which North Data shows only to paying users, so its revenue is not public. Whether the EIC Fund invested after the grant has not been announced.

What Cannot Be Checked

Why Europe Should Care

The project argued that European robot makers depend on a few non-European suppliers of precision drives. The Archimedes Drive is a European alternative that the report says now works at TRL 8. Reducing that dependence requires big robot makers to adopt it, which has not been announced.

The Verdict

IMSystems and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.