Collaborative Robots or Cobots are they are commonly referred to are set to take over the industrial space. You may have seen or heard about them on numerous occasions in the recent past. What are collaborative robots, and how will they impact your workplace? What are some of the things you should already understand collaborative robots?
This is the ultimate dummies’ guide to collaborative robots. You will learn all the basics about Cobots, how they are used, and what they mean to you or your company.
If you would like to learn more about robots and collaborative robots, you should check out this free online academy that teaches all aspects of this new technology at no cost. The academy is run by Universal Robots, one of the pioneering Cobot manufacturers whose Cobots are used widely across all industries today.
Here are the seven things everyone should know about Cobot’s today
1)What Collaborative Robots Do
In a nutshell, collaborative robot technology is a new entrant into the automation industry aimed at introducing semi-automation to conventional workspaces. Cobots are meant to augment human labor to increase efficiency and improve quality in the industry they are deployed. A good example is the use of collaborative robot arms to help workers pick and place items in modern warehouses.
E-commerce logistics is one of the industries that is already tapping into the enormous potential of collaborative robot technology. There are shining examples of big e-Com warehouses deploying Cobots alongside a thinned workforce but achieving the high throughput that is required for today’s e-commerce logistics.
2)Collaborative Robots Are A Game Changer
Cobots have been identified as one of the fundamental driving forces of this industrial revolution. Unlike traditional industrial robots, collaborative robots are much smarter and easier to work with. The collaborative robot industry is set to grow by leaps and bounds in the next few years as more companies introduce more Cobots into the workspace.
The trend has already been observed among the smaller businesses and factories who can now afford to automate some of their processes with the help of affordable collaborative robot solutions. Among the other disruptive technologies such as AI and big data, collaborative robotics is the most promising one as it has already been embraced across all industries.
3)Cobots Vs. Traditional Robots
You may be familiar with, fully automated robotic solutions commonly used in big factories and assembly plants. Here are some of the unique aspects you should know when it comes to collaborative robots.
4)Cobots Are Designed to Collaborate/Complement
As opposed to traditional robots, collaborative robots have been designed to work alongside their operators. They are more or less an additional set of hands in the workstation or factory floor. Human operators can train their Cobot to perform a number of functions based on the tasks at hand. Traditional robots were designed to carry out their specific tasks without any human input or intervention.
5)Collaborative Robots Can Be Portable/ Lightweight
Most of the collaborative robotic solutions out there are either mobile or lightweight. This is in sharp contrast to traditional robots that are quite bulky and mostly fixed to a single location. However, this can vary depending on the application as some Cobot setups are also attached to a specific location.
6)Smart Technologies Embedded into Collaborative Robots
Modern collaborative robot arms can be equipped with a variety of sensors, cameras, and end effectors depending on the tasks they will be handling. Embedding smart technologies into these collaborative robots enables them to mimic the performance of human operators, thus making them real assistants in the workstation.
7)Safety Is Baked In
One of the most significant barriers when it comes to human-robot interaction has always been safety. Traditional robots required complex safety setups to operate safely without risking injuries to humans. Collaborative robot manufacturers such as Universal Robots have managed to bridge the gap between humans and robots. Cobots are designed to operate safely alongside human counterparts guided by a clear set of rules and standards set by the ISO and various other regulators.