INNOVATION THROUGH AUTOMATION

Collaborative Robots (Cobots)

About Collaborative Robots

Collaborative Robots – or Cobots – are a class of industrial robots that combines a series of safety features with conventional industrial robotics. These safety features work to mitigate the more dangerous aspects of production robotics. This is a step change from conventional robotics. Normally, there are requirements to segment the industrial robot from the human workforce through a complicated installation of physical fencing or arrays of electronic sensors designed to react to any unplanned activity in the work cell.

Breaking down these barriers allows the human workforce to work within the same functional areas as robots or even work with these systems. This comparatively close-knit interaction produces certain advantages for the right production operations.

Weld CartOne of the first areas where collaborative robots saw use was tending other machines. Firms with CNC or molding machines found these cobots to be a great addition to their production operations. To start, the robots tended to be lower on the cost scale. Their inherent safety systems, it allowed the robots to work in tighter areas. These spaces were nearly impossible for conventional robots to operate due to the greater need for safety equipment and fencing. Loading and unloading the cells could also be achieved more easily as the collaborative robots are designed to sense humans in their areas and slow down or stop until the person has left.

Packaging and palletizing operations are other areas where collaborative robots can be advantageous. These robotic systems can perform the more repetitive aspects within an integrated space while humans provide ancillary tasks like removing filled containers or transferring trays. With the cobot’s safety features, the combined operation can take up much less space than conventional automation without compromising safety.

Dispensing and testing operations have also seen interest in cobots. When the repeatability of robotics meets the safety of collaborative robots, precision processes can certainly benefit. The in-built safety systems allow for these robots to work in much smaller envelopes and make interaction easier for technicians to move through the product. Without these safety features, automated systems would require automating of infeed and outfeeds. These extra feed systems take up space and reduce flexibility.

While collaborative robotics offers a lot of promise for a variety of industries and applications, building successful implementations using the technology can be tricky. It’s best to partner with a skilled robotic systems builder to ensure the best results will be found.

As a multi-brand robot integrator, Midwest Engineered Systems has plenty of experience designing, building and programming collaborative robot implementations. Contact us today to learn if a cobot is the right solution for your application.

Building the future of manufacturing, together

World-class Automation

Related Projects by MWES

Robotic Painting System Retrofit

Robotic Painting System Retrofit

A consistent manual painting operation can be a strain on a manual workforce. Not only is the...
Robotic Palletizing & Automated Guided Vehicle

Robotic Palletizing & Automated Guided Vehicle

MWES built an automated manufacturing process for material handling of 20 cardboard boxes per...
Robotic Vial Filling for Increased Speed and Precision

Robotic Vial Filling for Increased Speed and Precision

Operations needed to be performed within a clean room environment, as the vials contained medical...
Die Cast Robot Tending Automation

Die Cast Robot Tending Automation

MWES provided a die-cast robot tending automation machine for a hardware manufacturer.
Random Bin & Dynamic Conveyor Picking System

Random Bin & Dynamic Conveyor Picking System

MWES provided an industrial equipment manufacturer with an automated robotic picking conveyor...
Robotic Press Brake Automated Metal Bending

Robotic Press Brake Automated Metal Bending

MWES provided a Robotic Brake Press Tending System to automate the metal part bending process...
Robotic Press Brake Tending

Robotic Press Brake Tending

MWES designed a system that replaces manual labor with an ABB IRB 7600-500 with a 7th axis...
Robotic Press Brake Tending System

Robotic Press Brake Tending System

A firm came to MWES looking to robotically automate the process of fabricating a wide range...
Robotic Flame Treater System

Robotic Flame Treater System

MWES reprogrammed and switched out a number of components from the old robot rivet cell, and...