Cobots - human-robot collaboration as never before

The cobot, or collaborative robot, is the next step in the development of industrial robotisation. In an interview, Rados?aw Ko?acz, senior industrial robots specialist at ASTOR - Polish distributor of Kawasaki Robotics robots, talks about where cobots are best used and how to ensure safe work between humans and cobots.

Katarzyna Szkopek: What exactly is a cobot?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: Actually, there is not yet a clear definition for a collaborative robot approved by the ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) and currently there is only a definition for a collaborative operation, which is when a specially designed robot works in directly with a human in a defined workspace. This means that a human and a robot can work closely together, i.e. they do not have to be separated in any way and contact between the robot and the operator can take place if appropriate safety measures are observed.?

?

Katarzyna Szkopek: What are the characteristics of a cobot?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: The most important feature of collaborative robots is their ability to interact with humans without posing a safety risk to workers. Cobots do not require an external safety system - people can move freely in their environment, and the built-in collision detection system allows the robot to stop automatically if it detects contact with another object or person.

Another distinctive feature of the collaboration is the manual control capability, allowing humans to precisely move the robot arm to a specific location.

To guarantee safety, cobots are designed in a particular way, limiting their force and speed. This prevents them from reaching excessively high speeds or exerting a lot of pressure on objects they interact with. If these parameters are exceeded, the robot will automatically stop to protect the workers. Another safety aspect is the built-in mechanism to prevent accidental trapping to keep workers safe.

The cobots have a small footprint, allowing them to be installed in production workstations with limited space.

Programming the robots is not particularly difficult; instead of traditional coding, interactive blocks are used, which significantly reduces the time it takes to learn how to program the cobots - even for people with no previous experience in the area of robotics.

Katarzyna Szkopek: What is the difference between an industrial robot and a cobot?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: Industrial robots are characterised by high speeds and payloads ranging from a few kilograms to over a tonne, very high performance and repeatability. On the other hand, by choosing cobots, we gain the security of close cooperation on the bench, and we can also operate and program the collaborating robot more easily.

Katarzyna Szkopek: When is it better to use a cobot and when an industrial robot?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: Thanks to the ease of changeover and flexibility of implementation, cobots can be used to handle simple applications and those where the robot is often moved to another location or changed over to another task, such as in small batch production. On the other hand, if the operation is highly repetitive and requires high productivity then an industrial robot is better suited.

Usually the price of a collaborative robot is higher than that of its industrial counterpart, but in the case of cobots there is no need to install safety systems, as when deploying an industrial robot. There is also no need to build a large cage surrounding the workstation if the space for deploying a robot is limited, therefore a cobot will do better in such an application.

One of the downsides of cobots is that you cannot implement more advanced applications with them, so if you need the robot to perform complex logic, then an industrial robot would be better suited.

Cobots are not fast robots and are used where you do not want full performance or repeatability, but only an application in which a human can cooperate with the robot. Additionally, the payload capacity of the cobots in the Kawasaki Robotics range is limited, the largest being 10 kilograms, which may rule out certain applications. Thus, an industrial robot would be a better choice if a higher payload is needed and if the robot is to perform a lot of different activities at the same time. The greater complexity of the robot tool increases its weight and decreases its safety of use, thus the need to separate the robot's workspace from the space where humans work.

<foto>

Katarzyna Szkopek: In which industries can cobots be used?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: It is worth using them when operating CNC machines - the robot can pick up workpieces and then place them in the machine, allowing the operator to perform other tasks at the same time.

What is worth emphasising, is that cobots perform well in every repetitive operation such as palletising, grinding or painting. It is easier to identify where they should not be used, and these include hazardous areas. They are good choice for the electronics industry - placing SMD components (electronic components intended for surface mounting), PTH technologies, or in assembly operations, where a human collaborates with a robot that handles components given by a worker.?

?

Katarzyna Szkopek: What does the cooperation between the cobot and the human look like?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: The cooperation of cobots with humans is significantly different from the cooperation with a standard industrial robot. Tasks can be performed at the same time in one space. There is no risk of accidents, as the cobot momentarily stops working when it comes into contact with a foreign object or a human.

We can distinguish between several levels of collaborative applications between robots and humans:

The first is the position where the human does not have access to where the cobot is working, as its position is fenced off from the worker.

The next level is coexistence, whereby once in a while a human provides workpieces to the robot, but their interactions are occasional.

In synchronisation, the human and the cobot share a workspace, but not at the same time.

In cooperation, they share a workspace at the same time, but perform different activities.

In collaboration, the cobot and human share details as well as space while working at the same time.

All in all, when a robot and a human have to share a workspace, a cobot is the best solution for safety reasons. Therefore, with the implementation of cobots, we don’t have to adapt the environment - simply behave as if there is an additional employee.

Katarzyna Szkopek: What are the applications of cobots?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: The main applications where it is worth using cobots are palletising, welding, assembling, painting and CNC machine tending, including extensive handling. Interestingly, although it may seem that standard industrial robots would be more suitable for painting, cobots capable of painting are becoming increasingly popular on the market. Particularly encouraging is the fact that operating a cobot is made easier due to the ability to manually teach the path of an arm movement by single hand guidance.

?

Katarzyna Szkopek: When and where can you see the cobot?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: The cobot is already available to view at ASTOR Robotics Center, and we can also present it directly at the customer's premises.

Katarzyna Szkopek: What is ASTOR's role as a distributor and what is the technical support for cobots?

Rados?aw Ko?acz: At ASTOR, we always say that we are a technology and knowledge provider, and it is no different in this case. Seeing the huge interest in cobots on the Polish market, we decided to offer them alongside our industrial robots.

Katarzyna Szkopek: Thank you for the interview.

Rados?aw Ko?acz is Senior Robotics Specialist at ASTOR.

Interviewed by Katarzyna Szkopek, Robotics Sales & Marketing Development Department at ASTOR.

If you need some additional information about cobots or robotics in general, don't hesitate to contact us by email [email protected]

Visit our website: https://kawasakirobotics.com/eu-africa/

Kawasaki Robotics Central and Eastern Europe HUB is a brand managed by ASTOR Sp. z o.o. with its registered office in Kraków at 29 Smoleńsk Street, entered into the Register of Entrepreneurs at the District Court for Kraków-?ródmie?cie in the 11th Commercial Department of the National Court Register under the numbers KRS: 0000120940; VAT number PL6760105127; share capital: PLN 1.164.930,00, paid in full. Kawasaki Robotics CEE HUB is responsible for the development of sales, marketing and cooperation in the partner channel in 11 countries of Central and Eastern Europe: Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia.