Collaborative Robots Impact on the Assembly Sector  

Acquiring and sustaining reliable workers for the long term continues to be challenging in companies that carry out assembly tasks during their production/manufacturing process.  Additionally, it is tough for current workers in assembly plants to constantly achieve the desired output goals set by their companies. 

Many companies globally are opting to automate their assembly operations to boost their labor force. However, it is currently hard to automate all assembly tasks in a production process without the help of the human workforce since there needs to be a perfect balance.  

Fortunately, collaborative robots provided the much-needed solution. These robots can harmoniously work together with people, resulting in a fast and efficient overall production output, which also means increased profit margins for companies. Universal Robots is the company that is the pioneer of these modern models of robots.   

Collaborative Robots Use in Three Assembly Industries 

• RUPES 

RUPES is a leading maker of sanding and polishing power equipment worldwide. By removing flaws and waste from its production line and enhancing employee working conditions, the firm has maintained its reputation for producing high-quality items for 50 years. RUPES installed multiple UR3 cobots on its assembly line to do tedious and repetitive activities so that its staff could focus more on fulfilling jobs. 

Grinders, sanders, and polishers, some of the industrial equipment RUPES manufactures, have several tiny parts. The tightening step can be complicated when assembling the parts by hand because the workers must tighten the screws to the ideal level to prevent breakage. 

The UR cobots can accomplish precision positioning and accurate force control, ensuring that each screw is set to the exact specification, making this process much more manageable. 

The company found the advanced safety systems of the cobots to be user-friendly, simple to operate, and fast to install, hence maintaining a safe workplace environment for their staff. RUPES was able to accomplish its aim of producing goods with “zero flaws” thanks to the efficient use of the UR robots. 

• SHAD 

  Contents show

  1 SHAD

  2 Betacom

  3 Three Factors That Make Collaborative Robots an Ideal Automation Tool

  4 Flexible

SHAD is a Spanish company that manufactures motorcycle accessories. Recently, the company has seen a rise in demand for its products, which has prompted them to look for a long-term solution to increase its production output. 

The company acquired the UR5 robot to assist in their assembly tasks. The collaborative robot completely matched their requirements, which included being able to be moved around the production plant quickly and being easily reprogrammable to handle the changing product demands.

The UR5 coexists peacefully with SHAD employees in a shared workspace, relieving them of tedious and repetitive chores like putting together bags and reducing the time needed for manufacturing. 

• Betacom 

Betacom, which has its headquarters in New Zealand, creates lighting solutions for streets and tunnels. Since they supply lighting to places where visibility is crucial, the company strictly concentrates on producing high-quality lighting solutions. Due to the complex nature of their products, they must be exactly like the original design since a minor detail like a human fingerprint might have a detrimental impact on the functioning of the finished product. 

To efficiently create new LED lighting items, the company purchased a UR10 collaborative robot and equipped it with several tools. The cobot enables Betacom to eliminate any production-related errors, such as setting the LED lenses in various orientations to provide a good distribution of light and preventing human contact with the lenses to prevent contamination. 

Three Factors That Make Collaborative Robots an Ideal Automation Tool 

Motion Control 

Motion control capabilities are at the core of what makes the cobots safe. These robots can safely work alongside people thanks to motion force restrictions and advanced robotic arm control. The motion detection capabilities help the robot stop instantly when near humans to avoid a collision.  

Thanks to this feature, operators in an assembly line load components into a conveyor belt or turntable, and the cobot arm continue to work when the person has left the workspace. Its accuracy makes them achieve remarkable results and is mainly attributable to their ability to start and stop with pinpoint precision. 

Workers no longer need to leave the workspace as collaborative robots from Universal Robots allow them to hand the part straight to the machine, saving time, money, and floor space. MIT researchers at a BMW facility found that teams with humans and cobots working together were more efficient than teams with either humans or robots working alone. 

The collaborative robots’ superior motion control contributes to their precision, performance, and accuracy, making them the perfect choice for various challenging applications, including the assembly of microscopic parts. Shorter lead times, lower product lifecycles, and a higher capacity to personalize items close to ultimate markets are all benefits of the modern robotic systems in minor parts assembly. 

Flexible 

Instead of being limited to a single industry or application, collaborative robots are highly adaptable and effective at any task. Workers may quickly redeploy the robots to new applications because of their portability and space-saving nature, eliminating the need to change the production structure.  

Universal Robots offers a wide range of accessories and software to enable the robots to fit clients’ specified setup and application requirements. By enabling considerable increases in production profitability, cobots can easily handle some of the most challenging applications in the modern production environment. 

Return On Investment 

The cost of purchasing and installing collaborative robots in the company is relatively low. Since safety guarding and programming are generally not extra costs, they do not need any complicated upkeep.  

When used extensively, they also have a quick return on investment of less than a year. The robot arm can operate continuously for an extended time and doesn’t need holidays, work breaks, day-offs, or occasional leave. They enable industries to boost their productivity with a minor human labor force required, saving labor expenditures. 

Conclusion 

The game-changing robots from Universal Robots have made it possible for those three businesses mentioned above and many others worldwide to automate their assembly line applications efficiently, improving the quality and quantity of their industrial output.