Cobots: collaboration between man and machine
Author : Paige West - Editor DPA & Connectivity
27 October 2017
ABB's collaborative robot - YuMi
Robotics is a good first step for companies looking to get smarter. Connectivity spoke to Mike Wilson, Business Development Manager – UK & Ireland, ABB’s robotics business, about collaborative robots (cobots) in particular and how they are transforming the workspace.
There are some internationally recognised definitions of what a collaborative robot actually is; it’s largely people being able to share the workspace with the robot. We’ve actually been able to do this for quite a number of years, using appropriate safety systems. So, although there is a lot of publicity and interest being generated at the moment, it’s not actually anything new. One of the benefits from this is the use of robots across the board, especially in the UK. It’s opening up more opportunities for robots to be deployed, not all end up being collaborative but some of them will.
It’s not just about small robots either; collaboration can be achieved with some of the larger ones. However, there are a larger number of small robots classed as truly collaborative because they have inherent safety systems built in, so you don’t have to add additional equipment to make them collaborative.
What are the benefits?
Mike outlines a number of benefits:
1. Quality – Automation is consistent, it will repeat the same task every hour, every day therefore you can guarantee consistent quality
2. Reduce waste – By automating the handling of products you can reduce damage
3. Traceability – Automating means you know exactly what’s been done and when. Recording this data is harder when you have a manual operation
4. Hygiene – Ensuring machines are clean is harder to do when people are involved
5. Increase output/productivity- Automation can increase the speed of output and operate equipment out of hours without people in the facility
6. Repetitive tasks – Dangerous and arduous tasks that people don’t necessarily want to do can be completed. These are the jobs with the highest turnover so you can reduce recruitment and training costs and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
They don’t all apply in every case so it’s important companies can identify what the benefits are.
ABB's collaborative robot - YuMi
The process of implementation
You can’t just assume because the robot is collaborative, the application will be. Every application needs to have the risks assessed. People have to be careful and utilise the appropriate expertise to make sure what they are doing is safe.
Here, Mike outlines the process companies need to think about when looking to implement cobots:
Assess the application
In terms of the robots themselves, they’re not that different from any other robot. So it’s all about the application in terms of the reach, payload and speed. By assessing the need for collaboration and ensuring the ergonomics of the whole system are appropriate, the people working alongside the robot can get on with their tasks while the robot performs its own, without the two interfering with eachother.
The easiest place to start is by finding the simplest job in the factory. Start small and install a cobot in this space to gain more experience, then move on to bigger applications. It becomes a learning curve.
Safety
The question most companies are asking is, how can humans and robots work safely together? Without going into too much technical details, it’s effectively about speed, force and separation. If there is someone directly working with the robot then the robot will be constrained in terms of how fast it can go and how much it can carry. This means if there is an interaction, the robot isn’t going to cause any harm. The bigger and faster you get in terms of the robot, the more you have to separate the people from the robot.
Training
Mike Wilson, Business Development Manager – UK & Ireland, ABB’s robotics business
Compared to more standard industrial robots, programming cobots can be easier because of their in-built functionality. People aren’t going to need to undertake rigorous training programmes to work alongside them, just learn some fairly basic rules to understand how it works which is no different to training a new employee.
It’s important to remember that although tasks can get automated it isn’t about replacing people, it’s about giving the workforce the tools they need to do the job well. Mike feels the fear of robots leading to job loss is unfounded, whether it’s collaborative or the more typical industrial robots. Looking specifically at cobots, what you’d be doing is putting the robot onto repetitive tasks and using people where their skills can be more productive. It’s all about finding a balance.
Evolving in the future
Traditionally in the UK, we are slow to adopt new techniques. One of the reasons for this is our culture, we have a tendency to not invest in capital equipment. Mike thinks this is starting to change, people are now beginning to understand the benefits of robotics and collaborative robots has helped in terms of encouraging interest and generating more enquires.
Despite this, there are still challenges when it comes to robotic applications. Not so much for the larger corporations but SME’s in particular need to be encouraged to take the step into automation. There are places such as the High Value Manufacturing Catapult Centres, a network of physical centres where UK businesses, scientists and engineers can work on research and development. There is also large investment from the like of Innovate UK in development projects. But more needs to be done.
One of the major challenges today is the lack of expertise and skills within UK manufacturing to develop concepts and solutions and install and operate this equipment. But the great thing is, robotics is a good tool for exciting the younger generation. It’s one of the few industrial tools that combine software, mechanics, electronics etc. into one machine.
Robotics is a good first step for companies looking to implement a smart, Industry 4.0 solution. There are lots of different elements to Industry 4.0 but if you aim for the end goal - a highly monitored factory - it doesn’t work very well if you have lots of people at the bottom, whereas if you can automate those processes it makes it easier to collect data, control operations and be flexible.
As technology and applications develop, Mike believes we will start to see collaborative type robots that can carry higher payloads and work faster with a greater use of vision and sensing techniques. This will help extend the types of robotic applications and improve safety.
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