Technology & Innovation

Meet the robots

September 02, 2014

Global

September 02, 2014

Global

Meet the robots leading a new, agile era of manufacturin

If a new generation of robot makers is to be believed, factory robotics is about to become much more sophisticated and much simpler to use.  

Robots, it seems, are gradually creeping into every corner of life. And while robotic systems have long been used in manufacturing, especially in the automotive industry, a new breed of robot is now vying for space on the factory floor.

These new systems are characterized by highly reconfigurable robotic tools and intuitive, often human-like, user interfaces. Many dispense with programming altogether, allowing the user to simply move a robotic arm to show it what to do.

That combination of sophistication and simplicity promises to redraw the economics of manufacturing, by allowing companies to produce shorter, more complex runs, highly tailored to the specific needs of individual customers.

The leader of the pack is Baxter, a robot made by US company Rethink Robotics. According to his makers, Baxter “exhibits behavior-based ‘common sense,’ capable of sensing and adapting to its task and its environment”. This means it requires no programming or costly integration, the company says.

Baxter has yet to be awarded the European certification standard, however, and as result has to date only been used in research labs on the continent.

This leaves the door open for a lesser known contender: UR5, by Danish competitor Universal Robots. UR5 is CE mark approved and the company says that 3,000 of the robots have made their way onto factory floors in over 50 countries worldwide.

"An agile robot is of little use if it is embedded in a stiff and unresponsive organisational culture"

The roll call of agile, robotic manufacturing systems also includes GoWeld Rob, a sensor-controlled welding robot, and LBR iiwa (pictured above), whose intuitive interface makes it a “trailblazer for totally new forms of cooperation between humans and machines”, according to its manufacturer KUKA.

The sophistication of their hardware combined with the simplicity of their software interfaces means this new breed of robot may well help manufacturers respond rapidly to the capricious demands of their customers.

Agile organisations

However, an agile robot is of little use if it is embedded in a stiff and unresponsive organisational culture. In particular, manufacturers will need to be as sophisticated in their use of data and information as their robots are in constructing products.

As a 2012 report from McKinsey & Company points out, “the new era of manufacturing will be characterised by highly agile, networked enterprises that use information and analytics as skillfully as they employ talent and machinery to deliver products and services to diverse global markets.”

Over two-thirds of European workers in manufacturing are employed in small and medium-sized enterprises, so flexible low-cost robots like Baxter have the potential to change the economics of manufacturing. There’s a danger though, that those not taking up the new technologies quickly enough may get left behind.

Historically, the region that has first mastered the latest manufacturing paradigm has gone on to develop a significant competitive edge. Early production processes, which were pioneered in Europe, focused on bespoke, high-end products. Mass production was perfected by the Americans, while the lean production techniques of the current era were created by the Japanese.

Who will dominate the agile era? Share your thoughts on the Future Realities LinkedIn discussion group, sponsored by Dassault Systèmes. 

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