Cobots:
How humans and machines
can work together
Collaborative robots, also called cobots, are becoming increasingly common in manufacturing.
Cobots work side by side with human workers without compromising worker safety. They can also
be used for simpler process steps, freeing up staff for more responsible and value-added tasks.
The application threshold for robotics has been significantly lowered by the use of cobots
in manufacturing.
There are well-known manufacturers such as KUKA or Universal Robots that produce cobots.
Why is a camera particularly important for cobots?
However, in order to be able to replace or relieve a human worker in a meaningful way, the robot needs more than just jointed arms and agile grippers. It must be able to see what it is doing. For this purpose, collaborative robots are combined with image-processing vision sensors. Without the sensor eye, a robot could only move to certain pre-programmed or calculated positions. As soon as a part was not exactly in the predefined position, it would be lost. The camera connected to the robot, on the other hand, recognises the object in question in the image and sends the real position to the robot so that it can easily grab it using automated gripping.
By using vision sensors, cobots can be used more flexibly. For example, they can screw screws more flexibly with a camera-guided lightweight robot than without a vision system. The use of vision sensors in combination with cobots increases the precision and efficiency of the robot. By precisely determining the component position with the help of the vision sensor, robots are able to specifically bring the robot gripper or the tool attached to the robot arm into the correct position.
All in all, cobots in combination with vision sensors open up new possibilities for the automation of processes in production and facilitate the work of employees. The combination of man and machine in manufacturing is thus proving to be a promising alternative to meet the demands of tomorrow's production.
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