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Cobots, also known as collaborative robots or collaborative robots, are robotic automation systems designed to share the same environment with humans and work together. Able to interact safely with employees, cobots are very useful in optimizing industrial production processes and are used in many areas, especially in assembly, logistics and warehousing.
The most important feature that distinguishes cobots from ordinary robots is that they require human intervention, meaning they can work with humans. Although they can work with teams, collaborative robots do not need an external cage or safety barrier to ensure the safety of the workers. Instead, they ensure a safe production process with the help of internal sensors.
Who Invented Cobots?
Cobots were invented in 1996 by Nortwestern University professors J. Edward Colgate and Michael Peshkin. The first cobots were produced by Cobotics, a company founded by Colgate and Peshkin in 1997, mainly for use on the final assembly lines of vehicles.
In 2004, KUKA produced its first cobot, the LBR 3. KUKA took collaborative robotics one step further with the production of the LBR 4 in 2008 and the KUKA LBR iiwa series in 2013. Thanks to KUKA, much lighter collaborative robots could be produced.
In 2008, Universal Robots produced its first collaborative robot, the UR5. Universal Robots opened the doors to a new era in collaborative robots by producing the UR10 robot in 2012 and the UR3 in 2015. Thanks to Universal Robots, it became possible for collaborative robots to meet safety requirements with the help of internal sensors, without the need for any external cage or barrier.
In 2020, the industrial cobot market achieved an annual growth of approximately fifty percent. One of the most striking developments in the world of technology, the different applications of natural language processing technology on collaborative robots was demonstrated by Gautam Siwach and Cheryl Li. This opened the doors to a future where communication between humans and collaborative robots will reach unimaginable heights.
Why Cobots Were Created?
Prior to collaborative robots, complex industrial robots were utilized in factories and production facilities. These robots were useful for advancing high-volume production processes. However, for the production processes of small companies, specially developed robots were needed. Cobots were created specifically for this purpose, so that even small-volume production processes that require high quality consistency can be automated efficiently and quickly.
Cobots stand out compared to industrial robots with their flexibility and safety features. Collaborative robots, which can fulfill many stages of the production process, work together in the production system.
What is Cobot Technology?
The word cobot is a combination of the words collaborative and robot. As the name suggests, these robots are robotic systems or industrial automation systems that work together with people, interact with them and automate production processes.
Thanks to collaborative robots, efficiency in production processes can be increased. In addition, employee satisfaction can also be ensured thanks to cobots. With cobots taking over potentially dangerous, repetitive and routine parts of industrial production processes such as screwing, welding and assembly, it is possible to assign employees to more thought-powered, strategic tasks. In this way, employee satisfaction can be increased and the fear of job loss, which naturally increases with the development of technology, can be prevented.
Structure of Collaborative Robots
The structure of a collaborative robot consists of software, sensors, an arm, an interface and an end element. All these parts combine to enable collaborative robots to successfully perform tasks that require human intervention, such as screwing, palletizing and welding.
Flexible Arm Structure
The most striking parts of cobots are their arms. Thanks to these arms, robots can advance the production process just as a human would. Some cobots have a single arm, while others have a multi-arm system. Collaborative robots with a single arm are used in operations that will be carried out in narrow spaces, involving small parts and not very complex. Multi-armed cobots, on the other hand, are human-like in their structure and can handle even tasks that are complex enough for a human to perform.
The most important part of the structure of the arms that add flexibility to the structures of collaborative robots and enable them to handle different tasks are the joints. Generally, the arms of such robots have between 4 and 10 joints. Thanks to these joints, the arms can perform movements similar to the bending of the human arm and can handle much more complex tasks than humans can perform.
Easy Software
The software that makes up the structure of collaborative robots enables the realization of tasks, controls the tasks to be performed and paves the way for the advancement of processes in interaction with different intelligent systems.
It is also possible to enable collaborative robots to learn on their own with software systems. In this way, such robots learn from their previous mistakes and work day and night to find the most optimized path.
The software of collaborative robots is much easier to modify than that of ordinary industrial robots. This easy programmability makes it possible to make changes to collaborative robots even in the middle of the production process.
User Interface
User interfaces allow workers to communicate with collaborative robots. They usually consist of a control system and a graphical interface.
The control system allows workers to manually teach a gesture or operation to the collaborative robot. In this way, the robot can perform the movement exactly as it is asked to do.
The graphical interface is intended to make it easier for operators to communicate with the robots. The easier these interfaces are to understand, the less time it takes to train the operators. Graphical interfaces in a pull-and-drop system are among the easiest to understand.
Safety Sensors
Since cobots are designed to work together with humans, safety is a top priority in their design. The sensors in their structure are also intended to ensure this. Thanks to these sensors, the system stops itself in case of any contact with humans, thus ensuring that employees are not harmed.
End Element
The end element is the structure that allows the collaborative robot to interact with external objects. Therefore, the end element can also be called the robot’s hand.
What are the Differences Between Industrial Robots and Cobots?
There are many differences between industrial robots and cobots. Here, we will examine these differences and talk about the prominent features of collaborative robots against industrial robots.
Internal Security Systems
Since collaborative robots are robotic systems that require human intervention and are designed to work together with humans, they do not need an external safety system such as an external cage or barrier.
The main factor that makes collaborative robots safe for workers is force and torque sensors. Thanks to these sensors, the robots detect operators and workers and stop working in case of any contact.
The fact that collaborative robots lack an external safety system is also a cost-reducing factor.
Working Together with Humans
Unlike collaborative robots, industrial robots are not designed to work with humans. Therefore, they do not require human intervention and can function on their own. Collaborative robots optimize production processes by working together with humans.
Easy Programmability
Collaborative robots are much easier to program than industrial robots. In general, programming these robots does not even require a specialized programmer. It can be easily learned and implemented. In this way, collaborative robots can be readjusted to meet different needs that may change at any time.
Low Cost
The amount of expenditure required for the initial installation, maintenance and similar processes of cobots is much less than that of classical industrial robots. This is due to the fact that these robots are smaller in size than conventional industrial robots and are designed to perform smaller volume tasks.
Flexibility
The ease with which collaborative robots can be programmed ensures that if a different need arises in the production process, the robot can be immediately programmed to meet that need. This avoids the rigidity seen in industrial robots.
Impacts of Cobots on Employees
Although the emergence of robots with the advancement of technology may have initially created fear of unemployment among workers, recent research shows the opposite. Industrial automation systems, such as collaborative robots, take away routine, repetitive and “boring” work from employees, increasing their overall happiness.
In addition, taking away jobs that require physical strength from employees allows them to be positioned in areas that require more creativity and thinking power, leading to an increase in employees’ sense of satisfaction with their work.
Since collaborative robots always need an operator, people’s fears of losing their jobs are relegated to the depths of history as an unfounded fear, and employees have the opportunity to educate themselves on topics such as the use of these robots in industry.
Cobot Programming
Programming cobots is a complex process and requires taking many factors into account. The first step in the programming phase is to understand exactly what the robot is intended to do and to tailor the software process to that focus.
The software of collaborative robots supports languages such as Python and C++. Therefore, these languages can be used when programming cobots.
Special attention should be paid to sensors when programming cobots. These sensors should be programmed to stop themselves and detect the surroundings if they come into contact with humans in order to meet the necessary safety requirements.
Uses of Collaborative Robots
Collaborative robots can be used in all kinds of physical tasks that require continuous repetition of the same process, such as palletizing, quality testing, handling, screwing and palletizing. Generally speaking, the areas of use of collaborative robots are as follows:
Screwing
Screwdriving, an indispensable part of industrial production processes, is a tedious and repetitive task to which workers must devote many hours. No worker enjoys doing the same job in the same way for eight to ten hours a day. Collaborative robots perform screwdriving with much more consistent quality and speed than any human could ever do. This allows you to redirect your employees to strategic areas where they will be more satisfied with their work.
Palletizing
Cobots can perform the palletizing process much more effectively than humans by placing packages on pallets via end elements. In this way, they add speed to the industrial production process and increase the efficiency.
Source
Welding is a process that can be considered dangerous and requires high attention. Thanks to collaborative robots, which are indispensable in industrial automation systems, it is possible to perform this dangerous process in an extremely safe way. At the same time, quality stability can be achieved and much higher quality products can be produced than would otherwise be possible.
Cobot Prices
Cobot prices vary according to many different factors. The task you will use the robots for, the size of the robot you want and the features you need are among the factors that affect the total price.
The average cobot costs around 35 thousand dollars. Lower collaborative robots can be found between 8 and 20 thousand dollars. If you need to give a general range regardless of quality, it can be said that you can find cobots between 8 and 50 thousand dollars.