Collaborativ Robotics

Important factors

Affordability

Return on investment

Size

Safety

1. Industrial robot - work without a safety fence
2. Kukua iiwa - joint torque sensors detect contact immediately and reduces its level of force and speed instantly. position and compliance control enables it to handle delicate components without creating crushing and shearing hazards 
3. Festo Bionic Cobot - Adjustable level of rigidity/force potential

Functionality

1. Atria Innovation - interfaces with cameras that can “automatically adapt themselves to most variations of manufacturing processes.”

scalability


ease of programming/customizing for other purpose

1. kuka iiwa - indicate the desired position and it will remember the coordinates of the path point. Controller simplifies the quick start-up of coplex activity

precision

1. kuka iiwa - axis-specific torque accuracy of ±2% of the maximum torque

Replaces manual labour in repetitive task

Employee skills


Questions to ask
Affordability
What is your financial budget for the cobot?
Does a cobot exist that can carry out the functions required within budget?
Are financing options available for the cobot?
Is it a lease or robots as a service option?  

Return on investment
What payback period can you expect
Is this payback period acceptable in terms of your ongoing financial projections?  

Size
What is the size of the cobot under consideration?
In particular, what is the cobot’s height, width, depth and footprint?
Is the working environment sufficiently sized so the cobot can be positioned easily?
Will the cobot move around in the workplace? If so, is there enough room for it to comfortably move around in an unimpeded manner?

Safety
Are you sure the cobot can operate in a safely in the allocated workspace?
Have you carried out a health, safety, and risk assessment on the likely impact for staff of introducing a cobot to the workplace?
What is the safety record of the cobot under consideration?
If staff is expected to directly interact with the cobot - have you carried out an ergonomic assessment?
Does the cobot manufacturer or integrator offer safety training? If not, is third-party safety training available?
If you plan on moving the cobot within the workplace, can you do another risk assessment every time?           

Functionality
What operations will the cobot be used for? Assembly? Pick-and-place? Machine tending? Human assistance?
Will the cobot be expected to perform a single or multiple functions?
Is the cobot under consideration capable of carrying out all functions necessary? Or will more than one type of cobot be necessary?
Can the cobot manufacturer adapt the cobot to your specific functional requirements?
How easy is it to program the cobot?

Employee skills
Does existing staff have the skills necessary to undertake programming and operational duties for cobots?
Does the manufacturer or dealer offer or provide any sort of staff training?
Is training software (or other information) available?