COMAU IS DEVELOPING A NEW MOBILE ROBOTICS SOLUTION FEATURING COLLABORATIVE ROBOTS IN THE CONTEXT OF 3 EU PROJECTS
â— Part of R&D initiatives and applied within three different EU projects, the new Mobile Robotic Arm combines collaborative safety features, industrial performance and complete mobility when and where it is needed â— Modular approach enables the robot to address a large number of applications in different areas of the plant without changing the SW and HW architecture â— The platform can be used across multiple different industries
Grugliasco (Turin), March 29, 2023 - Comau is designing a powerful mobile robotics platform as part of an open, highly collaborative production environment, in the context of 3 different European Projects.
The integrated solution, which leverages Comau's proven expertise in IoT-enabled technologies and collaborative robotics, is a natural evolution of the company's automated workflow optimization systems. Modular, scalable and completely re-configurable, the platform can be easily adapted to different applications without changing the system's underlying software or hardware architecture. Furthermore, because the robotic arm is mounted on an autonomous mobile platform it is not tied to a single operation but can address a large number of applications in different areas of the plant as needed.
Comau's mobile robotics paradigm integrates the company's high-payload Racer-5 COBOT, a 6-axis articulated robotic arm that can work at industrial speeds of up to 6 m/s when human operators are not present, and its Agile1500 autonomous mobile vehicle. It supports customized and efficient operations where human operators and machines work side-by-side, and is designed to handle individualized production within an Industry 4.0-enabled manufacturing environment. It can also be seamlessly integrated within Comau's digital infrastructure, further safeguarding productivity and profitability across the entire manufacturing line. Visual feedback for pick and place operations, as well as other tasks, is provided thanks to an integrated vision system, such as the novel Comau MI.RA, installed directly on the arm. Finally, the robotic arm is mounted on an autonomous mobile platform equipped with two independent batteries that power the AGV and the robotic arm separately and can be managed using different types of navigation modes and a standard Comau controller.
The solution is currently being used within several European projects. In the first application, with DIMOFAC, an EU-initiative aimed at helping companies implement a smart factory architecture, the platform is being used for pick and place and warehouse automation tasks within a machining scenario. For PeneloPe, on the other hand, it is being used for glue dispensing and non-destructive quality inspection in the public transport domain. Here, the goal of the Horizon 2020 program is to develop a closed-loop, end-to-end digital manufacturing solution that facilitates bidirectional data flows across the entire manufacturing value chain. Finally, the platform is being used as part of ODIN to support the manipulation of mechanical parts for automotive applications with the aim of demonstrating the technical and performance feasibility of collaborative robotics on the factory floor.
The global market for collaborative mobile robots is significant, based on an internal analysis of published market data. Especially considering that collaborative robotics already represent up to 13% of the industrial robotics market and Automated Mobile Robots are expected to achieve a 5-year CAGR of 15% (2022 to 2027).
Featured Product
3D Vision: Ensenso B now also available as a mono version!
This compact 3D camera series combines a very short working distance, a large field of view and a high depth of field - perfect for bin picking applications. With its ability to capture multiple objects over a large area, it can help robots empty containers more efficiently. Now available from IDS Imaging Development Systems. In the color version of the Ensenso B, the stereo system is equipped with two RGB image sensors. This saves additional sensors and reduces installation space and hardware costs. Now, you can also choose your model to be equipped with two 5 MP mono sensors, achieving impressively high spatial precision. With enhanced sharpness and accuracy, you can tackle applications where absolute precision is essential. The great strength of the Ensenso B lies in the very precise detection of objects at close range. It offers a wide field of view and an impressively high depth of field. This means that the area in which an object is in focus is unusually large. At a distance of 30 centimetres between the camera and the object, the Z-accuracy is approx. 0.1 millimetres. The maximum working distance is 2 meters. This 3D camera series complies with protection class IP65/67 and is ideal for use in industrial environments.
