Benefits of Collaborative Robots

1. Increased Human & Robot Efficiency

This is the most obvious benefit. When working with robots, usually the operator loads parts to a fixture, conveyor, or turntable. Next, the operator leaves the workspace, and the robot does its work. With collaborative robots, the operator can give the part directly to the robot and never has to leave the work space – reducing time, cost, and floor space. In a study conducted by MIT researchers at a BMW factory, teams made of humans and robots collaborating were shown to be more productive than teams made of either humans or robots alone. In fact, human idle time was reduced by 85% when collaborating with a robot.

2. Applicable to Small to Midsized Manufacturers

There’s a stigma that robots are only useful or realistic for large industrial manufacturers. However, that’s simply not the case anymore. Automated equipment can now be used with small to midsize organizations by using smarter and more accessible collaborative robots. These smaller companies stand to benefit from cobots and their various industrial applications, like assembly, loading/unloading, packaging, sorting, dispensing, sanding, and polishing. These types of applications and processes continue to benefit as collaborative robots are embraced across a range of business sizes.

3. Increased ROI

With today’s collaborative technology, a large number of applications see a return on investment (ROI) in less than one year when they invest in cobots. Because these robots can be co-located to work directly next to their human counterpart, there are fewer barriers to work around and less lost time. When you think about it, it adds up: you’re increasing productivity and reducing labour costs while also implementing exciting and cutting-edge technology, which is very attractive to many customers.

4. Greater Flexibility in the Human Environment

We’ve mentioned it already, but the benefits of installing robots free of safety cages are endless. Robots work in complex human environments without being encumbered by large cages or external sensors and barriers that often accompany them. This allows facilities to deploy robots, remove robots, or deploy humans within one central workspace. This, in turn, enables flexibility, which is required by a lot of high-mix, low-volume manufacturing facilities. It also frees floor space and lowers the cost of implementing robotics for many manufacturers.

5. Safely Handle Complex and Dangerous Tasks

In cases where safety and complexity are paramount, collaborative sensing robots work side-by-side with a human counterpart and also complete complicated and dangerous tasks that traditional robots or humans simply can’t. Applications like steadying the motion of surgical tools or lab operations to prevent human error from causing unwanted motion are at the forefront of the collaborative robots industry. This paves the way for humans to rely on the inherent benefits of robots while improving complex and dangerous techniques.

6. Unlimited Potential

This is just the beginning for collaborative robots. In the long term, it’s difficult to say what our roles as humans will be within highly automated manufacturing applications. For now, sales of collaborative robots represent 5% of the overall robot market. This will grow exponentially as more manufacturers and engineers get their hands on cobots. They can then start exploring their possibilities – across every industry, from medical devices to packaging.