[March 15, 2017] |
|
Universal Robots to Show Rapidly Expanding Ecosystem of Application Solutions at Automate 2017
Occupying one of the largest
booths at Automate 2017 in Chicago, April 3-6, the Danish cobot
manufacturer will showcase more than 20 new Universal
Robots+ products from 14 different developers. The UR+ platform is a
new online showroom that takes the trial and error process out of
creating a robot application by providing access to products verified to
work optimally with UR robots. From grippers to software, sensors,
vision cameras, and accessories, Universal Robots+ not only enables end
users to hit the ground running when integrating UR robots, it's also an
un-paralleled collaboration between Universal Robots and the flourishing
developer ecosystem.
"What really differentiates us is our focus on growing this network of
technology partners to ensure fast and easy deployment of our robot
arms. We're hoping to grow the platform to feature around 100 UR+
solutions by the end of 2017," said CTO and co-founder of Universal
Robots, Esben Østergaard.
One of the partners currently in the UR+ process is FESTO. At Universal
Robots' Automate booth
#1245, the company will show a new reliable and cost-effective
solution for extending the reach of UR 6-axis robots through a
horizontal or vertical 7th axis. This new solution is based
on the FESTO electric linear-axis EGC-HD
and CMMP-M3 servo-drive with the company's advanced safety module. The
servo-controlled actuators have been seamlessly integrated within UR's
programming environment and are compatible with the full range of UR
robots.
"This new solution will enable UR customers to bring 7-axis systems to
market faster and with less design overhead," said Mike DeMange,
Business Development Specialist with FESTO. "The partners examined
customer needs as well as competitive offerings, and developed an
effective and versatile 7-axis system, a solution designed for easy
integration without having to learn multiple software platforms."
Automate is also the launch pad for the new low-cost, multi-axis force
torque sensor Axia80
that will debut at the UR booth embedded with a UR5 robot. Featuring an
interactive booth demo, attendees will be able to move a work piece and
force the cobot to adjust its path while it maintains a constant force.
Unlike load cells, which only operate on a single axis and measure only
push, the Axia80 senses torque and side loads along all six axes.
"It's similar to a handshake," said CEO of ATI, Robert Little. "The
force/torque sensor measures the touch and feel and gives life to
robots. It's a feedback mechanism. For factories wanting to get deeper
into automation, their cobots can use these sensors to do more of what
those human laborers accomplish in terms of dexterity and efficiency.
Universal Robots' UR+ platform allows ATI to fully integrate our
force/torque sensors with their robots, making it very simple for
customers to program force-guided applications."
To further document how UR+ solutions can work in tandem, a lineup of
UR3 robot demos, each equipped with up to five different UR+ products,
will also be ready for attendee interaction. The demos feature UR+
solutions from Millibar, Airgate,
SICK,
OnRobot,
Robotiq,
Weiss,
OptoForce,
Reiku,
Schunk, Igus,
Roboworld,
Afag
and Gimatic.
Along with the development of UR+ solutions, Universal Robots is also
growing its network of Certified System Integrators (CSIs). Kubica
Corp., a UR CSI (News - Alert), will showcase an interactive augmented reality
application featuring a UR10 robot assembling a door panel assisted by a Light
Guide System (LGS) from OPS Solutions, an augmented reality tool. By
projecting a digital operating "canvas" directly onto the workspace, LGS
combines the best of human intelligence and automation technology to
direct the robot and the operator through the required assembly tasks.
"We chose to show a door panel build as this is a labor-intensive
process prone to human error, which is now significantly reduced by
having the UR cobot handle several of the assembly tasks, working in
tandem with the operator. We found that the UR10 robot has some built-in
features that make it the perfect robot to accomplish this task," said
Scott Lown, Controls Engineer with Kubica Corp.
The Universal Robots booth is not the only opportunity for Automate
attendees to interact with UR robots. Close to 20 other Automate
exhibitors will also be exhibiting the blue cobots at the show.
"The fact that so many high-profile industry players now choose to
feature UR robots in their booth applications is a significant testament
to Universal Robots' versatility and widespread market appeal. I look
forward to walking the show floor and seeing our robots everywhere,"
says Esben Østergaard.
UR robots will be on display in the following Automate/ProMat booths:
Accutech - Booth S-5018 UR5 with a robotic picking solution
integrated with an Autofulfillment™ SPrint™ Automated bagging system
solution, demonstrating End of Line processing & packaging of picked
orders in a tote. The system automatically takes items from tote, scans,
packs, labels, verifies, & seals for fast & accurate order fulfillment.
ArtiMinds Robotics - Booth 363 UR3 robot with Robotiq
gripper 2FG and OptoForce
Force/Torque sensor. With live programming of assembly applications,
every visitor gets the chance to program the UR robot within a couple of
minutes, demonstrating how the ArtiMinds software interface addresses
process variances in real-time based on readings from the force-torque
sensors, adapting the robot's motion like a human.
CRG (News - Alert) Technologies - Booth 2504 UR5 robot in packaging
application, performing a variety of stacking, transfer and loading
tasks.
Dorner Mfg. Corp. - Booth 1059 UR5 robot integrated with
Dorner's Precision Move Pallet Systems conveyor demonstrating an
assembly automation and product testing application.
Essential Robot Products, Inc. - Booth 2659 UR5 robot with OptoForce
Force/Torque sensor demonstrating an adaptable path force-control
application. Using a padded roller, the UR5 robot will adjust the path
of the robot to apply consistent force along an un-even path with rising
and falling slopes. The interactive application will allow visitors to
put their hands in the path of the roller to demonstrate the robot's
"sense of touch," using the F/T sensor to adjust the robot travel safely
to go over their hand.
Eurosort - Booth S-2026 UR5 robot demonstrating live robotic
induction to a EuroSort Bomb Bay Sorter.
Intelligrated - Booth N-1616 UR10 in a robotic
goods-to-picker application.
LMI Technologies Inc. - Booth 2262 3D Infotech will showcase
a UR3 robot with LMI Technologies' all-new Gocator 3210 snapshot sensor.
High-quality data is acquired using 3D
Infotech's UR+ enabled Streamline software interface, demonstrating
how UR robots make it safe and easy to automate inspection for many
applications including automotive, aerospace, castings & forgings, and
consumer electronics.
Microscan - Booth 656 UR5 robot with Microscan's
latest MicroHAWK
machine vision smart camera platform, demonstrating flexible in-line
inspection. The robotic demo features the world's smallest Ethernet
smart camera and is set up in collaboration with Olympus Controls.
OptoForce/OnRobot - Booth 469 Two UR3 robots and one UR10
robot with OptoForce
6 Axis Force Torque Sensor and OnRobot
RG2 gripper. Demos show how the On Robot gripper takes advantage of
the internal architecture of the UR robots by simply connecting to the
robot's I/O port. OptoForce equips industrial robots with the sense of
touch so that more tasks can be automated. The application shows
adjustable force, speed and widths of gripper with feedback and drop
detection provided on the gripped part. UR+ enabled OptoForce Force
Torque sensor uses optics instead of strain gages, and provides all six
variables for X, Y, Z force and torque easily incorporated into the
application program. The work cell will also demonstrate how UR software
provides a hand guide with any or all of the six axes enabled to make
programming waypoints and path recording easier than ever.
RightHand Robotics, Inc. - Booth S-1891 UR5s and
UR10s robots as part of a piece-picking solution that can handle a large
range of items reliably and at high rates for the e-commerce supply
chain industry.
Robotic Vision Technologies - Booth 761 RVT will debut its
brand new collaborativeVisionFactory 3D VGR software driving a UR5 robot
with an OnRobot
RG2 gripper. Demonstrations will highlight the powerful combination
of vision and the UR for a variety of applications such as collaborative
assembly, pick and place, and gluing.
ROBOTIQ - Booth 1053 Three UR5 robot applications all
equipped with UR+ enabled Robotiq
Grippers, Wrist
Camera and Force
Torque Sensor. A UR5 robot in a machine tending simulation utilizes
vision-based part location, an automated vise, and force-based placement
of the part. The work cell demonstrates how to improve cycle times in
CNC machine tending using two grippers on the same UR arm. Other
applications show UR5s utilizing the Path
URCap in dispensing and deburring simulations, showcasing how to
program a complex path by hand-guiding the robot instead of teaching
hundreds of waypoints. Visitors are encouraged to try the applications
themselves.
SCHUNK Inc. -Booth N1421 UR5 robot with electric SCHUNK
gripper CoAct EGP. The work cell demonstrates how a UR 5 can be used for
loading and unloading a lathe without the need for fences. The gripper
and robot are used to load parts and open and close the machine door.
Soft Robotics - Booth 2244 UR3 robot with Soft Robotics
gripper built with UR+ ready Soft Robotics Development Kit. This
demonstrates the collaborative pick-and-place of a wide range of objects
of varying size, shape and weight, with a single end-of-arm tool and no
additional programming.
Tend - Booth 2802 Tend will be displaying a UR5 robot with
an attached Chameleon3 USB3 vision camera. Using the in.control™
software platform that Tend is launching at the show, the UR5 will
simulate a machine-tending task by reading a touchscreen display and
responding according to the text prompt on the screen.
ZIMMER GROUP US Inc. - Booth 2228 UR10 robot with a
ZIMMER GROUP long-stroke collaborative gripper. The display demonstrates
the ease-of-use and programmability in implementing a UR cobot combined
with ZIMMER GROUP'S line of UR+ ready grippers and UR specific
attachment kits.
About Universal Robots Universal Robots was co-founded in
2005 by the company's CTO, Esben Østergaard, who wanted to make robot
technology accessible to all by developing small, user-friendly,
reasonably priced, flexible industrial robots that are safe to
work with. Since the first robot was launched in 2008, the company has
experienced considerable growth with the user-friendly robots now sold
in more than 50 countries worldwide. The company, which is a part of
Teradyne (News - Alert) Inc., is headquartered in Odense, Denmark, and has subsidiaries
and regional offices in the USA, Spain, Germany, Italy, Czech Republic,
China, Singapore, India, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea. For more
information, please visit www.universal-robots.com
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170315005993/en/
[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
|