Outstanding robot specialist Universal Robots and leading sensor solutions provider SICK have joined forces in order to create two innovative applications for collaborative robots.
The applications in question combine both companies’ virtues and allow for people and robots to work within the same workspace where the robot takes over all the repetitive and heavy movements while the human collaborator moves freely in a safe environment, adding value through more sophisticated contributions.
The first of these two applications uses two SICK sensors connected to a robot for identification and placement purposes, ideally for pick-and-place and quality control in packaging and logistic processes. The Lector63X is a barcode reader that informs the robot about the pieces on the conveyor via 2D identification.
“SICK was an early champion of Industry 4.0 before the term even existed”, says Jaume Catalán, Industry Manager Automotive at SICK Spain. “Vision sensors, Safety and Auto ID equipments as well as Smart Sensors have been the company’s backbones for decades. Little wonder then that SICK is considered one of the forerunners in all things associated with Industry 4.0 and the Smart Factory.”