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Universal Robots Wraps Up Cobot Expo Series, Providing Training for Machine Tending Applications

February 26, 2021 by Seth Price

Universal Robots hosts the Cobots Expo Series, with five virtual events that focus on using collaborative robots in various machine tending applications.

The two-day event happening from February 23-24, wrapped up this week and concluded with some informative discussions from Universal Robots executives and automation experts. These people provided interactive demonstrations on the choice, feeding, and care of cobots for machine tending.

Cobot attending to a vertical CNC machining center. Image courtesy of Universal Robots.

Between the COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing availability of affordable sensors, the rise in cobots is showing improved ROI. Cobots are more common in places where workers performed repetitive tasks, such as machine tending.

Universal Robots Expands Machine Tending and CNC Training

Machine tending typically involves loading, unloading, and monitoring the progress of a piece of equipment, such as a CNC milling machine, brake press, and injection molding. For example, before cobots, an operator may have to remove parts from a heat-treating furnace, then place the next batch in the furnace.

Now, a cobot can perform this task, reducing the risk of injury and increasing the efficiency of this task. Instead, the cobot deals with the heat, the heavy lifting, and the boring task of watching parts in an oven.

The main purpose of this event was to show how easily cobots can be installed, configured, and used in the manufacturing environment. Given the content of this event, manufacturing and automation engineers can get their questions answered and learn how turn-key systems can be delivered and installed in their facilities.

“When someone wants a fishing boat, they go buy one. They don’t buy the motor and build the boat themselves,” said Brian Knopp, general manager of UR CSI ProCobots.

The North American Machine Tending Event

The idea behind this event was to demonstrate that cobots can be delivered that perform the required tasks, without the headaches of configuring a system from parts.

Graphic showing information about the Cobot Series Event. Image courtesy of Universal Robots.

While fully automated manufacturing environments may exist in the future, workers and cobots may coexist in manufacturing for many years to come. Rather than keeping robots caged off in a small area away from the workers, they will be performing smart interactions with the workers, truly assisting the workers in their duties.

Future Cobot Training Events

This was the second annual Cobot Expo Series, n event that will likely continue for Universal Robots. This year’s event featured over 15 keynote speakers, 14 booths, and displays, with 10 industry-leading partners.

VersaBuilt, an industry-leading partner of UR, demonstrating their combined robotic solutions. Image courtesy of VersaBuilt Robotics.

These industry partners were all companies in the automation and robotic sectors that have partnered with Universal Robotics in the past or designed kits specifically for UR’s robots and cobots. Some of their industry-leading partners including the following companies:

The event included demos, live sessions, expo booths, and more. The company will have an on-demand online expo until May, 26. Universal Robots hopes this attendance will likely grow and expand for next year’s Cobot Expo.