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MOTORINDIA
l
January 2012
AUTOMATICA 2012 to focus on
safe man-machine co-operation
Visitors to AUTOMATICA 2012, the International
Trade Fair for Automation and Mechatronics to be held
at the New Munich Trade Fair Centre during May 22-
25, can obtain an overview of the far-reaching perspec-
tives provided by “safe man-robot co-operation”.
The further development of “safe robots” enables a
space-saving cell concept without rigid barriers on the
one hand. On the other, it opens the door to new ap-
plications involving people and robots, for example, in
installation, medical technology and the service sector.
Various colleges and institutes have worked out ba-
sic principles for this over the years, which link sensor
technology with control and process control engineering
as well as mechanics and consequently create new au-
tomation possibilities. The way into industrial practice
is also being smoothed by the norm ISO 10218-1 with
respect to the safety aspects of man-robot co-operation
(also referred to as human-machine collaboration). It
contains safety requirements for industrial robots, so
that people and robots can work together in a defined
events
work area without spatial separation using safety barri-
ers or light grids.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology
and Automation (IPA) in Stuttgart is one of the most
active research institutes dealing with the safety aspects
of man-robot co-operation. Martin Hägele, Department
Head of Robot Systems, believes that enormous poten-
tial has become available with the standard: “Man-robot
co-operation makes it possible to combine the strengths
of people and robots and consequently to automate proc-
esses which were previously not economically feasible.
Thanks to co-operation, workplaces can be designed er-
gonomically and costs can be reduced overall, thanks to
the higher degrees of automation.”
People have high cognitive skills, are creative
and can adapt quickly to complex situations. On
the other hand, robots have untiring repetitive
accuracy, even when there are heavy loads.
– Mr. Martin Hägele
S
ince introduction of their use quite a few
years ago, it has become hard to imagine
industry without robots. Their strengths
lie in power, quickness and stamina. Their limitation
is that they can only flex their muscles in separate
cells for safety reasons in most cases. The future:
an increasing number of safety barriers will fall.
The reason is that modern technology is providing
such a high degree of safety that people and robots
can work hand in hand.
Mr. Rajesh Nath,
VDMA Managing Director