Collaborative robotics
Merger of three gripper manufacturers
The US company Perception Robotics, the Hungarian company OptoForce and On Robot from Denmark are merging to form the 'new' company OnRobot with the support of the Danish Growth Fund. The company is managed by Enrico Krog Iversen.
The three business units will continue their own business and development activities. The headquarters of the "new" OnRobot will be located in Denmark.
According to Enrico Krog Iversen, the former CEO of cobot pioneer Universal Robots, the aim is to "build a global leader in the development and production of gripping systems." In 2015, Enrico Krog Iversen and the Danish Growth Fund sold the Danish cobot pioneer Universal Robots to the US company Teradyne for 285 million dollars.
Collaborative robots, which work side by side with humans in applications such as packaging, quality inspection, material handling, machine operation, assembly and welding, currently account for 3% of global robot sales, according to the International Federation of Robotics. However, this share is expected to rise to 34% of a market worth 25 billion dollars by 2025.
According to Iversen, the decisive criteria for choosing the three companies that make up the new OnRobot were their synergistic gripping system technologies and their ability to integrate them, as well as the long-term vision and skills of the founders of each company.
- On Robot was founded in 2015 and manufactures the plug-and-play electric grippers RG2 and RG6. The gripping elements are mounted directly on the robot arm. They can be programmed and operated via the same interface as the robot, without the need for programmers.
- OptoForce was founded in 2012 and manufactures force/torque sensors that give industrial robots a sense of touch. This enables them to automate tasks that normally require the dexterity of a human hand.
- Perception Robotics was founded in Los Angeles in 2012. The company develops compliant rubber touch sensors ("skin") to provide robots with a sense of touch and automation systems with robust material handling capabilities. Its first gripper will be available this year.
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