Festo
Pneumatic cobot celebrates its premiere
Festo is launching what it claims is the world's first pneumatic cobot on the market. The aim is to make it economical for SMEs, which are often characterized by manual work processes, to use cobots.
"When it goes on sale in 2023, the Festo Cobot will set new standards in human-robot collaboration with its ease of use," Dr. Frank Melzer and Christian Tarragona are convinced.
© FestoAccording to Festo, the pneumatic cobot will be cheaper than electric cobots in this class. Its primary area of application is small parts handling with payloads of up to 3 kg. "When it goes on sale in 2023, the Festo Cobot will set new standards in human-robot collaboration with its ease of use," explains Dr. Frank Melzer, Member of the Management Board for Product and Technology Management at Festo.
The Cobot consists of the hardware itself, a hand module and the 'Robotic Suite', a software package for intuitive commissioning and programming. This package makes it possible to commission and program the Cobot in less than an hour. No previous knowledge of robotics is required, as the self-explanatory Robotic Suite software contains clearly visualized and standardized function blocks. Pneumatic drives allow the robot arm to be easily guided by hand without resistance in order to teach waypoints or paths quickly and precisely.
The cobot does not require an additional control cabinet, but houses the integrated controller in its own base. Simple plug-in connections also enable ad-hoc use without long changeover times. Common bus standards enable fast connection to higher-level control systems.
Thanks to lightweight construction methods, the cobot weighs just 17 kg and can therefore be flexibly moved to another location. Like a human arm, the cobot has a reach of 670 mm, so that it can be seen as a helping 'third hand' in teamwork with the employee. It moves within a manageable radius. Thanks to the flexibility of the pneumatic drives, the Cobot moves sensitively - at the appropriate speed for the situation, in fluid, harmonious movements. According to the manufacturer, it is as soft to the touch as a human contact. The Cobot's pneumatic direct drives and its low weight reduce its contact energy. Christian Tarragona, Head of Robotics at Festo, explains: "Thanks to precise pressure regulators in the joints, the robot recognizes when it is touched and reacts with appropriate safety functions."
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