How is the future looking for robotics and machine vision?

In Finland, robotics has concentrated in the mechanical engineering sector: workshops account for nearly half of all robotics investments. While mechanical engineering businesses are the major pioneers, we can expect robotics to be adopted by SMEs as well.

With more options available, doors will open to new industries and for new applications such as storage and sorting. In future, we will see compact, user-friendly, safe and more affordable collaborative robots (cobots) who can work seamlessly alongside humans.

Robots are not here to take jobs – quite the opposite

The age-old question in robotics discourse is whether robots will render human labour obsolete.

This comparison is needless, as robots can both help with labour shortages and handle duties that are too tedious, less interesting or highly stressful for people. Robots do not fatigue, do not suffer repetitive strain injuries nor do they get bored working a production line.

Robots also make the sort of high added value solutions possible for which Finnish companies are known. Producing such solutions takes sufficient intellectual capital – robotics and machine vision solutions.

Robotics is almost irreplaceable for maintaining high-quality production with an aging population and no quick solutions available for the labour shortage. For example, welder and palletiser robots can immediately supplement workers, leaving people with more time to focus on more interesting and less stressful tasks.

Deeper collaboration with robots

Collaborative or co-working robots, cobots, are something to keep your eye on.

Compared to bulky industrial robots, cobots are affordable, nimble and easy to operate. They can be added without exhaustive programming knowledge or extensive safety arrangements in environments where standard process and tool safety measures are already in place.

It is now less of a rare sight to find a robot alongside a human in quality control or assembly work. The primary use of cobots is assisting humans, which creates new opportunities in other sectors. In future, we can expect cobots to create opportunities for SMEs in particular.

As a rule, cobots are designed to work with humans, which means special attention to safety. For example, many cobot grippers and tool changers feature rounded edges to minimise cutting hazards in case of collision. The grip strength of mechatronic grippers can be limited to further protect occupational safety. Even so, safety instructions and common sense should always be on our mind in cobot applications as well.

Cobots are often the first step into robotics, but more advanced robots can satisfy even highly specialised needs. A good example of specialisation is high-mix, low volume production where production series include different variants and special quality requirements.

So far, the use of robotics for high-mix, low volume production has been challenging. The situation has improved considerably through the development of adaptive tools and advanced sensor and data communication technology. As the demand for specialised products grows, automation and digitised production can open new doors for better scheduling and higher grades of end product.

Sharper machine vision

The development of machine vision is closely tied to the future of robotics. Constant advances in artificial intelligence will improve machine vision through unparalleled learning ability.

One example of interesting machine vision applications is bin picking where pieces can be picked from large containers without any preparation. The picker can also correctly position the piece and place it on a conveyor, for example. In other words, the solution recognises the shape and handling requirements of different products, allowing for automated handling and inspection of even complex product ranges.

Technology has also improved in cameras and lighting, which can now readily handle applications that were previously seen as difficult. For example, improved machine vision can enhance the quality control of transparent, glossy and multiform products.

Machine vision is already an excellent tool for quality control, but artificial intelligence can sharpen it to the extreme. AI-enhanced machine vision systems offer tremendous precision for production monitoring, assembly and logistical tasks, for example. This is especially true for situations where many different products are handled instead of a single mass-produced article.

Looking to improve your business through machine vision and robotics? We provide a comprehensive selection of solutions for different industries – get in touch to discuss your needs.

• In Finland, we represent Wenglor machine vision solutions. For example, Wenglor makes 2D/3D profile sensors, 3D sensors, machine vision cameras, smart cameras and sensors, barcode readers, lighting components, and machine vision controllers and software.
• We have a comprehensive selection of components and tools for robots.
  • For example: grippers, tool changers, collision protection, positioning compensation, rotating connectors and seventh axis components.

Finally, we should take a wider view of the role of robotics in our future, which we can do through the global crises mentioned at the start. In recent years, the world has shown how unstable things may become. For example, the need to reduce dependency on China means the reorganisation of production and logistics chains.

Robotics has no answers to global conflicts, but it does allow us to bring production closer to consumers without significant increases in labour costs. This reduces our dependence on international supply chains and the uncertainty they introduce.