MACHINE BUILDING, FRAMEWORKS & SAFETY FEATURE
servo grippers, dual suction cups and vision, although customisation can be carried out to meet the demands of the task. In fact one employee at the ABB facility in Milton Keynes has 3D printed a set of gripper fingers for his robot. On top of this, YuMi features a
COULD YOUR NEXT co-worker be a robot?
Following years of research and development, ABB has built YuMi, a dual-arm robot designed to safely work side-by-side with humans. Rachael Morling reports
Y
ou might not get much in the way of conversation while you’re working, but
the introduction of a new generation of robots that operate safely and efficiently alongside you might be the next step to maximising productivity in the workplace. According to ABB, ‘collaborative robots’ or cobots as they’re also becoming known, will be able to bridge the gap between manual and automatic assembly. In fact collaboration allows for the automation of processes which still require humans and cannot be fully automated with the technology that is currently available. As a result, the company has built YuMi
(you and me), aimed initially at the 3C (computer, communication and consumer electronics) toys and watch-making industries. However, being capable of assisting in small parts assembly tasks, the robot is expected to open up new opportunities in other industrial sectors. It is, for instance, also suitable for use in camera-based inspection, parts-feeding, packaging and testing. YuMi is designed to replicate human
abilities – we have touch and motor control which enables us to precisely handle delicate objects. We can judge how much force to use so we don’t break components, we can see objects
and pick them up, we can handle different parts without pausing, and we have spatial awareness so can interact closely with co-workers.
INTRODUCING YUMI Similar in size to a human, YuMi has two arms – a lightweight yet rigid magnesium skeleton covered with a floating plastic casing wrapped in soft padding, which absorbs unexpected impacts. Its arms feature seven axes of movement, allowing the robot to have greater dexterity and precision inside a compact workspace. Despite weighing only 35kg, it has an integrated control system, internal cabling for input and output commands including air and digital, and works off standard electrical power. YuMi is also fast and precise – it can return to the same point in space over and over again to within 0.02mm accuracy and moves at a maximum speed velocity of 1500mm/sec. For safety, if it detects a collision with a co-worker, the robot will pause its motion within milliseconds, and can then be restarted quickly. To enable it to handle a wide range of different parts, the robot comes with flexible ‘hands’ which can be deployed in a variety of configurations – including
YuMi comes with flexible ‘hands’ which can be deployed in a variety of configurations – including servo grippers, dual suction cups and vision, although customisation can be carried out to meet the demands of the task
FlexFeeder system for parts delivery. This stores a large number of parts, ranging in size from 3-30mm in a bin. As picking parts from the bin is a complicated three-dimensional problem, FlexFeeder turns this into a two-dimensional picking operation by serving those parts from the bin in small numbers onto a flat surface, from which YuMi’s hand cameras can easily locate and then direct the grippers to pick the parts. The robot is also easy to programme – in fact ABB describes it more like ‘teaching’. Simply guide its arms and hands (using your own) through a series of movements, logging waypoints and gripper actions on a paired tablet running the app. As a result, fewer engineering resources are needed to accomplish very complicated tasks. If the tasks are more complicated, however, full access to traditional coding using ABB’s RAPID programming language is available if needed. According to ABB, for manufacturers
who employ YuMi, the benefits will be faster production, higher quality products, lower waste, greater efficiency and increased flexibility. “YuMi opens up great opportunities for
UK businesses. Task sharing between humans and robots provides scope for boosting UK productivity, and YuMi’s Lead Through Programming capability will enable SMEs and larger manufacturers alike to be responsive to quick changes in consumer demand,” commented Colin Dullaghan, product manager for YuMi.
A PICK AND PLACE SOLUTION Sony UK Technology is the first company to purchase YuMi. The company will be using it to pick and place circuit board parts, primarily for research and development in order to understand the benefits of collaborative robots. “The innovative design and forward-
thinking capabilities of YuMi will complement our culture of doing something better today than yesterday,” said Kevin Edwards, general manager and head of engineering for Sony UK Technology Centre. “We constantly strive to produce the highest quality products with the highest reliability and we pride ourselves on using the latest state of the art manufacturing techniques that enable us to respond quickly to customers’ needs.”
ABB
www.abb.com/products/robots
DESIGN SOLUTIONS | APRIL 2016 25
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