Purchasing a robot arm with its controller and associated software to handle production or assembly tasks is just the first step in creating a robotic application. Another critical step involves the addition of technologies such as end-of-arm tooling that enable the robot to pick and place objects, weld materials or palletize boxes of goods.
This critical second step in building a robot application can present an array of integration issues to ensure that the product chosen will work with the robot arm of your choice. To lessen the complexity involved in this step, robot arm manufacturers work to create an ecosystem of partners whose products are designed to work seamlessly with their robots.
One robotic company that has built a particularly large ecosystem of parts and partners is Universal Robots. The company recently announced that its UR+ ecosystem now features more than 500 products.
The UR ecosystem offers products ranging from basic grippers to full systems for applications ranging from palletizing to welding. According to Universal Robots, “the development of full solutions has been a clear trend in recent years with an increasing focus within the ecosystem on offering customers turnkey solutions to fit the most common automation needs.”
Beyond these core tooling and systems products, Universal Robots’ ecosystem also features systems based on AI (artificial intelligence) technology.
“Our ecosystem is growing faster than ever and with physical AI as the new locomotive in robotics, we will continue to see new and groundbreaking innovations being added to our ecosystem at a high pace,” said Kim Povlsen, president of Universal Robots. “For UR, it’s all about providing choice to our customers through easy-to-use technology and, together with our partners, constantly pushing the boundaries of what can be automated and how simple it can be done."
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