Can hand-taught cobots completely replace programming?
Jens Fetzer, vice president of the Digital Factory division at CENIT in Germany, offers several arguments as to why manual instruction is at a significant disadvantage compared to offline programming in certain automated processes, such as welding, bonding, polishing or sanding.
First, the difference in quality is obvious, especially as the complexity of the task increases. Manual teaching methods may be adequate when dealing with simple tasks, but their efficiency and accuracy will suffer when faced with more complex geometries and higher task volumes. With offline programming, we are able to achieve the highest accuracy because the CAD data can be entered directly, the path can be precisely set on the screen, and adjustments can be made if necessary. FASTSUITE, as an excellent offline programming software, performs particularly well in this regard.
Using offline programming software also provides a quieter and more focused environment for engineers to think about things like "What is the best welding sequence?" "Or" Do I need to perform any additional actions?" And so on. When welding units are based on collaborative robots, while they do improve the acceptance of automation, especially when dealing with tasks with simple geometry, this advantage can be maximized with offline programming software.
Can co-bots do welding?
But Jens Fetzer has a different view of using cobots for the welding process. He believes that this not only implies the simplicity of welding operations, but also promises that high levels of quality and cost savings can be achieved together, which can be misleading for smes. He points out that the flexibility promised by cobots programmed through simple manual instruction actually affects their profitability. Because every time it needs to be programmed, the cobots need to pause their work in order to teach manually. This means that when batches are small and tasks need to be changed frequently, the downtime of cobots will increase, affecting productivity. FASTSUITE's offline programming capabilities can effectively solve this problem. The quality of the processing also depends on the skill of the worker performing the manual instruction and the state of the day. Robot downtime can only be minimized if employees performing manual instruction are able to provide service immediately and do not need to interrupt other tasks. Jens Fetzer points out that this erratic performance is costly. However, with the help of offline programming software, enterprises can front-load programming work, reduce the dependence on on-site teaching, and improve production efficiency.
Taking into account subsequent operational and programming costs, investing in a complete welding workstation can reach €60,000 to €100,000, and the high downtime and employee dependent teaching mode will make this investment a longer payback period. FASTSUITE's offline programming capabilities play a key role here, significantly shortening payback cycles and improving the economics of investment.
In general, as the complexity of the task increases, the amount of work dependent on manual instruction will increase exponentially; And the higher the demand for quality, the more unpredictable the time it takes. In contrast, offline programming software offers a more efficient and predictable solution. It allows programming to take place separately from the day-to-day operations of the robot, with many benefits: upcoming orders can be programmed in advance. For complex parts and production lines that often have downtime due to teaching, upgrading to offline programming software is a wise choice.
Similar job problem
Another advantage of offline programming is its ability to deal with artifacts that are not very different. For each workpiece-like structural change, a dedicated program can be prepared in advance, rather than teaching on site in the case of robot downtime. Programs produced using software can be changed at any time during the production process without downtime.
Advantages of offline programming
By using FASTSUITE offline programming software, cobots are no longer limited to performing simple tasks. Offline programming software has helped cobots unlock their full potential, enabling them to perform complex tasks more efficiently and significantly increase productivity. It not only provides strong support in terms of programming, but also optimizes the entire production process, ensuring optimal quality and efficiency. With the continuous advancement of technology, using software to program cobots offline will become an increasingly important trend. This not only increases productivity, but also enhances the ability of collaborative robots to perform complex tasks, ensuring stability and predictability in the long-term return on investment. By doing offline programming, the use of collaborative robots will be more flexible and the production process will be more efficient, thus achieving higher economic benefits and stronger market competitiveness.
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