ABB announced a new, intelligent design approach to its robotic solution portfolio, which will provide customers more flexibility and better return on investment in automation. The new approach will allow the portfolio to be easily tailored to a wider range of needs, both for today’s dynamic markets and future opportunities.
The single arm YuMi robot, ABB’s lightest and most agile collaborative robot.
“The needs of our customers in all industries are changing and will continue to change. ABB is helping them prepare for the future,” said Sami Atiya, President of Robotics and Motion for ABB. “Mass customization is no longer a trend – it is the ‘new normal’ for many sectors and requires a higher level of flexibility that we are helping our customers to meet.”
ABB’s first offerings under this groundbreaking approach include a new single-arm YuMi robot and OmniCore™, an entirely new robot controller family. Both are designed to increase manufacturing flexibility through human robot collaboration while unlocking the full potential of the digital factory. The ABB Ability™offering and Connected Services are both built into the new controller, as well as ABB’s SafeMove2 safety software solution, which can convert any connected industrial robot into a collaborative one.
ABB SafeMove2 collaborative software and advanced vision systems make it possible to automate the task of inserting a car door into its hinges while the car body and door continue moving through the factory.
ABB continues to build on its leadership in digital with a new virtual meeting tool for its best-in-class RobotStudio® virtual commissioning and simulation software and new Condition Monitoring and Diagnostics (CMD) application preview for its ABB Ability™ Connected Services. The CMD uses a machine learning-based advanced algorithm to detect behavioral anomalies in large robot populations and provide predictive maintenance and optimization guidance.
Per Vegard Nerseth, Managing Director of Robotics for ABB, added “Our customers are increasingly interested in exploring the potential of collaborative automation and digital solutions to improve their flexibility and performance. At the same time, they increasingly need purposeful, tailored solutions for unique applications. We are transforming our portfolio to meet this need today, and – more importantly – for tomorrow. Today we witness the dawn of a new era in robotics.”
