What makes a robot collaborative
- Force and speed limits that keep contact below injury thresholds
- Rounded, padded or low-mass arms
- Sensors that slow or stop the arm when a person comes close
- A risk assessment for the whole cell, not only the arm
Good first tasks
- Machine tending: loading and unloading a CNC or press
- Palletizing light cases at the end of a line
- Screwdriving and dispensing on a bench
- Pick-and-place where a person still does the judgment step
Questions to ask before buying
Who loads the parts, and where do they stand? What happens when the gripper drops one? Who changes the program when the product changes? A cobot that only its installer can reprogram is a fixed machine with extra steps.