The term “robot” is a Czech word that was first used around the 1920s. But it would take about 40 more years, in the 1960s for the robots to get utilized into the manufacturing systems. Scientifically, the term robot means “an automatically controlled, reprogrammable, multipurpose manipulator, programmable in three or more axes, which can be mobile or fixed for use in industrial automation application” (ISO 8373:2012).
The main advantage of using industrial robots is that they are able to complete tasks faster and more efficiently compared to humans. You will also enjoy higher quality, higher profitability, and longer working hours. But to enjoy all of these benefits and others, you need to start by installing the right industrial robots. Here are the main types of industrial robots that you can use in your industrial system:
Cartesian Robots
These robots are designed to work on three linear axes utilizing the Cartesian coordinate model (X, Y and Z). This implies that they need three sliding joints to be able to move up/down and in/out. The robots are the commonest in most industrial applications. Good examples of applications that use Cartesian robots include 3D printing and CNC machines.
SCARA Robots
SCARA (Selective Compliance Articulated Robot Arm) come with two rotary joints for compliance in a plane. These robots are mainly used in manufacturing assembly applications.
Articulated Robots
These are advanced forms of industrial robots that use up to ten joints. They are designed to operate on bases with twisting joints. Well, the robots are designed to resemble a human arm and are common in many packaging and painting. They are also very common in industrial metal casting and mining operations.
Delta Robots
If you are in food processing, electronics, and pharmaceuticals, the delta robots will be the most ideal. They use spider-like arms that are fitted to a common base. The design is aimed to help with fast picking and placement applications because of high speed.
Cylinder Robots
If you want to use robotics but have space limitations, consider going for cylindrical robots. The robots are compact and have at least two joints, one for rotational movement and another for linear motion. Some common applications that use cylindrical robots include die-casting and machine loading/unloading.
Although these are the common types of robots used in industrial applications, it is important to appreciate that their designs have changed so much over time. Unlike the initial designs when the focus of robots was mainly to help move materials, the new designs are now integrated using the internet of things (IoT) and are used for gathering data. This makes them easy to use, more productive, and highly reliable for industrial automation. Remember that whether you are in mining industrial operations as brought out here, or other industries, you need to select the right robot depending on your operations.
