Robots are a trending topic for manufactures, assemblers, and distributors around the world because companies are constantly looking for ways to automate, decrease labor costs, and increase competitiveness while using robots is one of the best ways.
Robots are considered better because they are fast, powerful, and have a wide range of motion. This makes them a versatile tool in the field of automation. And with the rapid growth of technology, robots are becoming more affordable and accessible, and industries are becoming more and more automated.
At the same time, the world advances in order to keep up with Industry 4.0 standards, so it is important to understand the potential benefits and responsibilities of robotic systems.
Therefore, when a buyer who is implementing an automation solution wants to buy a robot, he must consider a lot of things. This article discusses some of those factors in detail.
Contents
Factors to Consider While Buying a Robot
Technology is growing rapidly. Industries are becoming more and more automated. Robots are becoming more affordable.
For every company looking to automate their work, it is necessary to decide and calculate various features before deploying a robot. Any miscalculation can raise many safety and productivity issues.
In order to realize the full potential of robots and make them work according to expectations, the following important factors must be considered while buying a robot:
1.The Reasons For Buying Robot
You need to figure out why you want to buy a robot, whether it is to save costs or to improve efficiency. It’s obvious that the robot is fast, precise, and accurate. They will not get tired of doing tedious tasks. They don’t take leaves, and they never complain about fatigue.
It can improve the existing work of workers and can perform repetitive tasks in a longer period. This gives them an advantage over humans and helps workers to indulge in mental work rather than physical work, which is more helpful for companies to innovate.
Therefore, thinking clearly about your goals before acting is very important, because you could figure out what kind of formula you will use in advance
2.Deploying Cost
Robotic solutions come with a heavy cost. While buying a robot, it is essential that the cost of deploying the robot and the cost of after deployment support is taken into consideration against the reduction in the overall cost of human processes in the industries.
The return on investment is another factor that should be taken note of. It is important to note that, the cheaper the overall robot cost, the quicker would be the return on investment.
3.Application and Use
It is important to have a clear idea about the use and functioning of a robot before buying it. The buyer should know what process they are going to automate and what are their requirements.
In terms of its application, there are several things to consider before choosing the robot. Following are some important automation factors:
Payload: It is the amount of weight that a robot can lift. Robots must be chosen to meet the payload requirements of the buyer’s industrial process.
Cycle Time: The total time taken to produce one unit of product on the production line. For the robot to work according to expectations, this time should be calculated before buying a robot.
Precision: The level of refinement required in the industrial process. This should be calculated in advance so as to decide the correct parts and specifications of the robot.
4.External Softwares and Programming Interface
The robot system can be as simple as an independent pick/place unit or as complex as a fully integrated system. It selects tools, paths, routines, and calculates all target positions based on the data provided by the monitoring system.
Modern robots come with sturdy and well-designed software. These softwares are managed and monitored by humans. We can 9integrate robots with several other technologies and sensors to make them aware of their surroundings.
Selecting and choosing these sensors is an important job. The buyer must be aware of all the sub-processes happening in the industry. This will help them assess what all external data is required to make all robots function collaboratively. It is necessary to choose compatible components to make the process error-free.
In order to further eliminate errors, the system must be made aware of the work environment with the use of software templates, or codes in attachments. Robust algorithms must handle and guide the operator through the process of recovering from any uncertainty or error without the risk of compromising safety.
A well-designed robot system must be maintenance-free. Well-structured programming with references to the real labeled input and output components further reduces the time needed to restore a troubled system to operation.
5.Safety Features
Robots have everything they need to do their jobs. They are fast, precise, powerful, and very quiet. But, they also have a lot of potential to cause serious damage and injury. To avoid such accidents, the buyer must be clear about the safety features of the robot required to adapt to their workplace.
These can be software features like data monitoring, threat prediction algorithms, or hardware features like waterproof components, shock bearing capabilities. Knowledge about the kind of work and risks involved in performing is essential for the selection of correct safety features.
6.Equipment Selection and Compatibility
Once the basic requirements of the process have been determined, consider the peripheral components that may be required. These include parts feeders, vision, end-of-arm tools, safety equipment, and bases.
In terms of operation, robots from different manufacturers seem to have similar functions. Researching more into their specifications and equipment reveals huge differences in hardware, safety functions, operator interfaces, and programming methods.
It is necessary to check whether these components are compatible with the process or not. For example, robotic arm components offered by EVS will be compatible with the components from the same company.
Not only the equipment but their manufacturer also matter. Once deployed, robots are often critical to meeting production needs. Although they are very reliable, they need support at some point.
Hence, it is important to take care of maintenance support from their manufacturers. A lot of factors like equipment maintenance cost and quality and speed of service must be considered while selecting a manufacturer.
Conclusion
Buying a robot is not a difficult task if the buyer is aware of the latest technologies and work processes carried out in the industry. Nowadays, several manufacturers are providing consulting services for implementing robotic solutions that suit best the customer’s requirements.
If the above factors could be taken into account, one can easily buy a suitable robot for their industry.