Human–Robot Control

Industry 4.0 is changing the way manufacturing industry operates. Increasingly more manufacturers are leveraging advanced technologies such as robotics and automation systems to improve productivity and efficiency. As a result, human–machine interfaces (HMIs) are becoming more important in their role in the digital connectedness of humans and machines. However, using the wrong HMI can lengthen development times and increase implementation costs.

Recently, KUKA Robotics was custom-developing an automated production management system for automotive transmission factory in Shanghai, China. The company previously used a RISC (reduced instruction set computing) -based computer as the HMI. Since the functionality of this computer is too simple and because the system is difficult to customize, KUKA required an x86-based industrial panel PC to provide richer features for factory users.

Advantech provides a total solution that met KUKA Robotics' needs. 

To facilitate maintenance and management, the new computer was to be utilized in the production lines to control the low-level robots as well as the upper-level MES (manufacturing execution system) ; it also had to be suitable for monitoring assembly line operations and for managing product reworks.

• [Efficiency Improvement - R&D]
  This total solution has helped the KUKA's developers to easily complete system development, thus meeting their client's requirements.