How to Improve OEE for Industrial Cobots

Collaborative robots (cobots) are a fast-growing segment in the industrial robotics market. Cobots are ideal solutions for work that is dull, dangerous or dirty, and they allow organizations to allocate higher-value tasks to human workers. Cobots can deploy almost anywhere and be operational in a matter of minutes for material handling, palletizing, machine tending and inspection applications. Cobots are achievable capital investments that can supplement chronic or intermittent labor shortfalls in manufacturing to deliver fast ROI.

OEE 

Cobots are experiencing the biggest growth in small and mid-sized organizations, many of which are new to the use of industrial robotics in their operations. This can pose challenges for power quality and overall equipment effectiveness (OEE):

  • Infrastructure: Many SMBs lack the electrical infrastructure required for reliable deployment of cobots and risk downtime and interference with the power supply to other operations. This can be especially true during teaching and operational modes.
  • Technical support: Many SMBs lack the manpower and expertise to monitor cobot power and diagnose and troubleshoot power issues. This added technical support time can offset what would otherwise be OEE gains made by the cobot installation.

Cobot Power Management

Integrating an uninterruptable power supply (UPS) system into a cobot application will ensure the equipment is receiving clean, reliable power. It will minimize or prevent lost programming, downtime, safety problems and operational errors.

UPS systems can provide:

  • Reliable Backup: Battery backup can add minutes or hours of runtime during power outages, allowing operators to save programming, complete tasks and gracefully shut down a cobot.
  • Automatic Voltage Regulation: Delivery of appropriate voltage levels extends the life of cobot system equipment.
  • Dynamic Management Capabilities: A UPS system can integrate with an IT network, allowing a cobot installation’s power to be monitored and managed from a network computer and helping diagnose and troubleshoot power problems faster.
Cobot Power Management System

Tripp Lite is partnering with Universal Robotics (UR), a leading cobot maker, to provide a comprehensive power quality management solution for cobot applications that includes:

  • Integrated PowerAlert® Software
  • Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS) System
  • Industrial Connectivity Products

Tripp Lite’s Cobot Power Management System minimizes power-related issues and eliminates guesswork when they do arise. It aids in safe operation and with an easy-to-use management platform that makes cobot operations more reliable and profitable.