Manufacturing processes similar to sanding, sharpening, blasting, grinding, coating, and portray are utilized in all kinds of industries. These manufacturing duties are ergonomically difficult and pose vital well being dangers for people (please see picture above).
There may be appreciable curiosity in utilizing robots to automate these operations. When components are massive, the robotic arm must be repositioned round to make sure that the whole half floor may be coated.
Individuals usually ask if humanoids can be a very good choice to carry out manufacturing operations on massive components. Allow us to consider totally different humanoid options and study their utility in manufacturing course of operations.
Legs: Legs should not environment friendly for locomotion on flat surfaces discovered on manufacturing facility flooring. Furthermore, we frequently have to tether the robotic to supply energy for processing instruments (e.g., a grinding disk) utilized in manufacturing purposes. If a legged platform must be tethered, then it doesn’t provide a lot flexibility. So, legs are removed from optimum technique of locomotion on the manufacturing facility ground.
Fastened rails mounted on the ground or cellular base are a greater various for transporting robotic arms in processing purposes. Legs add complexity, improve security danger with out providing any worth. Due to this fact, we don’t want legs on manufacturing facility flooring for manufacturing operations.
Submit your session concept for the 2026 RoboBusinessMulti-Fingered Fingers: Fingers with a number of fingers provide flexibility and dexterity in object manipulation. Nevertheless, palms are costly. Many manufacturing processes similar to sanding, grinding, blasting, coating, screw-driving concentrate on device manipulation. Holding a floor ending device with a multi-fingered hand could not present a powerful grasp wanted to carry out the method at a excessive velocity.
So, we’re higher off instantly connecting the device to the arm through an easier connector and decrease {hardware} price by eradicating advanced palms.
Heads: The top mounted on a humanoid is small, so cameras should be positioned shut to one another within the head. If we would like good protection and accuracy, then we have to unfold cameras (and different sensors) within the cell. Usually sensors mounted on the arm near the device may be rather more efficient. Furthermore, cameras may be positioned within the cell above half.
So, heads don’t provide a lot worth in manufacturing purposes.
Twin Arms: Twin arms are very helpful in processing massive components. If we need to improve protection and end the half shortly, then we have to place arms sufficiently distant from one another to attenuate collision dangers with every and maximize the workspace. This can be a totally different arm placement configuration from what’s seen on humanoids. The robotic configuration that works nicely on a floor ending utility is depicted within the picture beneath:
It makes use of twin arms. It makes use of a mobility resolution to reposition arms. It makes use of imaginative and prescient to know the scene. Nevertheless, part configuration used right here may be very totally different from the part configuration in humanoids. Individuals usually argue that humanoids allow economies of scale. The configuration proven above options normal goal robotic arms, rails, cameras, and power sensors. A lot of the {hardware} elements on this workcell profit from the financial system of scale. Due to this fact, humanoids should not wanted to leverage economies of scale in manufacturing purposes.
Most manufacturing purposes intention to scale back cycle time to enhance throughput. So, utilizing general-purpose industrial robots that transcend human constraints is commonly a lovely possibility.
These robots can function 4 to five occasions sooner than human speeds and may apply considerably greater forces. They’re already confirmed to work reliably in actually demanding purposes. So constructing manufacturing workcells by inserting industrial robotic arms in the correct configurations appears to be a profitable resolution in most manufacturing purposes. Due to this fact, humanoids should not prone to be a profitable resolution in manufacturing purposes the place precision, efficiency, and velocity are the primary determination standards.
Concerning the creator
Dr. Satyandra Ok. Gupta is co-Founder and chief Scientist at GrayMatter Robotics. He additionally holds Smith Worldwide Professorship on the Viterbi College of Engineering on the College of Southern California and serves because the founding Director of the Middle for Superior Manufacturing. His analysis pursuits are Bodily AI and human-centered automation. He has revealed greater than 5 hundred technical articles in journals, convention proceedings, and edited books. He additionally holds twenty eight US patents.
He’s a fellow of the American Affiliation for the Development of Science (AAAS), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Nationwide Academy of Inventors (NAI), Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME), and Stable Modeling Affiliation (SMA). He at present serves as a member of the Technical Advisory Committee for Superior Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Institute and a member of Affiliation for Advancing Automation (A3) Robotics Expertise Technique Board.
He has obtained quite a few honors and awards for his scholarly contributions, together with a Presidential Early Profession Award for Scientists and Engineers in 2001 from President Bush, Lifetime Achievement Award from ASME Computer systems and Data in Engineering Division in 2024, Eli Whitney Productiveness Award in 2025, and ASME William T. Ennor Manufacturing Expertise Award in 2025.
The submit Evaluating humanoids for floor ending purposes appeared first on The Robotic Report.
