When you can’t socially distance, use a robot

Vishaka Upreti | 15 April 2021

Social distancing is the phrase of 2020 and what’s interesting is that the phrase can have both negative and positive connotations, depending on the context. igus® over the years has grown relationships with other companies, working in collaboration with them to support products that combine with igus products.  One of the strongest relationships is with Universal Robots, a company that strives to strengthen the way in which workforces in various sectors operate in the UK and across Europe, by integrating robots with humans.

Supporting such companies with igus® triflex®, a specially designed robotic energy chain, allows the UR Robots to be “dressed” in the best cable management system on the market.

In true igus fashion we also have a large range of triflex energy chains to suit a variety of cobots and robots including Kuka, Fanuc and ABB.

With the changing times, there is a need for companies to restrict the number of people they can have in the workplace.  We have seen a rise in companies investing in automating operations within production lines, mixing humans and robots.

You do not have to worry about social distancing measures with robots.

Implementing more robots onto the market, combined with igus triflex energy chain was an easy transition. It has enabled companies to have human workers separated by robots to ensure that social distancing is implemented with a minimal amount of upheaval. The advantage of this is that companies can continue to operate at full capacity, producing the maximum workload, but with some staff members still on furlough or being utilised in different departments.

Another advantage is that production can in theory run 24 hours a day, and with continuous running it is imperative that protecting the cables within the demanding multi-axis robot is high on the list of priorities.

igus triflex® is used to dress robots all over the world but surprisingly, now is the time to start automating production lines in collaboration with humans. Thanks to the high tensile force absorption and high flexibility, the freedom of movement that the triflex energy chain offers, copes exceptionally well with complicated motions, especially in the vertical axes.

Another key reason that triflex is a popular choice, is the ease of assembly once the robot is operational. If a cable needs replacing, there is no excessive downtime, just a matter of switching out the cable, putting a new one in and ensuring it is secure. igus has dedicated engineers to help show customers how to assemble and disassemble the chain on the robots and working with partnerships such as the universal robot, they too can show customers the ease of using the triflex system when demonstrating their robots.

Times are changing and there is an increased necessity for humans to work in collaboration with robots. As with all igus products, having the ability to determine the lifetime of the energy chains and cables used with these robots, ensures that the customer is confident in the ability of the entire workforce, both humans and robots, in a safe and socially distanced environment.