In addition to offering flexibility and versatility in movement paths, industrial robots have been designed to collaborate with operators in dangerous and routine tasks. The robots were created to carry out many automated tasks and adapt to different changes for our safety. FANUC, one of the leaders in automation, has invested a lot of energy and money to produce models which protect our safety and promote security. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of its features.
Four Measures of Safety
To ensure that people do not suffer unacceptable risks when working with robotic equipment, Fanuc recommends four measures that can be used to reduce risk. These are:
- Upon detecting that someone is entering the collaborative work area, the robot must stop. Humans can guide robots manually if there is a need.
- Other safety requirements include safe speed limit control and local emergency stop.
- The robot must maintain a certain distance from the person and work at a specific speed. This factor requires a careful risk assessment, and the safety distance must be considered.
- A safety-related control system must monitor the power and strength of the robot actuators to ensure they are within the range determined by the risk assessment.
Dual Check Safety (DCS)
Fanuc integrates into the R-30iA controllers a software function that uses dual inputs and dual CPUs to eliminate the need for safety relays called Dual Check Safety (DCS). The system provides the following benefits:
- Reduces system cost and installation time while improving robot system reliability
- No additional security hardware required as it uses the dual CPU already built into the R-30iA controller
- All configurations are done through the programming console and no external PC is required.
- High safety can be achieved (emergency stop and shutdown have CAT 4 safety and all other functions have CAT 3 safety)
Last Thoughts
As robots become more sophisticated and are used in heavy-duty process fields, the equipment used to monitor the robot’s environment (such as vision and force sensors) enables the robot to see and feel the surrounding environment. Working with such robots makes our jobs easier. Therefore, it’s best to invest in one. If you’re looking to buy a robot on sale, you should contact us. From used to new robots, we have it all. So drop us a message, and we’ll get back to you.