尽管预测，由于持续的劳动力短缺，仓库工人的工资将比大流行前的工资增长四倍，但制造业和配送中心设施“仍然很难雇用和保留一线工人”，”乔·坎贝尔（Joe Campbell）应用程序开发高级经理Universal Robots.
As a result, more companies are filling the void with robots—and collaborative robots (cobots) in particular. Highlighting how cobots are being used to handle tasks traditionally performed by humans, Universal Robots showcased an intelligent palletizing operation with its partnerMujin Corp.The mixed-case robotic palletizing system with intelligent buffer and re-sequencing capability (see the accompanying video) shows how intelligent robotics systems can perform challenging picking-and-packing tasks without the need for advanced programming.
TheseMujin controller-powered palletizing systems enable the cobot to buffer and re-sequence cases without the need for upstream material handling equipment, eliminating the need for manual palletizing operations. Mujin says its controller combines 3D perception, real-time motion planning, and dexterous grasping and can work with any robot arm. The Mujin Machine Intelligence used in the controller reportedly enables robots to make effective decisions in real time by quickly observing an object and the surrounding environment, then determining the best course of action to complete the task.
In a demo of the Mujin system at Modex 2022, the palletizer featured Universal Robots’ UR16e model with a 16 kg/35.3 lbs. payload, and an integrated FXCB gripper fromSchmalz.
“Robots are becoming more intelligent, and new applications such as mixed-case palletizing are now possible,” said Ross Diankov, co-founder and chief technology officer at Mujin. “With Mujin solutions, all warehouses need to do is send the boxes directly to the robots, and they’ll re-sequence them before placing them on the pallet.”
In the accompanying video above, Diankov explains the combined Mujin and Universal Robots intelligent palletizing system and the how the system’s digital twin tracks items being picked and placed as well as potential impacts in the surrounding environment.
