Kassow Robots’ new cobots designed for mobile manipulation

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Kassow Robots has introduced a new line of compact collaborative robot arms (cobots) designed to integrate with mobile robots. The new Edge Edition cobots are smaller, fully integrated manipulators designed for mobile manipulation applications.

The new cobots feature a direct DC connection from battery power, enabling them to operate while mounted to a mobile robot. They offer remote power on/off control, allowing for control from the mobile robot controllers or a PLC. The cobots can run in automatic mode without a teach pendant, streamlining operations. The cobots have a standard footprint of 160x200mm (6.2″x7.9″) ensuring compatibility with various applications.

Kassow Robots’ cobots are equipped with sensors that detect overload, ensuring safe operation in shared workspaces. This eliminates the need for special safety measures, expanding the range of applications to include repetitive, dangerous, and dirty tasks. However, a thorough risk assessment must be conducted before deploying the cobots in any environment.

The cobots are also modular, leveraging Kassow Robots’ existing partner ecosystem that enables integration of various peripherals, grippers, vision systems, or function extensions.

Bosch Rexroth acquired a majority stake in Kassow Robots in March 2022 for an undisclosed amount. Kassow Robots exited stealth mode at Automatica 2018. It was co-founded in 2014 by Kristian Kassow, former co-founder of Universal Robots, which is the leading developer of cobots. Founded in 2005 by Kassow, Esben Østergaard and Kasper Støy, Universal Robots was acquired 10 years later by Teradyne for $285 million.

Kristian Kassow provides more insights about the Edge Edition cobots in the Q&A below.

Why did you develop the Edge Edition?

Kristian Kassow: Our goal has always been to make it as easy as possible for our customers to integrate cobots into their production, with an explicit focus on SMEs. Our Edge Edition offers multiple advantages here: it’s designed for industrial use, offers a high level of maneuverability thanks to its 7 axes, and delivers unique compactness. It also has a small footprint of just 160 x 200 millimeters. That is because we have miniaturized the controller to just 10 percent of the original size and integrated it into the robot base. Another benefit worth mentioning is that the Edge Edition can be easily connected to any DC power supply, such as the battery of a mobile robot.

Kassow Robots’ new Edge Edition collaborative robot arm lineup. | Credit: Kassow Robots

What customer groups are you targeting with the Edge Edition?

Kassow: Lots of them, all industries with intralogistics tasks at their production sites can benefit from our Edge Edition. The Edge Edition offers the additional benefit of being a multifunctional cobot, allowing users to switch between tasks seamlessly. This includes the ability to use it for the production of Product A, followed by a quality check, and then for palletizing.

The Edge Edition comes into play and shows off its advantages when a cobot becomes an efficient assistant to mobile robots. We believe that mobile applications will be the primary use for the Edge Edition. This means using cobots in combination with an AMR or AGV.

Can you tell us more about using a cobot as a mobile manipulator?

Kassow: One way in which the cobot can be made mobile is by moving the lightweight cobot installation to a new location and programming it for a new application. The programming of a cobot is much easier than in the case of a traditional industrial robot. Another way to make the most of mobility is to use it for the same tasks that come up at various locations during the production process. Let me give you an example. A combination of an AGV/ AMR and a cobot can take over the task to take care of the loading of boxes that will be used for packaging.

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Why does the Edge Edition contribute to an easy integration of AGV/AMR-cobot solutions?

Kassow: The Edge Edition saves space because the robot arm and controller form a compact unit that can be installed quickly. In addition, as mentioned earlier, the direct current (DC) connection on all Edge Edition cobots satisfies all the requirements for connecting a cobot directly to the battery of an AGV or AMR. At the end of the day, we want to make it easier for our customers to integrate cobots into mobile solutions. A look at today’s AGVs and AMRs quickly reveals just how little space they offer. Robot controllers are mostly bulky, making it harder to automate tasks. Our Edge Edition cobots feature a slim base. We help system integrators and end customers simplify the implementation of these AGV/AMR & cobot solutions.

The controller has been integrated into the base of the 7-axis cobots. | Credit: Kassow Robotics