Industrial Cobot Offers Speed, Accuracy, Safety

ABB’s Swifti CRB 1300 industrial collaborative robot (cobot) is said to bridge the gap between industrial and collaborative robots. Combining speed and accuracy with expanded load handling capability of up to 11kg, the Swifti CRB 1300 can be used in a variety of production and product handling applications — from machine tending and palletizing to pick-and-place and screwdriving.

“Our customers are looking to robotic automation to make their processes more flexible, efficient and resilient, helping to counter labor shortages by enabling their employees to perform more value-added work,” says Andrea Cassoni, managing director for global general industry robotics at ABB. “The latest addition to our Swifti family is a highly accurate, high payload cobot that’s up to six times faster than other robots in its class. This means it can be used by both SMEs and large manufacturers looking for collaborative automated solutions to achieve new levels of flexibility and productivity.”

Featuring a high-quality design, backed by expert support, the company says the cobot incorporates several features that can improve production efficiency by up to 44% compared to other cobots in its class. In a typical palletizing application, Swifti’s speed and performance enable it to handle up to 13 boxes per minute compared to the nine boxes possible with other cobots in its class. 

Powered by ABB’s OmniCore C90XT controller, the Swifti CRB 1300 is up to five times more precise than any cobot in its class, making it well suited for tasks requiring consistent accuracy and repeatability. Combined with a top speed of 6.2 m/sec., payload options from 7 kg to 11 kg and reaches from 0.9 m to 1.4 m, this enables the cobot to perform a range of higher payload tasks, including screwdriving, assembly, pick-and-place and palletizing. With protection against dust and moisture (up to IP67), it can also be used in demanding environments, making it well suited for machine-tending applications. 

The Swifti CRB 1300 prioritizes operator safety with a safety laser scanner integrated with ABB’s SafeMove collaborative safety software. The technologies enable safe collaboration to be achieved without the space and cost associated with installing protective fencing or other physical barriers. 

If the laser scanner detects a worker within the cobot’s operating area, ABB’s SafeMove software will automatically slow the robot or stop it completely. As the worker moves away, movement will be restored, returning to full speed for full productivity only once the working area is completely clear. As a further protective measure, a built-in interaction status light provides a visual indication of the cobot’s status when a worker is within the workspace area. It is said integrating the scanner and software is simple, with SafeMove’s software add-ins enabling workers to quickly set up a safe working zone and other safety features using a handheld FlexPendant operating unit. 

The same simplicity applies to programming the cobot. Users can set up the cobot by either physically guiding it through a process (lead-through programming) or through ABB’s Wizard Easy Programming software. Based on simple graphical blocks, Wizard Easy Programming makes programming accessible for nonspecialists in robotics.