Canadian Occupational Safety

manufacturer's site to learn how to operate the robot, the con- trollers and teaching pendants. "They're learning how to program the robots, how to recover the robot if there's any kind of abnormality and basically they go through the paces and they have mock production applications that they have them teach the robot," says Smith. Followup training is put in place at Honda whenever there is a change in the robot's technology or design. Certain robots require more education and training for work- ers than others. For example, one of Honda's newest robots, which has a 900 kilogram capacity, lifts up the welded body of a CR-V and transfers it to another line. If a worker has to enter the cell to teach the robot, it could be dangerous. "Just because of the sheer size of them and the potential hazard, we defi nitely go over that with our teachers because we have to identify safe areas in the cell for them to teach in the event something happens, where the body fell or anything else, so they're always out of the line of fi re," says Smith. The CSA standard comes with an annex that includes a laundry list of all training required when there are robots in the workplace. Some examples include: • general workplace safety procedures • capabilities of safeguarding devices • response to abnormal/unex- pected events • hazards encountered during teaching • hazards related to each task • emergency procedures • hazards involved in maintenance procedures on live robots. COLLABORATIVE ROBOTS Sometimes workers need to interact with the robots to get the job done. There are four types of collaborative robots: • Safety-rated monitored stop: This robot is powered up but stops when a human is in the collaborative work space. The robot can resume automatic operation when the human leaves. "Sometimes you will have a situation where the robot does 90 per cent of the work on its own behind fencing… and then it comes over to an area and presents whatever it's got in its gripper to an operator and it stops and is held — kind of like when you tell a German Sheppard don't move for this dog biscuit — it's held but in a safe way that's approved by applicable standards," says McLaughlin. • Speed and separation monitoring: This robot needs to be programmed to maintain a determined speed and separation distance from the operator. For example, as the worker comes closer to the robot, it slows down and as the worker moves away, it speeds up again. • Hand guiding: This occurs when the operator is using a device to physically move the robot for the collaborative portion of the task. For example, a hand-guiding collaborative operation can be used for installing automotive seats with a high-payload robot. • Power and force limiting robots. This type of robot has limits on the amount of power and force being exerted and can work alongside an operator. Power and force limiting is the type of collaborative robot that is growing in popularity and is similar to the mental image most people have of a robot — small, lightweight and more human-like. The new ISO/TS 15066 Robots and robotic devices – Collaborative robots document is due out any day now and is expected to outline weight, force and other specifi cations for these types of robots. They are mainly used for "pick and place" applications, so bringing parts from one area to another or feeding a machine, says Jean-Philippe Jobin, chief technical offi cer at Robotiq. "It is possible to have workers working alongside the robots. Either the robot and the human are working on the same task or they are each doing their own task, but they are alongside without any fences," he says. At the BMW manufacturing plant in Spartanburg, S.C., employees work side-by-side lightweight robots that apply seal- ant to car doors. When the robots were fi rst introduced, the workers "breathed a sigh of relief," says BMW. "To install the door sealing cover, the associate placed the cover to the door and then used a tool to apply force in order to create a tight seal. Needless to say, this put strain on the wrist and hand of the associates. So, when the innovative robot took on the task, workers were happy to leave it to the machine," the company says on its website. BMW is looking at introducing collaborative robots for install- ing windscreens, lifting heavy body parts and applying adhesives. There are many safety concerns with these types of robots, how- ever, such as contact between the robot and humans, says Jobin. "Depending on the shape of the robot, if it has sharp edges, for certain force, the injury would be higher," he says. "From the manufacturer-of-robot side, it's important for them to develop and put on the market robots that have round edges, instead of sharp edges, to minimize injuries." Some of these robots have padding HAND-IN-GRIPPER facturing to get out from behind the fence and human counterparts February/March 2016 15 PHOTO: KUKA ROBOTICS CANADA

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