Conventional handling methods take more time and are prone to errors. In e-commerce the growing number of online orders with many product variants, sizes and dimensions have pushed for the need to find a more innovative approach. Therefore, the demand for cobots from industries like e-commerce, retail and FMCG is on the rise. Cobots can use Machine Vision to identify and pick products from shelves quickly and accurately and help achieve higher picks per hour and increase overall throughput.
In terms of material handling, a cobot can use Machine Learning to figure out how to grasp different packaging types from boxes, pouches, bottles to vacuum-sealed packages. It uses Machine Learning to devise the strategy to pick each item from the densely packed inventory using a versatile gripper.
Further, cobots help drive intelligent process automation to release workers from low end jobs, letting them focus on higher skill sets that require application. As costs for cobots decline and they require lower investments, they become easier to integrate into a system. This is the prime reason why cobots are being increasingly deployed not just in larger but as well as smaller facilities and warehouses.
The global industrial landscape is firmly on the path toward a robotics revolution, where the role of cobots is expected to increase. As digitization in industries become a reality, these smart machines will be a business imperative. Future shop floors and warehouses will become an efficient human-robot collaboration space for higher efficiency and optimization and contribute to the progress of the industrial ecosystem.

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