Collaborative Robotics:
Read the full Collaborative Robotics eBook:
By Grant Imahara
As a child, I was always mesmerized by robots. Whether it was on TV, in the movies, or in comic books, if it had
robots, I was all in. Robots are cool—that’s pretty much a given. But why? What is it about robots that
fascinate us? Is it the look? Is it how they interact with us? Or is it what they can do for us?
In my adult career as a special effects technician, I was lucky enough to work on possibly the most famous robot of
all time—”R2-D2.” As an Astromech droid, R2 served as copilot, engineer, and companion to the
heroes in Star Wars. He is a vivid example of not only what robotics can do to assist humanity but also of the
possibilities of how we may interact with robots in the future.
Today in the real world, robots can be seen just about everywhere. Recently, drones were featured in the Super Bowl
halftime show as a robotic replacement for fireworks. At the 2018 Winter Olympics, robots were seen downhill skiing.
Firefighters and emergency personnel now use drones for reconnaissance in firefighting and search-and-rescue
operations. And a hotel in Japan even has a robotic concierge that greets guests.
In the industrial sector, robots are increasingly being used to improve productivity and precision in
manufacturing. These are just a few examples of how robotics will soon come to affect every aspect of our daily
lives.
Last year, the Empowering Innovation Together™ program presented by Mouser Electronics examined how smart
cities will shape our future. This year, Mouser is expanding this program to cover “Generation Robot,”
with an in-depth look at how robotics will serve, interact with, and augment humanity. I’ll be traveling the
globe to meet with the leading minds and innovative companies in the world of robotics. We’ll examine how
robots will integrate into the future of our society, and maybe along the way, we’ll get a better insight into
why robots are so cool.
This eBook explores how collaborative robots are transforming industrial workspaces. They’re not just doing
heavy lifting and repetitive tasks! Instead, they’re working side-by-side with humans, producing more than
either robots or humans could ever do alone.
Continue reading to discover the technologies that have converged to make robotic influence possible, the unique
engineering challenges robotics pose, and the solutions that are leading the way to the influential robots of the
future.
And just to be safe…I, for one, welcome our new robotic overlords (as long as they’re more R2-D2 in
nature as opposed to that of a Terminator).
Philippines
