The Delicate Challenge of Automating Food Handling
Soft Robotics in Food Handling: It has been a major problem in robotics to automate handling fragile food products. Food products’ different shapes, along with their fragile nature, are difficult for rigid and insensory traditional robotic grippers. Softness and attention cannot be handled easily by current traditional automation which makes this a challenge for fruits and baked products. As a result, companies are relying on their employees to complete tasks that need understanding and flexibility.
That’s where Ubiros enters the picture with its electrically powered soft grippers built for handling delicate items. Their technology seeks to link the use of robots with the gentle treatment necessary in the food industry. The grippers copy the smooth and detailed movements of our hands, so Ubiros offers a way to work both precisely and gently.
Ubiros’ Innovative Approach to Soft Gripping
The design of Ubiros’ Gentle series is patented and has electric servo motors working together with a cable-driven system, acting like the tendons in a person’s hand. With this design, users can grab things from different angles, yet the configuration isn’t likely to bend or twist under other forces. The gripper is designed to handle both fragile meringues and oddly shaped fruits easily without harm.
The full-electric actuation of these grippers is one of their main advantages. While pneumatic systems depend on air, hoses and valves, Ubiros’ grippers do not, so they are simpler and more silent. The design makes drone integration easier and can lead to improved energy efficiency which is crucial today in manufacturing factories.
How Technology Works in Actual Situations
In sectors where product quality needs to be high, Ubiros grippers can be widely applied. Bakeries use the Gentle Duo gripper to deal with delicately shaped baked goods like muffins and croissants, making certain they arrive fresh and clean to consumers. Grippers are also efficient tools in meat and poultry production, holding items that often slip and have various shapes which helps waste less and keeps hands clean.
Important pluses noticed in deployments are:
- Gentle handling means items come out of the delivery process with fewer bruises or breakages.
- Greater Efficiency: Better speeds and less manual activity are achieved with production control.
- Less energy is needed as a result of removing pneumatic devices.
- Better Hygiene: Washable and waterproof products meet important guidelines for food safety.
These benefits increase how efficiently things are done and also make businesses more sustainable by decreasing waste and energy use.
An Insider Look at the Future of Food Robotics
Onder Ondemir suggests that their technology can help more than just finance:
Softly grabbing different kinds of food while preparing them is a main obstacle to automation. What we really need to tackle is the lack of workers available.”
This point of view underlines how they address technical needs and also address problems related to labor shortages. When robots are used to do what humans traditionally did, companies find they can invest human resources into roles that require more skill, creating a more productive workforce.
Utilizing collaborative robots together with advanced grippers now allows automation to be affordable for many small and medium-sized businesses.
Looking Forward: How Soft Robotics Is Developing
Ubiros’s new capabilities open the door to new successes in robotics when dealing with sensitive tasks. As technology advances, we expect improvements in how we detect and respond to our surroundings. These advancements will also help us better integrate them into our daily routines.
Consequently, soft robotics will probably play a bigger role in pharmaceuticals, electronics and caring for elderly people in addition to food handling.
Making robots autonomous, more caring and more effective continues to be a work in progress. Yet, thanks to the Gentle gripper created by Ubiros, the industry is closer to sharing the same space with robots and handmade editions.