Audi has introduced a robot at its A4/A5/Q5 assembly lines at the Ingolstadt plant in Germany which is expected to work hand-in-hand with humans.
The robot dubbed 'PART4you' is designed to make ergonomic improvements in the assembly and marks the first human-robot cooperation at the Volkswagen Group.
The robot has soft protective skin with integrated safety sensors and is fitted with a camera along with an integrated suction cup which helps it pick up the materials and pass them to the assembly workers, which provides an important assistance to the workers without any safety barrier.
The robot selects the component and holds it ready to be taken, which reduces the need for employees to reach long distance and bend over to get the components.
Audi Group Works Council chairman Peter Mosch said: "We see the opportunities presented by the advancing interaction between man and machine. The decisive aspect for us is how this development is guided. We welcome it when it neither jeopardizes jobs nor leads to people losing independence to machines."
