Rockwell Automation, Comau partner on unified robot controls

Rockwell Automation has partnered with Comau, an industrial automation provider and robot manufacturer to maximize manufacturing efficiencies through unified robot control solutions.

The partnership is a collaborative development and selling model that offers the unified robot control product to both companies’ customers.

Engineers will now be able to program their entire machine in one environment, including Comau robot arms directly controlled through Rockwell Automation’s Logix-based controllers.

Comau’s robot range serves a variety of industries, from automotive to logistics, food and beverage, and packaging, just to name a few. It includes more than 40 different industrial robotic arms, with load capacities from three to 650 kilograms.

With the partnership, machine builders, system integrators will be able to use digital engineering tools like Rockwell’s Emulate 3D digital twin software, which creates digital models of production lines, auto-generates machine control code, and has built in capabilities for Comau robots.

The combined Rockwell and Comau solutions will also offer benefits beyond enhanced integration. For example, end users can use analytics and digital twin tools to gain deeper insights into machine performance and potential production optimization. They can also use safety and security solutions to help reduce business risks.

Operators on the manufacturing floor who use Rockwell’s FactoryTalk software suite will benefit from being able to see both line and robot control systems on a single interface. In-plant and remote technicians will only need to learn and maintain one architecture to monitor both systems. They can also use Rockwell’s augmented reality (AR) tools to help improve lifecycle and service cycle maintenance.