QUEBEC CITY, Canada — Robotiq Inc. announced yesterday that its AirPick and EPick vacuum grippers are now compatible with other major collaborative robot offerings such as the Omron Collaborative Robot series.

Robotiq said it is a leading provider of collaborative robot, or cobot, hardware and software to free human workers from repetitive tasks. According to the company, its tools and know-how can simplify cobot applications so factories can start production faster. Robotiq works with a global network of connected robot experts who support their local manufacturers.

Kyoto, Japan-based Omron Corp. is a global leader in the field of robotics and industrial automation. Founded in 1933, the company has more than 36,000 employees worldwide, providing products and services in more than 100 countries. Known for its intuitive programming interface and integrated on-arm vision system, Omron builds systems to enable safe, flexible, and collaborative manufacturing between humans and robots.

Vacuum grippers an affordable option

The combination of Robotiq’s AirPick and EPick with Omron’s cobots offers an effective, low-cost solution for manufacturers, the companies said. The vacuum grippers can help automate applications such as machine tending, pick-and-place operations, packaging, and assembly.

AirPick and EPick are Robotiq’s latest additions to its complete lineup of reliable, high-quality grippers launched at Automate 2019 in Chicago this past April. These fully customizable vacuum grippers are designed for a wide range of industrial applications and are ideal for manipulating workpieces made of cardboard, glass, sheet metal, and plastic.

“Expanding AirPick and EPick’s compatibility to embrace other leading cobot brands such as Omron was an important objective for us,” said Jean-Philippe Jobin, co-founder and chief technology officer of Robotiq.

The announcement of AirPick and EPick’s new-and-improved compatibility accompanied the release of Robotiq’s updated software for its Adaptive Grippers on Omron Collaborative Robots, as well as other leading cobot brands.

“Robotiq’s vacuum grippers were engineered with the same goal in mind as the rest of our product family: to support manufacturers start production faster,” Jobin added. “We look forward to achieving this with cobot manufacturers like Omron.”

“Omron aims to make our collaborative robot easy to use and easy to integrate into full automation systems,” said Omron President and CEO Tom Mathias said,To this end, we’ve created a Plug&Play ecosystem of peripherals and software that are designed to be immediately compatible with our collaborative robots, so they can be deployed with minimal downtime.”

“We are excited to partner with Robotiq as part of this Plug&Play offering,” he added. “Several of Robotiq’s end effectors are already offered as plug-and-play grippers, and the addition of these two vacuum grippers adds to the functionality of our collaborative robots.”

WTWH Media has launched the Healthcare Robotics Engineering Forum, which will be on Dec. 9-10 in Santa Clara, Calif. The conference and expo focuses on improving the design, development and manufacture of next-generation healthcare robots. Learn more about the Healthcare Robotics Engineering Forum.