The number of industrial robots sold increased by 29% in 2017 compared to 2016. A total of 380,550 industrial robots were sold worldwide, up from 294,300 units in 2016.
This is according to figures from the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), collected in the World Robotics Report 2018. Figure sales have skyrocketed in China. In total, 58% more industrial robots went over the counter in the Asian country than in 2016. A total of 138,000 new industrial robots were sold in China last year. Other Asian countries are also seeing a rapid rise in the number of robots. For instance, the number of industrial robots in South Korea increased by 40,000 units, while the number in Japan rose by 38,000.
Growth in other countries too
Other countries also showed growth, although substantially lower than in China. For example, the number of industrial robots sold in Germany increased by 8%, making Germany the fastest-growing market for industrial robots in Europe. A total of 22,000 new industrial robots were commissioned in Germany.
In the Americas, the United States (US) leads the way with a 6% increase. Despite this growth rate being lower than in Germany, more industrial robots were sold in absolute numbers in the US. In total, 33,000 units were sold.
Digitisation, simplification and human-robot collaboration
"The growth of industrial robots continues at an impressive pace worldwide," said Junji Tsuda, director of the IFR. "Key trends such as digitisation, simplification and human-robot collaboration will shape the future and drive rapid development forward."
Thanks to digitisation, production is increasingly connected to the 'virtual data world', states the IFR. This offers new opportunities for analytics, for which machine learning can be used. Robots will also increasingly be able to acquire new skills through learning.
Simpler and faster programming
The IFR points out that the industry is simultaneously working on simplifying the operation of robots. The organisation expects robots in the future to be easier and faster to program via intuitive procedures. This will be of interest not only to parties that have been using robots for some time, but also to small- and medium-sized companies, which will thus be able to embrace automation without having to hire specialised staff to do so.
This development, according to the IFR, paves the way for the third major trend in robotics: human-robot collaborations that no longer require robots to be placed behind a safety screen. This form of collaboration offers new opportunities for flexible production processes, the organisation argues. For example, future forms of human-robot collaboration will support the production of highly complex parts in small batches.
Author: Wouter Hoeffnagel
Source: IFR
Source photo: Pixabay / antoniohez
