Robotics – RPA versus Physical Robots and Cobots
Do I need automation or robotics?
First things first, if you are a business owner you are probably wondering whether automation or robotics is right for your business.
The quick answer is: it really depends on your current business needs.
Quickscan – Frequently asked questions about automation.
Consider these questions:
Are any tasks in your business currently done by human workers and are repetitive and boring?
Are any tasks in your business a bottleneck to productivity?
Are they physical tasks or virtual tasks?
RPARobotic Process Automation
Robotics physical robots. Robots for industrial process automation, order picking, logistics…
If you can think of even one or two tasks which are repetitive or cause a
bottleneck, they may be a good candidate for automation.
If they are physical tasks, industrial automation or robotics could be
the answer. If they are virtual tasks, a form of software automation
might work.
What are automation and robotics?
The basic difference between automation and robotics can be seen in their definitions:
Automation means using computer software, machines or other
technology to carry out a task which would otherwise be done by a human
worker. There are many types of automation, ranging from the fully
mechanical to the fully virtual, and from the very simple to the
mind-blowingly complex.
Robotics is a branch of engineering which incorporates multiple disciplines to design, build, program and use robotic machines.
There are obviously crossovers between the two. Robots are used to
automate some physical tasks, such as in manufacturing. However, many
types of automation have nothing to do with physical robots. Also, many
branches of robotics have nothing to do with automation.
Make sense?
Let’s look more closely at the different terminologies.
What Is automation?
A lot of industries are talking about automation at the moment. Terms
like Business Process Automation, Robotic Process Automation, adaptive
automation and test automation are all over the place.
There are two basic types of automation: software automation and industrial automation.
Software automation
Most of the information on automation that you can find online is about
software automation. This involves using software to carry out tasks
which humans usually do when they are using computer programs.
For example, GUI test automation is a way to test computer programs. It
involves recording the actions of a human while they are using a
graphical user interface. These actions are then replayed to
autonomously test the program after changes have been made to the
underlying software.
Other types of software automation include:
Business Process Automation (BPA) — This is a high-level strategy
to streamline business processes. It involves formalizing all processes
within the business and then integrating them into automation software.
Implementing BPA can involve dramatically restructuring the business.
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) — Despite its name, RPA has
nothing at all to do with physical robots. It refers to “software
robots” which are programmed to use computer programs in the same way as
a human operator would. They don’t necessarily complete tasks in the
most efficient way, but they are easier to integrate into the existing
business processes.
Intelligent Process Automation (IPA) — This is an extension of
RPA which uses artificial intelligence to learn how humans perform tasks
when using a computer program. This allows the “software robots” to
perform more intelligently than with the static rules used in RPA.
The difference between BPA and RPA is quite subtle. To use an analogy
from robotic manufacturing, BPA is a bit like ripping out your entire
human-operated production line and replacing it with a fully autonomous
factory. RPA is like adding a collaborative robot to one workstation
within the production line.
Industrial automation
When we talk about “automation and robotics”, we are usually referring to industrial automation.
Industrial automation is all about controlling physical processes. It
involves using physical machines and control systems to automate tasks
within an industrial process. A fully autonomous factory is the extreme
example.
There are many types of machine within industrial automation. For example, CNC machines are common in manufacturing.
Robots are only one type of machine.
What Is Robotics?
Let’s start with the basics. Robots are programmable machines which are
able to carry out a series of actions autonomously, or
semi-autonomously. They interact with the physical world via sensors and
actuators. Because they are reprogrammable, they are more flexible than
single-function machines.
Robotics, therefore, refers to anything involving robots.
Within industrial automation, robots are used as a flexible way to
automate a physical task or process. Collaborative robots are designed
to carry out the task in the same way a human would. More traditional
industrial robots tend to carry out the task more efficiently than a
human would.
So… Do I Want Robotics or Automation?
When deciding whether to invest in automation for your business, consider the following:
Decide if you want to automate part of your business.
If the tasks or processes you want to automate are virtual, look into software automation.
If the tasks or processes you want to automate are physical, look into industrial automation.
Determine if your physical tasks or processes could be performed by a robot.
If so, look into robotics as a solution.
If not, look into other industrial automation options.
About us:
Data Driven Projects & Professionals.
Industry 4.0 is the current trend of data exchange, automation and
interrelationship in manufacturing technologies towards Smart
Industries. This revolution is driven by giant leaps in ICT innovation
and promises to radically alter the face of industry in the coming
decades, based on a network-centric communication between players,
humans and systems that implement high quality business processes and
management, in the entire value network, including the end-users.
We are looking forward to your use cases, your challenges, Please contact us to team up.
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