Working safely with collaborative robots
Project status: Complete
How can workers engage safely with collaborative robots?
It’s straight forward with the Guidelines for Safe Collaborative Robot Design and Implementation.
The use of collaborative robots (cobots) in Australian workplaces is rapidly increasing. Cobots offer both workers and business the opportunity to complete repetitive tasks more efficiently.
But with this new technology comes new risks to the health and safety of workers in these changing environments. The challenge these risks posed is that their implications hadn’t been fully explored, leaving workers vulnerable while their workplaces and roles quickly transform.
As the adoption of collaborative robotics continues to accelerate, it’s crucial that we stay ahead of the curve and anticipate the future implications of these innovative technologies.
That’s where the Centre for Work Health and Safety and its research partners come in.
Designing safeguards for cobots and workers
Partnering with the Centre for Advanced Manufacturing, University of Technology Sydney, Robotics Institute, University of Technology Sydney, Centre for Inclusive Design and Kairos Now, we undertook research to better understand these risks, and develop guidance on how to safely introduce and use cobots in the workplace.
Our team considered design principles of safe human-cobot workplaces, before conducting interviews and workshops with industry partners to help develop an effective intervention.
Resultantly, a WHS framework was created supporting the safe operation of collaborative, autonomous robots in the workplace. This was then translated into a practical set of guidelines.
And they are, ready for you to use
The Guidelines for Safe Collaborative Robot Design and Implementation offer businesses evidence-based tools to help review and analyse the implementation or ongoing management of cobots in their workplaces.
They have been extensively tested and analysed to increase the work health and safety outcomes for businesses and workers alike.
Further reading
- Work Health and safety risks and harms of cobots
- Principles to support safe design of collaborative robotic systems
Want to know more?
To work with the Centre, or stay up to date with our research, head to our Engage with us page.