With many years of experience in the field of industrial automation, Intech Group offers comprehensive product picking and placing robot solutions, suitable for the characteristics of each production line. Let's learn about this technology with Intech Group in the article below.

What is a product picking and placing robot?

A product picking and placing robot (also known as a pick & place robot) is an automatic device programmed to perform the operations of picking, moving and placing objects from one position to another quickly, accurately and stably.

Depending on the requirements of the line, the picking robot can operate independently or in combination with sensors, machine vision to identify the location, shape, color or size of the product. Thanks to that, the robot can flexibly operate in many different working environments from packaging, palletizing, CNC assembly, to automatic product sorting.

Nowadays, in addition to traditional industrial robots, businesses also prefer to use cobot packaging, a line of collaborative robots that can work safely with humans, help optimize space, are easy to program, and are suitable for small and medium-sized factories that are converting to smart manufacturing models.

Structure of a product picking and placing robot

A standard product picking and placing robot is usually made up of many parts that work together closely. Below are the main components of the robot:

- Robot arm (movement mechanism): This is the part responsible for moving and positioning the robot to the position that needs to be picked up. The robot arm can be designed in many forms such as Cartesian coordinates, SCARA arm, Delta robot, or 6-axis robot.

- Gripper: Also known as the robot gripper, this is the part that directly contacts and holds the product. The gripper can operate according to a mechanical clamping mechanism, vacuum suction or electromagnet.

- Central controller: Responsible for processing data, controlling movements and coordinating smoothly between axes, ensuring all operations take place accurately, quickly and stably.

- Sensors and vision cameras: Integrated to identify the position, orientation and size of the product, helping the robot operate accurately even in production environments with small deviations or high precision requirements.

- Power source and pneumatic system: Some systems use compressed air for clamping mechanisms, while modern robot lines integrate servo electric motors to increase accuracy and save energy.

This flexible structure also helps robots easily expand to many other fields such as cargo handling robots, automatic packaging or pallet loading and unloading in smart warehouses.

Characteristics of product picking and placing robots by industry

Product picking and placing robots are specially designed to meet the diverse needs of each field. Each type of robot has its own structure, features and applications. Below are the common types of robots:

Electronic component picking robots

Electronic component picking robots are robots with extremely high precision, commonly used in the electronics, telecommunications and technology equipment assembly industries.

They are capable of picking and placing micro-components such as chips, circuit boards or sensors on SMT lines at high speed and without errors. Thanks to that, businesses can minimize assembly errors, increase efficiency and improve the quality of output products.

Workpiece picking robots

Workpiece picking robots are used to automatically feed metal workpieces into CNC machines, lathes or stamping machines, then take out the products after the processing process.

This type of robot helps ensure absolute safety for operators, minimizes work accidents and maintains a stable and continuous production rhythm.

Bag Picker Robot

Bag Picker Robot plays an important role in automatically picking, moving and stacking cement bags, fertilizers, or animal feed from conveyor belts onto pallets. With the ability to operate accurately and at high speed, robots help reduce manual labor, stack goods neatly and evenly and significantly save labor costs.

Plastic product gripper robot

Plastic product gripper robot, used in the injection molding industry to remove products from the machine, cut burrs or arrange them on trays.

The robot operates at a fast, precise speed, while ensuring that plastic products are not scratched or deformed. This is an ideal solution for businesses that manufacture electronic components, household appliances and high-tech plastic products.

Wood gripper robot

In the wood processing industry, wood gripper robots are used to move and arrange wooden boards and wooden bars on the production line.

Thanks to the ability to grip and lift gently and accurately, the robot helps to limit damage to the wood surface, while optimizing lifting and placing operations, bringing higher production efficiency and minimizing labor costs.

Carton gripper robot / carton gripper robot

The gripper robot or carton gripper robot is the optimal choice for businesses operating in the fields of logistics, warehousing and packaging.

This robot can automatically pick up, move and stack boxes, packages or pallets quickly and accurately. When combined with packaging cobots, the system becomes a fully automated packaging line, helping businesses increase flexibility in handling goods.

Multi-purpose product picking robot

Multi-purpose product picking robots are a new trend in modern packaging and assembly lines. They can pick up many types of products with different sizes and weights simply by changing the gripper, bringing high flexibility and significant savings on equipment investment costs.

Popular types of pick and place robots today

Based on structure and practical application, robots are divided into many different types, below are the most popular and widely used types of pick and place robots in modern factories.

Cartesian pick and place robots

Cartesian robots (or rectangular coordinate robots) operate based on three axes X, Y, Z allowing precise linear motion in three-dimensional space. This robot has a simple structure, is easy to program and has low investment costs.

Commonly used in the plastic injection, mechanical processing and product packaging industries. For example, Cartesian robots can pick up parts from CNC machines, stack them on trays or remove plastic products from injection molding machines accurately and quickly.

SCARA Picker Robot

SCARA (Selective Compliance Assembly Robot Arm) robots have a flexible rotating arm structure, suitable for applications requiring high speed and moderate precision. The SCARA robot's arm can move flexibly in the horizontal plane, helping it handle fast picking and placing, assembling or packaging operations well.

Application: Often used in the electronics industry, component assembly, or food packaging lines. For example, SCARA robots can pick up small components, stack bottles, or put products on conveyor belts at high speed.

6-axis industrial robot

6-axis robot is the most flexible robot today, can move and rotate in six different directions, simulating the movement of human arm.

Application: Used in welding, assembly, packaging, loading and unloading, and picking up products with complex shapes. For example, in the assembly line of motorbikes, cars or electronic equipment production, robots can pick up components, rotate or arrange them in a certain direction.

Delta Robot

Delta Robots have a triangular structure, operate extremely fast and accurately, and are usually installed above the conveyor belt with the ability to handle hundreds of operations per minute.

Application: Delta Robots are often used to sort products, pick up candy, bottles or small boxes from the conveyor belt and place them in packaging, ensuring high speed and uniformity throughout the process.

Automatic Cargo Handling Robot Station

Robotic Palletizing Station is a modern automation solution that helps businesses load and unload goods quickly, accurately and safely. With a tool head with strong suction, it can pick up a variety of models such as cartons, bottles, jars, and flexibly palletize them in factory or warehouse environments.

Application: Popular in logistics, distribution warehouses, food and beverage production, garments, electronics, etc. For example, robots can automatically pick up product boxes from the conveyor belt, stack them on pallets according to pre-set layouts, and easily integrate with cartoning machines.

Benefits of using product picking and placing robots

Investing in product picking and placing robots brings many outstanding benefits to manufacturing enterprises:

- Robots operate continuously 24/7 at a stable speed, helping the production line reach maximum capacity.

- Minimize errors in operations, especially in stages that require precision such as picking electronic components or packaging light goods.

- Robots replace repetitive work, helping businesses optimize operating costs.

- Reduce risks in toxic environments, high temperatures or heavy loading and unloading stages.

- Picking robots can be flexibly designed to suit all production lines, helping to increase automation and production efficiency.

Criteria for choosing the right picking and placing robot

Choosing the right product picking and placing robot is an important step to help businesses achieve the highest investment efficiency. Here are the criteria to consider:

- Picking capacity: Determine the weight of the object to be picked (bags, boxes, components, pallets, etc.) to choose a robot with a suitable load. You should choose a robot with a load 10 - 20% higher than the actual load to ensure durability and stability during long-term operation.

- Speed ​​& accuracy: For high-speed production lines, you should choose a robot with a fast pick-and-place cycle. If the product is small and requires high precision (such as in the electronics industry), you should choose a robot with an error of ≤ ±0.1 mm.

- Working space: Measure the exact moving range and installation area to choose a robot with the appropriate reach and number of axes, such as Cartesian, SCARA, Delta or 6-axis robots.

- Type of gripper (robot gripper): Depending on the type of product, businesses can choose a mechanical, vacuum or electromagnet gripper. With a diverse product line, you should choose a robot with an easily changeable gripper for more flexibility in operation.

- System integration capability: The robot needs to be compatible with the conveyor belt, PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) system, camera, and existing sensors to ensure synchronization of the entire production line.

- Budget & after-sales service: Prioritize choosing a robot from a reputable brand, with a service center in Vietnam, easy to maintain, and a clear warranty policy.

Intech Group provides comprehensive product picking and placing robot solutions

With more than 14 years of experience in the field of automation and industrial robots, Intech Group is proud to be the leading unit in Vietnam providing comprehensive product picking and placing robot solutions, meeting diverse needs in manufacturing industries such as electronics, mechanics, food - beverage, garment, pharmaceuticals, logistics and many other fields.

Intech Group provides synchronous integration solutions between robots and other automated systems such as conveyors, operating tables, product sorting systems, weighing conveyors, automatic packaging lines, smart warehouses and production management software (MES/ERP). From there, helping businesses:

Automate the entire production process, minimize manual operations.

Improve productivity and accuracy, ensure consistent product quality.

Optimize labor costs, reduce risks and increase operational efficiency.

With a team of experienced engineers, Intech Group always accompanies businesses from consulting, designing, manufacturing, installing to handover and maintenance, providing the most suitable solution for each actual production line. Contact us today for advice.