ZUFFENHAUSEN, Germany—Porsche is employing a six-axis collaborative robot from Comau on its assembly line here.
People and robots will cooperate to build car bodies at the factory, says Jens Thomer, the director of vehicle project and factory structure planning. The new robot’s metal muscles wear a sensitive skin. Using capacitive sensing, the skin can feel when a person is nearby or makes contact. The robot slows when it senses it’s close to a worker and stops if they touch.